COMMITTED TO WINNING
1 Corinthians 9:19-23 ESV
19 For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but under the law of Christ) that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. 23 I do it all for the sake of the gospel, that I may share with them in its blessings.
Paul starts chapter nine with a defense of his right to receive material blessings from those he is preaching to. Paul even quotes an Old Testament passage about not muzzling the ox that is working to tread out the grain. Paul asks the question, is it really oxen that God is concerned about? Then answers the question by pointing to the idea that the principle pertained to preachers. I don't know that I like being compared to an ox, but I am willing to go with the principle that those preaching the gospel are to make their living from the gospel.
Paul, after defending that principle, tells the Corinthians that he does not take anything from them even though he has a right to. This leads to Paul's overarching theme in this chapter: doing whatever was necessary to reach people for Christ. If not taking money helps Paul reach people, that's what he will do. This leads to Paul's mentality about winning people to the Lord Jesus.
Paul declared that he was free from all men. He was free from their approval and free from their criticism. But he made himself a servant to all in order to win more to Christ. When Paul was with the Jews, he acted as a Jew. When working with people under the Law of Moses, he put himself under that Law even though he was free from it. Whenever Paul was among those people outside the Law, that's how he lived. Although he did mention he was still under the Law of Christ. Paul still lived submitted to God and His Word. Paul made himself a servant. No one forced him to take this stance. He was committed to winning, and for Paul, his idea of winning was winning people to the Lord.
This was not Paul subscribing to the old adage, "When in Rome, do as the Romans." This was not an excuse to live without restraints. This was Paul doing what it took to connect with the people he was trying to reach for the gospel's sake. And Paul was very effective in reaching the Gentile world. No surprise there. Paul was committed to winning.
APPLICATION
If someone were to read this chapter in the wrong light, they could use it to make a case for behavior that is not congruent with the Scriptures. Hanging out in strip clubs because there are many sinners who need to be reached is not an argument that will hold water. The Scriptures speak directly to avoid uncleanness and lust. That is not the commitment to winning that Paul was proclaiming. For us today this concept means we adapt to the culture we are in so that we might reach more for Christ.
As a minor example, if I am speaking to a church where coat and tie are the culture, then coat and tie it is for me. But if I am speaking to a group that cusses from the pulpit, I am not going there. That would violate my conscience, and I am still accountable to God. Committed to winning for the gospel's sake means we are looking for common ground so that we may reach more for Christ.