July 28
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WAIVING RIGHTS TO PREACH THE GOSPEL
15 But I have used none of these things. And I have not written these things so that it will be done so in my case; for it would be better for me to die than that. No one shall make my boast an empty one! 16 For if I preach the gospel, I have nothing to boast about, for I am under compulsion; for woe to me if I do not preach the gospel. 17 For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have been entrusted with a commission nonetheless. 18 What, then, is my reward? That, when I preach the gospel, I may offer the gospel without charge, so as not to make full use of my right in the gospel.
– 1 Corinthians 9:15-18
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Matthew 10:10 says that a worker is worthy of his food and in Luke 10:8 it says that whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you. These are verses that clearly spell out that a worker has the right for payment for what they have worked for.
According to some commentary, the Corinthians look up so much to the Greek culture and think that it is superior. The Greeks looked down its nose on all manual labor. Even though the Corinthian Christians thought less of Paul because he worked with his own hands to support himself, Paul wasn’t ashamed of it. In fact, he was boasting about the fact that although he could have asked for support from the Corinthian believers, he chose to forego this right. The Lord called him to preach the gospel and that in itself was the reward that he treasures more than anything else.
According to David Guzik’s commentary on this letter, in Paul’s day, there were a lot of religious entrepreneurs, who were out to preach any message to get money. Paul was happy to distance himself from these by never taking an offering so no one would think he might abuse [his] authority in the gospel. This was Paul’s reward. Guzik further comments “We may not ever be faced with the same decision Paul faced – to accept or deny support for the good of the gospel. But we each have a critical question to answer: what rights are you willing to sacrifice for the cause of Jesus?”
What a question to ponder on. Some believers forget that we have waived off our rights in this world because we are serving the Lord Jesus Christ. Fighting for one’s right is very prevalent in the world today. When we clamor for our rights, we think we deserve things.
When we relinquish it, we are testament to the grace of God and we trust His providence.
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REFLECTION
• Why did Paul relinquish his right to be supported by the Corinthian church?