Ed and Patsy now live in Athens, Alabama and are members at the Pepper Road church. As administrator of this blog, he enjoys sharing thoughts about spiritual maters. Not only his thoughts but good articles from other authors. He is also thankful to have been able to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ for over sixty years.
Twice the King James Version of the Bible reads, “All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient… (1 Corinthians 6:12; 10:23). In these verses, “all things” is translated from a form of the Gr. πς (pas). According to Strong, it means “all” or “every.” Its application in the form in our text is limited to the context, rather than being universal in scope. It refers to all the people and things being considered at the time.
This type of writing/speaking is not limited to biblical writings. When I was growing up, we received the Franklin County Times, a weekly newspaper. Almost every community in the county had its local reporter. They would describe events of the past week. It might have been a shower (bridal or baby), a quilting or a mattress making, etc. Nearly every article would end with: “A good time was had by all (or everyone). We understood that they were referring only to those present at the time and place under consideration.
A thing may be “lawful” in two ways: 1) Required by law or 2) Allowed by law. If required it must be done. If merely allowed, it may or may not be done, depending on the situation at hand. All things required by law are always expedient while things merely allowed are not always so.
“Expedient” according to good word studies and widely used English translations, other than the old King James, means “helpful” or “profitable.” One modern (Bible in Basic English) renders it “wise.” In our texts, the apostle concedes that the things under consideration were lawful (permitted by law), but that didn’t mean they should be done – they needed also to meet the expediency test.
We hear a great deal, among Christians today, about the difference between things of law and things of expediency. For examples, the Lord’s day assembly is considered a matter of law while the time and place are considered expedients (some say, “authorized options”). The elements of the Lord’s Supper are set by law, while the containers are expedients. For the most part, discussions along these lines are profitable.
However, in the last few years, we are seeing what we believe to be an open season on expedients. Some seem to be pushing for change just for the sake of change when it comes to expedients (things permitted by law). Those I have in mind would not stand for changing anything required by law. They are basically good brethren who have been caught up in a restless culture that is always looking for ways to upset the status quo or tradition – no matter what the status quo or tradition may be. It makes little difference whether it is politics, business, or religion the “it-is-time-for-change” message is preached. Often that may be the message needed, but not always. Sometimes the status quo still works best.
The scenario goes something like this: A member moves into a community and “places memberships or a young member grows of the congregation grows up. In either case they decide that the worship experience needs to be made more meaningful by replacing the “traditions” with something “better.”
The end result of all of this is constant internal confusion and instability within congregations fueled by constant calls for change – whether change is needed or not. Just because a tradition has been in place for years is no reason to arbitrarily change it. It has been kept so long for a reason. I still works!