". . . take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to them that are weak." 1 Corinthians 8:9
"I don't see any harm in what I am doing, and therefore it is nobody's business but my own!" Have you ever heard anyone say that - or probably said it yourself You indulge some habit which you feel is harmless in itself, but forget what effect it may have on someone else. A man was entertaining some children by lighting a match and then, by placing the burning end in his mouth, extinguishing it. The father of one of the children saw it and said, "I wish you would not do that ;it is dangerous." The man replied, "I am not hurting myself." The reply was quick. "But it may hurt someone else." Then he pointed at his little son with a dressing on his upper lip. He said, "Yesterday my little Jimmie saw you do this trick and he thought it was all right for him to try it. See the result? He not only burned his lip but set fire to the tablecloth, and we barely kept the flames from spreading. You may not hurt yourself, but you have caused someone else to get hurt by your example."
Sometimes Christians are equally thoughtless. "Do thyself no harm," was Paul's wise word to the jailor (Acts 16:28), and it was good advice; but Romans 13:10 says, "Love worketh no ill to his neighbor." The believer should consider others before himself. The question should be: What effect has my liberty upon my neighbor? The believer is to deny himself (Luke 9:23); love his brother (1 John 3:14); look on things of others (Philippians: 2:4); minister to others' needs (Galatians 6:10); sympathize with sorrowing ones (Romans 12:15); prefer others before himself (Romans 12:10); and above all seek to please the Lord (Hebrews 13:21).
To deny one's self is quite a different thing than self-denial. We may deny ourselves some things because they are harmful to us, but to deny one's self is to make the sacrifice because it may harm others!
"Bread For Each Day"
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