Stumbling block - 1 Corinthians 8:9

But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumblingblock to them that are weak (KJV)

Then: Paul is in the middle of his explanation about eating food offered to idols. Scholars and Commentators come at his explanation, try to explain and categorize it, and understand its full meaning. Khiok-Khng Yeo summarizes four methods: theological, religious (historical), sociological and rhetorical (p. 5-9). Theological is the straight "what-matches-the-Lord's- precepts" approach. Wright's information about eating in the temples belongs in the sociological. The historical religious interpreters try to define who are the strong and who are the weak. Yeo himself works with rhetorical study, considering the methods of verbal communication and including information on audience identification, historical context, and Paul's interpersonal relations with the Corinthians. The verse is not a "pound-the-table, do-what's-right" style, but it is of the "look-you-in-the-eye" and "tell-it-like-it-is" variety.

Now: Usually teachers just read and relate the principle being presented (theology) and bring out its application to believers' lives. Often they use the Paul's teaching pattern: Give the principle, state current problems, and challenge listeners to live God's way by showing love at all times.

Extra Sources: Rhetorical Interaction in 1 Corinthians 8 and 10: A Formal Analysis With Preliminary Suggestions for a Chinese, Cross-Cultural Hermenuitic by Khiok-Khng Yeo (Brill Academic Publishers 1994) online at http://books.google.com/books?id=SdPaIlT1_PoC&pg=PA5&lpg=PA5&dq=Paul