Paul is writing to the Corinthians about why he and those with him are doing things a certain way. The passage seems somewhat trivial, as he's discussing strategy for bringing a gift and who is going with him to bring this gift. However, one statement here stood out to me:
"For we are taking pains to do what is right, not only in the eyes of the Lord, but also in the eyes of men." (8:21)
The popular response in our culture regarding what others might think is usually this: "I don't care what anybody else thinks." It's cool to not care. It supposedly shows a great independence, a "rogue"-like quality, a strong sense of confidence in who one is and what they do. Paul here calls this a completely wrong approach.
There is, of course, great value in not giving too much weight to what others think. Popular opinion should never drive our actions. Christians are even told in the Bible that they are to be aliens in the world, that they will be shunned and persecuted because they are not of the world. We aren't called to fit in.
However, Paul is saying Christians cannot afford to ignore the eyes of others; we must care what they think. While we don't necessarily need approval, we should strive for respect. It does matter what our worst enemies think about us and how the masses who despise our worldview see us. In fact, that probably matters most. We are representatives of Christ; and if our goal isn't to most accurately display Him to the world, we probably have misplaced priorities.
I've written down in my notes today what I believe is a good maxim to follow in word and in deed: bring no glory to self, bring no shame to God.
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