Dr Paul Allen

For though I be free from all men, yet have I made myself servant unto all, that I might gain the more.” ( 1 Corinthians 9:19 ) In his letter to the Ephesians (4:11-16), Paul had noted that Christ had given specific gifts to the church—apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers. Paul himself was all of these, however, and he wanted to win as many people as he could from all walks of life. He therefore sought to be “made all things to all men, that [he] might by all means save some” ( 1 Corinthians 9:22 ). This, indeed, was a magnificent obsession, and every Christian should seek to emulate it, as the Lord enables. Paul was not saying, however, that a man should become as a woman to win women to the Lord, or that a woman should become as a man to win men; neither should he become a humanist to win humanists. One should never dilute the doctrines of the faith or Christian standards of conduct in order to win commitments to the church. Paul was not laying down guidelin...