HOW TO BE FREE IN CHRIST by William Boekestein for Core Christianity
Four times in two verses in 1 Corinthians Paul quotes what was apparently a motto used by some Christians to justify improper use of Christian liberty: all things are lawful for me (6:12; 10:23). Paul’s use of the phrase in chapter six suggests that the Corinthians invoked Christian liberty to justify the gratification of illicit desires (see vv. 9–10; 13–20). His use of the phrase in chapter 10 pairs liberty and love for one’s neighbor (see vv. 24–33). Paul quotes the motto to let his readers know that he is aware of their thinking but that it isn’t entirely correct.
Yes, one of God’s most important gifts in salvation is freedom. Jesus came “To proclaim liberty to the captives” (Luke 4:18; cf. Is. 61:1). He summarized the gospel this way: “Whoever commits sin is a slave to sin…if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed” (John 8:34, 36). Paul too, charges believers to live freely. “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty” (Gal. 5:13). “Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free” (v. 1). Christian freedom was so important to Paul that the Corinthians might have adapted the motto—all things are lawful for me—from Paul’s own ministry (see Acts 18:13). Christians truly have much freedom in Christ. Those who are inheriting the earth (Matt. 5:5; cf. 1 Cor. 10:26, 28; Ps. 24:1) must start with the principle of freedom, not restriction.
So Paul qualifies rather than cancels the Corinthian motto. He simply charges Christians to use freedom wisely, suggesting three tests Christian liberty will pass if it is genuine.
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1 Is My Use of Liberty Legal?
Paul first quotes the Corinthian motto (1 Cor. 6:12) after having warned them against the consequences of radical depravity (vv. 9–10). Is he anticipating the Corinthian rebuttal that all things, even sexual sin, are lawful for those who have washed, sanctified, and justified? (v. 11).
The Corinthians were well aware of the freedom Christ gives believers in the New Covenant. Jesus boldly cancelled dietary restrictions: “There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man” (Mark 7:15). If Christians can eat food that was formerly unclean, might they not also engage in sexual activities that were formerly unclean? After all, we are not under law but under grace (Rom. 6:14) and God’s mercy is greater than our sin (Rom. 5:20).
