Romans 14: 1 - 23

 Romans 14: 1 - 23

There is an old cliché, “In matters of faith, unity; in matters of opinion, liberty; and in all things, love.” That, to a certain degree, captures the spirit of Romans 14. If only it were that simple. We are often in disagreement on what is a matter of faith or orthodox Christian conduct and what is a matter of opinion or personal choice. We assume that what we call a matter of faith ought to be so for everyone. Rather than an endless list, Paul provides general principles and several examples and then a good hope.

In the church at Rome, some believers came to Christ out of Judaism, and they still felt that the regulations of the law should be observed. Paul describes these persons as having weak faith. Having been saved by grace, they continue to try to have a righteousness based on the law. There are two principles in dealing with anyone who has a weak faith: patience and gentleness. Using the example of keeping holy days or diet, Paul teaches that the road forward is not in criticism, argument, or debate. Rather leave them to the Lord. Jesus has saved them, and He can bring them through. It is almost as if Paul is saying, ‘Mind your own business.’.

But Paul also tells us not to put stumbling blocks in the path of other believers. The conscience is a strange thing. It is powerful but not completely trustworthy. Some people have done terrible things with a clear conscience. Our conscience is trainable, and it does not come fully formed when we are born. A young lady in a remote corner of New Guinea may dress modestly in her culture and conscience, but in North America a woman dressed that way would be a scandal, a stumbling block. We must be very careful about violating our own or asking someone else to violate their conscience. Not because conscience is always right, but because if we violate the conscience too often, it will become weakened and ineffective. God may be training and shaping a new believer’s conscience in one given area. If they have misguided scruples in another area and we teach them to ignore their conscience in that area, we may inadvertently teach them to ignore God's training in the first area as well. The kingdom is not so much about setting up a list of can and can't do. It is about righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.

“Lord, give me grace in the difficult situation of living in a Christian community. AMEN”