While Paul in other places talks about laboring night and day to provide for his own needs so as not to be a burden, in 1 Corinthians 9, he speaks of the apostle’s right to be paid for his labors.

He says when God made a law about not muzzling the oxen, he wasn’t concerned about the oxen but His people. I do think God cares about animals, but Paul is making a point here, that laborers expect a share in the reward for his labors.

Paul didn’t make use of this right, though while in prison, believers cared for his needs.

It is Biblical though that those who share the gospel get their living from it.

Paul points out that the temple workers ate the food in the temple. Some of the sacrificial food was for those preparing the sacrifices.

Paul’s example is to share the gospel free of charge. He also makes it sound like it is a preacher’s right to charge. We take these points and put them together. We share the gospel freely and let people give freely back to us.

When Paul says he became all things to all people in order to save them, he doesn’t mean become sinful or worldly to be able to relate to people. What we see in Scripture is Paul adapting his message to the crowd, not changing the gospel message, but adapting how he approached them. He didn’t need to be bringing up Old Testament law with the Greeks, but it was appropriate with the Jews.

Go for gold! We don’t limp over the finish line as Christians. We want to win the race! Paul kept disciplined and self-controlled. He didn’t want to be disqualified by abandoning what he knew to be good and right.

We can be disqualified. How can we know that we won’t be? We trust God to keep us, to hold us fast, to cause us to walk in His ways. We rely on Him to save us. He is faithful!