1 Corinthians 9: For the Sake of the Gospel

¹⁹ Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. ²⁰ To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. ²¹ To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. ²² To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. ²³ I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.

In these words from 1 Corinthians 9, we see Paul’s true heart revealed. His greatest desire was to see people experience the love Jesus offers. To help, Paul made himself a slave to others, in his words, adapting his style to fit whatever people he found himself among.

I personally find it interesting that Paul’s focus in these words was not on building up a particular church community, but rather for the sake of the gospel. His purpose was never external, but to offer others an internal transformation through the good news of Jesus that would result in changed lives, changed communities, and a changed world.

Beyond even our world, Paul knew the gospel message would also change lives for eternity. Even today, we who read Paul’s words gain understanding regarding the message of Jesus from the teachings he shared, a hope we can embrace for our lives and pass along to others during our journey today.

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Dillon Burroughs is the author and coauthor of numerous books and is handwriting a copy of all 31,173 verses of the Bible at HolyWritProject.com. Find out more about Dillon at Facebook.com/readdB or readdB.com.