Romans 14

Romans 14:1

F. In Relation to Other Believers (14:1-15:13) 14:1 Romans 14:1-15:13 deals with important principles to guide God’s people in dealing with matters of secondary importance. These are the things that so often cause conflict among believers, but such conflict is quite unnecessary, as we shall see. A weak Christian is one who has unfounded scruples over matters of secondary importance. In this context, he was often a converted Jew who still had scruples about eating nonkosher foods or working on Saturday. The first principle is this: a weak Christian should be received into the local fellowship, but not with the idea of engaging him in disputes about his ultra scrupulousness. Christians can have happy fellowship without agreeing on nonessentials. 14:2 A believer who walks in full enjoyment of Christian liberty has faith, based on the teachings of the NT, that all foods are clean. They are sanctified by the word of God and prayer (1Ti_4:4-5). A believer with a weak conscience may have qualms about eating pork, or any other meat, for that matter. He may be a vegetarian. 14:3 So the second principle is that there must be mutual forbearance. The mature Christian must not despise his weak brother. Neither should the weak brother judge as a sinner someone who enjoys ham, shrimp, or lobster. God has received him into His family, a member in good standing. 14:4 The third principle is that each believer is a servant of the Lord, and we have no right to sit in judgment, as if we were the master. It is before his own Master that each one stands approved or disapproved. One may look down on someone else with icy condescension, sure that he will make shipwreck of the faith because of his views on these matters. But such an attitude is wrong. God will sustain those on both sides of the question. His power to do so is adequate. 14:5 Some Jewish Christians still looked on the Sabbath as a day of obligation. They had a conscience about doing any work on Saturday. In that sense, they esteemed one day above another. Other believers did not share these Judaistic scruples. They looked on every day alike. They did not look upon six days as secular and one as sacred. To them all days were sacred. But what about the Lord’s Day, the first day of the week? Does it not have a special place in the lives of Christians? We see in the NT that it was the day of our Lord’s resurrection (Luk_24:1-9). On the next two Lord’s days, Christ met with His disciples (Joh_20:19, Joh_20:26). The Holy Spirit was given on the Day of Pentecost, which was on the first day of the week; Pentecost occurred seven Sundays after the Feast of Firstfruits (Lev_23:15-16; Act_2:1), which symbolizes Christ’s resurrection (1Co_15:20, 1Co_15:23). The disciples gathered to break bread on the first day of the week (Act_20:7).

