1 Corinthians 8:6-11 -- On Conscience and Example

"But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.
Howbeit there is not in every man that knowledge: for some with conscience of the idol unto this hour eat it as a thing offered unto an idol; and their conscience being weak is defiled.
But meat commendeth us not to God: for neither, if we eat, are we the better; neither, if we eat not, are we the worse.
But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak.
For if any man see thee which hast knowledge sit at meat in the idol’s temple, shall not the conscience of him which is weak be emboldened to eat those things which are offered to idols;
And through thy knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died?"
1 Corinthians 8:6-11


It is interesting here that at least part of right and wrong is purely in intention rather than in action. That fits really well with "Abstain from all appearance of evil" (1 Thessalonians 5:22), because the core of the idea is not just what we do and whether God is okay with it, but also how we affect others. Even if our actions are totally okay, if we do them in a way that will harm someone else, not just directly, but indirectly if they misinterpret what we are doing and are still harmed by it.

Probably not a great example, but one that comes to mind... IBC Root Beer is sold in bottles that look like beer bottles. If you drank that in front of children that thought you were drinking beer, you might contribute to the idea that drinking is something they should try, or that it is something that is okay at a church activity or whatever, thereby leading them astray by example. ... Definitely not saying never drink that brand of root beer, but just the general idea. We shouldn't encourage other people to stray from the path, especially because we are all weak in some way, and if our example punches them in their weakness, no matter how strong we are, we're not helping to uplift others.

Today, let's think not only about what we are doing, but about whether we are setting a good example for others. God doesn't need us to all be clones of the prophet, but let's do our best to not hurt anyone who is observing our behavior. Let's be in tune with the Spirit and work on being good *and* lifting others where we can.