Paul is seeking to get the Corinthians believers to be more thoughtful towards others in regards their actions and particularly over the issue of taking food that had been sacrificed to idols. Paul is seeking to combat an attitude of some who saw themselves as being more enlightened and who felt free to insist on themselves being free to exercise their own rights.

Paul’s response is to speak about how as an apostle he didn’t demand that his own rights should be met, and he gave up the right to have a wife and to take pay for his gospel work while he was in Corinth (v1-18).

Paul then moves to this important principle of how he took on the form of a servant to others for the sake of the Gospel (v19-23). Paul had a passion not for his own rights to be met but rather to see Jews and Gentiles come to faith in Jesus. He says ‘I have become all things to all people’ (v22).

Paul highlights that his whole life is disciplined in order like an athlete, he reaches his goal, which is seeing people won for Christ (24-27). The big challenge here is to ask ourselves what are we devoted, what is our goal?