Paul instructed the Corinthians to take a collection on the first day of the week. So the Lord’s Day does stand out in the NT in a special way. But rather than being a day of obligation, like the Sabbath, it is a day of privilege. Released from our ordinary employment, we can set it apart in a special way for worshiping and serving our Lord. Nowhere in the NT are Christians ever told to keep the Sabbath. And yet at the same time we recognize the principle of one day in seven, one day of rest after six days of work. Whatever view one holds on this subject, the principle is this: let each be fully convinced in his own mind. Now it should be clear that such a principle applies only to matters that are morally neutral. When it comes to fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith, there is no room for individual opinions. But in this area where things are neither right nor wrong in themselves, there is room for differing views. They should not be allowed to become tests of fellowship. 14:6 The one who observes the day, in this verse, is a Jewish believer who still has a bad conscience about doing any work on Saturday. It is not that he looks upon Sabbath-keeping as a means of obtaining or retaining salvation; it is simply a matter of doing what he thinks will please the Lord. Likewise, a person who does not observe the day does so to honor Christ, the substance, rather than the mere shadow of the faith (Col_2:16-17). One who has liberty to eat nonkosher foods bows his head and gives God thanks for them. So does the believer with the weak conscience, who eats only kosher foods. Both ask the blessing from God. In both cases God is honored and thanked, so why should this be made the occasion of strife and conflict? 14:7 The lordship of Christ enters into every aspect of a believer’s life. We don’t live to ourselves but to the Lord. We don’t die to ourselves but to the Lord. It is true that what we do and say affects others, but that is not the thought here. Paul is emphasizing that the Lord should be the goal and object of the lives of His people. 14:8 Everything we do in life is subject to Christ’s scrutiny and approval. We test things by how they appear in His presence. Even in death we aspire to glorify the Lord as we go to be with Him. Both in life and in death we belong to Him. 14:9 One of the reasons for which Christ died and rose and lived again is that He might be our Lord, and that we might be His willing subjects, gladly rendering to Him the devotion of our grateful hearts. His lordship continues even in death, when our bodies lie in the grave and our spirits and souls are in His presence. 14:10 Because this is true, it is folly for an overscrupulous Jewish Christian to condemn the brother who doesn’t keep the Jewish calendar and who doesn’t limit himself to kosher foods. Likewise, it is wrong for the strong brother to show contempt to the weak brother. The fact is that every one of us is going to stand before the judgment seat of Christ, and that will be the only evaluation that really counts. This judgment has to do with a believer’s service, not his sins (1Co_3:11-15). It is a time of review and reward, and is not to be confused with the Judgment of the Gentile nations (Mat_25:31-46) or the Judgment of the Great White Throne (Rev_20:11-15). The latter is the final judgment of all the wicked dead. 14:11 The certainty of our appearance before the be_ma of Christ is reinforced by a quotation from Isa_45:23, where Jehovah Himself makes a strong affirmation that every knee shall bow before Him in acknowledgement of His supreme authority. 14:12 So then it is clear that we will all give an account of ourselves, not of our brothers, to God. We judge one another too much, and without the proper authority or knowledge. 14:13 Instead of sitting in judgment on our fellow Christians in these matters of moral indifference, we should resolve that we will never do anything to hinder a brother in his spiritual progress. None of these nonessential matters is important enough for us to cause a brother to stumble or to fall.14:14 Paul knew, and we know, that no foods are ceremonially unclean any longer, as they were for a Jew living under the law. The food we eat is sanctified by the word of God and prayer (1Ti_4:5). It is sanctified by the word in the sense that the Bible distinctly sets it apart as being good. It is sanctified by prayer when we ask God to bless it for His glory and for the strengthening of our bodies in His service. But if a weak brother thinks it is wrong for him to eat pork, for example, then it is wrong. To eat it would be to violate his God-given conscience. When Paul says here that there is nothing unclean of itself, we must realize that he is speaking only of these indifferent matters. There are plenty of things in life that are unclean, such as pornographic literature, suggestive jokes, dirty movies, and every form of immorality. Paul’s statement must be understood in the light of the context. Christians do not contact ceremonial defilement by eating foods which the Law of Moses branded unclean. 14:15 When I sit down to eat with a weak brother, should I insist on my legitimate right to eat Crab Louis or Lobster Thermidor, even if I know he thinks it is wrong? If I do, I am not acting in love, because love thinks of others, not of self. Love foregoes its legitimate rights in order to promote the welfare of a brother. A dish of food isn’t as important as the spiritual well-being of one for whom Christ died. And yet if I selfishly parade my rights in these matters, I can do irreparable damage in the life of a weak brother. It isn’t worth it when you remember that his soul was redeemed at such a towering costthe precious blood of the Lamb. 14:16 So the principle here is that we should not allow these secondary things, which are perfectly permissible in themselves, to give occasion to others to condemn us for our looseness or lovelessness. It would be like sacrificing our good name for a mess of pottage. 14:17 What really counts in the kingdom of God is not dietary regulations but spiritual realities. The kingdom of God is the sphere where God is acknowledged as Supreme Ruler. In its widest sense, it includes all who even profess allegiance to God. But in its inward reality it includes only those who are born again. That is its usage here. The subjects of the kingdom are not intended to be food faddists, gourmets, or wine connoisseurs. They should be characterized by lives of practical righteousness, by dispositions of peace and harmony, and by mind-sets of joy in the Holy Spirit. 14:18 It isn’t what a man eats or doesn’t eat that matters. It is a holy life that wins God’s honor and man’s approval. Those who put the emphasis on righteousness, peace, and joy serve Christ by obeying His teachings. 14:19 Thus another principle emerges. Instead of bickering over inconsequential matters, we should make every effort to maintain peace and harmony in the Christian fellowship. Instead of stumbling others by insisting on our rights, we should strive to build up others in their most holy faith. 14:20 God is doing a work in the life of each one of His children. It is frightening to think of hindering that work in the life of a weak brother over such secondary matters as food, drink, or days. For the child of God, all foods are now clean. But it would be wrong for him to eat any specific food if, in doing so, he would offend a brother or stumble him in his Christian walk. 14:21 It is a thousand times better to refrain from meat or wine or anything else than to offend a brother or cause him to decline spiritually. Giving up our legitimate rights is a small price to pay for the care of one who is weak. 14:22 I may have complete liberty to partake of every kind of food, knowing that God gave it to be received with thanksgiving. But I should not needlessly flaunt that liberty before those who are weak. It is better to exercise that liberty in private, when no one could possibly be offended. It is good to walk in the full enjoyment of one’s Christian liberty, not being fettered by unwarranted scruples. But it is better to forego one’s legitimate rights than have to condemn oneself for offending others. One who avoids stumbling others is the happy person. 14:23 As far as the weak brother is concerned, it is wrong for him to eat anything about which he has conscientious scruples. His eating is not an act of faith; that is, he has a bad conscience about it. And it is a sin to violate one’s conscience. It is true that a person’s conscience is not an infallible guide; it must be educated by the word of God. But, writes Merrill Unger, Paul lays down the law that a man should follow his conscience, even though it be weak; otherwise moral personality would be destroyed.