By: Dr. Dale Weckbacher
Text: Romans
14:13-23
Romans 14:13
Therefore let us not
pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a
stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
(ESV)
Many in the secular world
view Christianity as a set of legalistic rules one must follow to earn
forgiveness of sin in their life. This is a lie for salvation is a gift from
God, given to humanity by the grace of God (Ephesians
2:8-9). Instead, Christianity is about discipleship or developing a close
personal relationship with God who loves us so much that he sent His son to die
for our sins (John
3:16). Jesus commanded his followers to make disciples and not hinder
people with a set of legalistic rules and regulations.
Building upon the teaching
of Romans
14:1-12, Paul urges the Roman believers not to pass judgment but to replace
judgment with deciding not to place any hindrance in the way of another
believer (Romans
14:13). Paul continues his thoughts with his persuasion that in the Lord
nothing is unclean but only unclean when one thinks it is (Romans
14:14). For this reason Paul says that to eat what another brother deems as
unclean in his or her presence is not walking in love, cautioning us not to
destroy the one Christ died for (Romans
14:15). We must avoid what we may deem as good but spoken of by others as
evil because the kingdom of God is not about what one eats or drinks but about
righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans
14:16-17). It is when one serves Christ focusing on righteousness, peace,
and joy in the Holy Spirit that one’s service is acceptable to God and approved
by men (Romans
14:18). Therefore, the Church should pursue what makes for peace and building
up disciples (Romans
14:19).
Paul continues by telling
us not to destroy the work of God who has declared all things clean and make
another brother or sister stumble by what we eat (Romans
14:20). It is good to abstain from certain food or drink if it prevents a
brother or sister from stumbling (Romans
14:21). We should keep the faith we have regarding what we can eat or drink
between us and God with one blessed when he or she has no reason to pass
judgment upon him or herself for what he or she eats or drinks (Romans
14:22). If one eats and has doubts as to whether he or she can eat it,
bringing condemnation upon him or herself for they are eating from faith for whatever
does not proceed from faith is sin (Romans
14:23).
Romans
14:13-23 is a continuation of Romans
14:1-12 regarding why Christians are not to judge one another. Using the
example of judging someone for eating foods forbidden by Jewish law. It is
probable that the judging of new Gentile believers by Jewish believers was a
significant issue and threatened to cause the new Gentile believers to abandon
the faith. This is not the first discussion of this topic in Scripture for
Peter had a vision of unclean animals with the Lord telling him to eat (Acts
9:9-16). Peter is reluctant but obediently goes to Caesarea with Cornelius
and his family saved and filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts
9:34-48). Would God have given Peter this vision if He intended that
Gentile believers needed to obey the dietary regulations of Jews? The answer is
no because the mission of the Church is not to police a set of legalistic
standards but instead to share the message of the Gospel (Mark
16:15; Matthew 28:19-20), telling people they need to repent of their sins
and accept the gift of grace that God sent his son, not to condemn the world
but to save the world (John
3:16-17). This gift of grace is not something one earns, but freely given
by God because of the finished work of Jesus on the cross (Ephesians
2:8-9).
For many in the secular
world, becoming a Christian means one must follow a set of rigid rules and no
longer have fun. While this is not biblical (Ephesians
2:8-9; John 3:16-17; Romans 5:8), it is sadly a reputation many believers
promote when discipling others. While the mission of the Church is to make
disciples (Matthew
28:19-20), discipling others is not about placing a rigid set of rules on
people to follow for that system existed before the coming of Jesus. If one
could be saved by following b the rules
as outlined in the Old Testament, there would have been no need for Jesus to
come and die on the cross. There are four E’s of discipleship,
1) Evangelism – All people have sinned and
live under the death penalty (Romans
3:23; 6:23). The good news of the Gospel is that God has provided a gift of
Salvation because Jesus came to die for sinners (Ephesians
2:8-9; Romans 5:8; 6:23). All one must do to accept this gift is confess
their belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Romans
10:9-10).
2)
Equipping (2
Timothy 3:10-17) – When teaching his protégé Timothy, Paul taught that all
scripture comes from God and is profitable for teaching, reproof, correction,
and training in righteousness. While Paul directed these words at Timothy, they
are beneficial for Christians today who live in a world dominated by lies. The
truth contained in the Word of God sets people free (John
8:32).
3)
Empowering – Jesus knew the persecution
His Disciples would encounter and why he told them to wait in Jerusalem until
they received the promise of the Father, the Holy Spirit (Acts
1:4,8). The transformation in the life of Peter demonstrates the importance
of this empowerment with Peter going from a denier of Christ (Matthew
26:69-75) to one preaching an evangelistic message about Jesus with 3000 coming
to believe (Acts
2:14-47).
4)
Encouragement – Believers in Christ have a
calling to encourage one another with the truth that Jesus is coming back (1
Thessalonians 4:13-18). Not only this, but we also have encouragement in
knowing that absence from our bodies by death ushers a believer into the
presence of the Lord (2
Corinthians 5:6-8). Encouragement also comes through association with other
believers in Christ and why one should regularly attend Church services (Hebrews
10:25).
If you are reading this
and have not begun the discipleship process by accepting God’s free gift of
Salvation, I encourage you to do so now by praying with me,
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans
3:23)
and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans
6:23). I ask you to forgive me of my sin and cleanse
me as you promise in your Word (1
John 1:9). I believe
you died, spent three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now
declare you Lord of my life.
May God challenge and
bless everyone reading this post.
No comments:
Post a Comment