1 Corinthians · chapter 9 of 16
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1 Corinthians 9 shows how Paul applied the principle of chapter 8: though as an apostle he had the right to be supported by the church, he gave up that right so as not to hinder the gospel. He became all things to all people to win some, and compares the Christian life to a race that requires discipline to receive a crown that does not fade.
Paul has just asked the strong to give up their freedom for the sake of the weak. Now he uses his own example. Some in Corinth questioned his apostolic authority, so this chapter begins as a defense. But his central point is another: a servant of Christ willingly submits for the good of the gospel and of people.
Paul asks whether he is not free, not an apostle, whether he has not seen Jesus our Lord and whether the Corinthians are not his work in the Lord. Even if he is not an apostle to others, he is to them, for they are the seal of his apostleship. He has the right to eat and drink, to take along a believing wife as the other apostles, the Lord's brothers and Cephas do, and to refrain from working with his hands, as Barnabas does.
Paul defends that right with examples: a soldier does not serve at his own expense, one who plants a vineyard eats its fruit and a shepherd drinks the milk of the flock. The law of Moses supports him too, commanding that the threshing ox not be muzzled, and so does a rule of the Lord: those who proclaim the gospel should get their living from the gospel. Yet Paul has used none of these rights, so as not to put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ.
Preaching the gospel is no ground for boasting for him, but a necessity, and woe to him if he does not preach it! His reward is to preach it free of charge. Though free from all, he made himself a servant to all in order to win more: to the Jews he became like a Jew, to those under the law like one under the law, to those outside the law like one outside it, to the weak he became weak. He became all things to all people so that he might save some, and he does it all for the sake of the gospel.
Paul ends with the image of runners in the stadium: only one receives the prize, but they should run so as to win it. Everyone who competes exercises self-control in all things, and they do it for a perishable wreath, we for an imperishable one. Paul runs with purpose, not like one beating the air, and disciplines his body so that, after preaching to others, he himself will not be disqualified.
References follow ESV book names and verse numbers. Read each verse in your Bible before the explanation.
Paul explains that he has not used his right to be supported but bears all things so as not to put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ. For him, the gospel is worth more than his own rights.
Proclaiming the gospel is not a reason for pride for Paul but an obligation, and he says woe to him if he does not do it. It echoes a calling he cannot ignore.
Paul became all things to all people that he might save some, and he does it for the sake of the gospel. He does not change the message, but adapts his way of living and speaking to reach people.
All run in the stadium, but one receives the prize, so Paul urges them to run to win. Athletes discipline themselves for a wreath that fades; believers do so for one that does not.
6 questions with answers and references, ready for Sunday school, small group or a Bible quiz night.
Answer: The Corinthians. — 1 Corinthians 9:2
Answer: The command not to muzzle the ox while it treads out the grain. — 1 Corinthians 9:9
Answer: That they get their living by the gospel. — 1 Corinthians 9:14
Answer: To preach the gospel free of charge, without using his right. — 1 Corinthians 9:18
Answer: He became weak, to win the weak. — 1 Corinthians 9:22
Answer: Being disqualified. — 1 Corinthians 9:27
1 Corinthians 9 asks what we are willing to let go for the good of the gospel. It might be time, comfort or a legitimate right. A Sunday school teacher who prepares carefully without expecting recognition lives something of this.
It also invites us to get to know the people we want to reach. Paul did not change the message, but he did change how he approached people. And the image of the race reminds us that faith calls for discipline: habits of prayer, reading and service, not for merit but to keep us firm to the end.
1 Corinthians 9 ends with Paul running with discipline so as not to be disqualified. In chapter 10 he uses the history of Israel in the wilderness as a warning: whoever thinks he stands must take care lest he fall, and every temptation comes with a way out.
Paul does not change the gospel or his values to please people. He adapts to each group's customs and way of thinking to remove unnecessary obstacles and present the message clearly. It is a principle of service, not of convenience.
Because in Corinth charging could be confused with the habit of traveling teachers who lived off their hearers, and Paul wanted to avoid any obstacle to the gospel. Even so, he affirms that it is legitimate for the church to support those who devote themselves to preaching.
Paul speaks of not being disqualified from service or from the race, but does not explain exactly what he means. Some understand it as losing God's approval in ministry; others as the perseverance needed to the end. In either case, it is a call to seriousness.