Different Things to Different People (Feb. 4, 2024) 1 Cor. 9.16-23

There have been times when asked about why I follow the Lectionary, I need to think about the question. Do I not have the freedom to choose the text that I want for a Sunday service (the answer is yes)? Do some churches follow a sermon series based on the text that they want to preach (again, the answer is yes)? So, why should I follow something that restricts me to texts that sometimes cut off important sections that come before or after a text?

My answer is this: The lectionary will oftentimes take me out of my comfort zone. If I followed my wishes, I would preach from texts that seem easy to interpret, easy to preach, and easy for the listener to hear. Something that does not confront our shortcomings and our call to be what God wants us to be. Another answer is that the lectionary will give texts that I would never think of preaching.

It also gives a First Testament reading, a reading from Psalms, a reading from the second testament (usually the letters) and a reading from the Gospels. In choosing a text, there is a wide variety in the lectionary. And with this variety come texts that call us to attention. But there are other texts that can leaves us scratching our heads and wondering what the committee who put together this lectionary was thinking.

Today’s text might be one of the latter. It is from Paul’s first letter to the church in Corinth and it is a challenge to understand without some context.

Paul’s letter is a response to a letter or report that he received from those in Corinth. There are divisions and strife within the church and there are also some activities going on that are not in line with the message of Christ. But there are also grumblings about Paul and his authority. His apostleship is questioned and his not taking pay for his work but rather working with his hands is looked upon with some consternation, especially by those in the upper class. This is because to them working with one’s hands was seen as what poor people did, therefore beneath them.

They were used to teachers who asked for payment for their teachings. There was one group known as Sophists who traveled around and taught philosophy and other subjects for a fee, oftentimes paid by a wealthy benefactor. Paul does not do this.

With this in mind, Paul gives a defense that leads up to and includes today’s text. He states that he does have the right to earn pay for his teaching and that anyone who is an apostle has that right. But Paul does not make use of that right because he does not want to put any obstacle in the way of the Gospel. To him this would be the ultimate drawback to his preaching. See, Paul knows that if he takes pay from a wealthy benefactor, then he is beholden to that benefactor. And one who is beholden to a benefactor in Roman times was one who said things that the benefactor wanted to hear. Paul is not willing to do this. Plus, Paul says that the Gospel he preaches is free of charge. One does not need to come and pay a fee to learn about the Gospel. One only need listen to it, for free, and respond. It is still free today, unlike some religions. Scientology, which has many high-profile adherents, is one religion that demands payment. To gain access to “higher” knowledge and further influence, one must continue to pay higher fees. Paul would be appalled by this and point to the fact that this is what he is trying to avoid. To Paul, proclaiming the Gospel is an obligation akin to that given to slave by a master. Charles Campbell gives this illustration as Paul’s obligation to preach the Gospel: “Preaching is not something people choose to do. The frequent advice of pastors to those considering a call to ministry is apt here: “If you can do anything else, do it.” That is not a derogatory comment about ministry or a subtle encouragement to avoid it if you can. Rather, it is a reminder that ministry is a calling, an obligation laid upon the person.”[1] For Paul the obligation is such that he will not make use of his “rights” to be paid. The obligation is to preach what he has to give freely.

Paul then goes to what I like to call the heart of this passage. Here he states that “though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them.”[2]He is free, but with that freedom comes responsibility. We like to imagine freedom as not having any constraints on us, that we can do whatever we choose to do. That is not freedom. It is anarchy or chaos. It is without responsibility, and it will cause more harm than good. Paul knows this and puts himself as slave to all.

What does this slavery look like? To Paul it is reaching out to people where they are. To the Jews, Paul becomes a Jew. To those under the law, he becomes one under the law (though he makes it clear that he is not under the law except the law of Christ. What he means here is that he realizes that salvation comes not from adherence to the law but from God alone.) To those outside the law, he becomes one outside the law. These are the Gentiles to whom Paul is evangelizing. These are the people in Corinth to whom Paul ministered. If you want to see how Paul works as one outside the law, read the letter to the Galatians. Here Paul is saying that he can eat meat that is sacrificed to idols because they do not exist and therefore are not other gods. Those outside the law do not need to come under the law to be Christians. And finally, Paul becomes weak to the weak. These are the poor and oppressed. These are brothers and sisters whose faith hangs by a thread and are not sure if eating meat is the right thing to do (for those, Paul says he will not eat meat if it causes one to stumble and fall). These are the ones upon whom the upper-class Christians look down. Paul does not say that he will become like the weak, but that he becomes weak. Those in the upper class would be appalled at such a statement. Here is one who deserves more than what he is taking becoming one of the ones who are beneath us in the social structure? What does that say for us who listened to him and believed? But to Paul this is his calling. He is to be different things to different people.

To us it sounds as if Paul is being a bit wishy-washy in his approach to those whom he is preaching. If he is “all things to all people” where is the definite line? Where is the message and just what is the message? Does Paul change that to suit the different groups he encounters? No. The message is the same one he preached and is still preaching: God’s grace, free to all. Paul is just trying to reach people where they are. Campbell says: “On one level, Paul sounds rather wishy-washy, like a chameleon who will gladly change colors depending on whom he is addressing: “I have become all things to all people.” Most of us have seen so many politicians engage in this tactic that we are rightly suspicious of it. On another level, however, this is not what Paul is up to at all. Rather, Paul is crossing boundaries and disrupting categories to bring the gospel to diverse people. He identifies with others so that he can proclaim the gospel in a way that can be heard. Becoming “a slave to all” is simply a means to the end of trying to “save some” (vv. 19, 22).”[3]J. Paul Sampley says that Paul is reaching out and providing the Gospel for all on their own terms. Those who are not Jews do not have to become Jews in order to hear the Gospel. He says, “…people do not have to possess authorized, pre-approved dippers before they can drink from the gospel. Paul custom-pours. Paul’s is a noteworthy confidence that the gospel does not have to be protected by issuing it only in pre-approved containers.”[4]Paul is going to the people he wants to bring to God rather than have them come to him. He meets them where they are and gets to know them, understand them, and bring the gospel to them where they are. Paul states that “I do it all for the sake of the gospel, so that I may share in its blessings.”[5]

Being different things to different people does not change who we are. Some people see us as something that is a part of us. And to them we can be that person if we remain true to ourselves. The place where we err is when we try to be the person others think we are all the time. But if we keep to who we are and to the message that we bring, we can be different things to different people. Missionaries find that they must, like Paul, meet people where they are. Matteo Ricci was a Jesuit who did prodigious mission work in China. His work was initially not particularly successful until he realized that he was making the people become like him before they could come to Christ. Ricci changed his tactic by accepting Chinese dress and some customs to reach out to those whom he wished to share the Gospel.

Are we like Paul and Ricci? Do we meet people where they are and not where we want them to be? Or do we expect them to come to us before they can know the grace of God? How can we be “all things to all people”? it is a question that I ask myself and ponder if I am doing what I can to meet them where they are. Let us take the good news out and not expect them to come in before we share. There are many who are wanting what we have. Go and be a Paul. Amen.

[1] Campbell, Charles L. 1 Corinthians. Ed. Amy Plantinga Pauw and William C. Placher. First edition. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2018. Print. Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible. [2] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989. Print. [3] Campbell, Charles L. 1 Corinthians. Ed. Amy Plantinga Pauw and William C. Placher. First edition. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2018. Print. Belief: A Theological Commentary on the Bible. [4]Sampley, J. Paul. The First Letter to the Corinthians. New Interpreter’s Bible, Vol. IX. Nashville. Abingdon Press. 784. [5] The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1989. Print.