Written ~ 07-30-2024
Read Romans Chapter Fourteen
Romans 14
In my Bible, the heading for this chapter says, “The Danger of Criticism.” In every church or social gathering there will always be varying degrees of intellect, Biblical awareness and personal conviction. Paul is going to discuss in chapter fourteen the importance of not criticizing someone else for the way they serve and give honor to the Lord, whether you agree with them or not. Let’s begin with the first few verses.
Romans 14:1-4…
1 Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. 2 For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables. 3 Those who feel free to eat anything must not look down on those who don’t. And those who don’t eat certain foods must not condemn those who do, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to condemn someone else’s servants? Their own master will judge whether they stand or fall. And with the Lord’s help, they will stand and receive his approval.
In this particular chapter Paul is addressing the differences in what food or drink is acceptable and how the varying degrees of opinion could strike a disagreeable chord with those in attendance around a dinner table.
When Paul says in verse 14:1 that we should “accept other believers who are weak in faith,” what does that mean to you? Depending on the background of any given believer, their faith may be at different levels of adherence to the law of Moses. What if you have someone sitting at your table who is a brand-new believer. They haven’t yet been taught all the things the Bible teaches. They may only know a few bits and pieces from what others have told them. Everyone has a right to their own convictions and as their faith in the Lord increases, maybe those convictions will change or develop with time.
Read how “The Message Version” (MSG) translates verses 2 and 3…
2-3 “For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume he should only be a vegetarian and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christ’s table, wouldn’t it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didn’t eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table.”
To criticize someone for their spiritual convictions is never within our rights as fellow believers. We need to be extremely sensitive to everyone gathered around the table.
Let’s see what Paul has to say as we continue in chapter 14…
Romans 14:5-13…
5 “In the same way, some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike. You should each be fully convinced that whichever day you choose is acceptable. 6 Those who worship the Lord on a special day do it to honor him. Those who eat any kind of food do so to honor the Lord, since they give thanks to God before eating. And those who refuse to eat certain foods also want to please the Lord and give thanks to God. 7 For we don’t live for ourselves or die for ourselves. 8 If we live, it’s to honor the Lord. And if we die, it’s to honor the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9 Christ died and rose again for this very purpose—to be Lord both of the living and of the dead.
10 So why do you condemn another believer? Why do you look down on another believer? Remember, we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. 11 For the Scriptures say,
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord,
‘every knee will bend to me,
and every tongue will declare allegiance to God.’”
12 Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. 13 So let’s stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall.”
Do you see the lesson in these verses? In everything we do, it is to give honor to the Lord. So whether or not you agree with how someone else honors the Lord, it’s really no business of yours. It says in verse 14:12, “…each of us will give a personal account to God.” That means we only need to worry about ourselves and how we choose to honor the Lord, not how someone else chooses to honor the Lord.
Let’s watch though how Paul explains that our actions can actually cause someone to stumble and fall if we are not cognizant of their convictions. Let’s consider our actions before we “condemn another believer or look down on another believer.”
Romans 14:14-19…
14 “I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat. But if someone believes it is wrong, then for that person it is wrong. 15 And if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it. Don’t let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. 16 Then you will not be criticized for doing something you believe is good. 17 For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. 19 So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.”
Interesting…
Did you see what Paul said there? Verse 14:15, “…if another believer is distressed by what you eat, you are not acting in love if you eat it…” So here’s an example, if you were to sit down to a table with another believer who is adhering to the law of Moses and abstains from the foods that were listed as ceremonially unclean, and you decide to chow down on some pulled pork and gnaw on a huge ham hock, do you think you are “acting in love if you eat it?” See Leviticus 11:7-8 for reference, “The pig has evenly split hooves but does not chew the cud, so it is unclean. You may not eat the meat of these animals or even touch their carcasses. They are ceremonially unclean for you.” Even though you may believe that all animals are ceremonially clean, you are not being sensitive to the believer who abstains from such things. “Let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up…”
Romans 14:20-23…
20 “Don’t tear apart the work of God over what you eat. Remember, all foods are acceptable, but it is wrong to eat something if it makes another person stumble.
21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble.
22 You may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right.
23 But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.”
In the Old Testament, God’s chosen people were given many instructions for how they were to honor the Lord. In the Book of Leviticus, you can find the lengthy and specific listing of all foods that were honorable (clean) and those that were not allowable (unclean). In the New Testament there were many who adhered to the law given to Moses by God and the old covenant. But when Jesus came, He brought a new covenant, He made what was unclean, clean. The rules changed; meat that would have been considered unlawful to eat were now ok to eat. In the remaining part of our passage for today, Paul is continuing to talk to believers who may not have been sensitive to those around them who still adhered to the law of Moses. Verse 14:19 ends by saying, “…try to build each other up…” Then verse 14:20 begins with “…Don’t tear apart the work of God…”
One of the ways Paul was noticing a tearing down of the work they were doing for the Lord was the way these believers presented themselves around the dinner table. Let’s see if I can explain it in a different way just so we can understand this a little bit better. Imagine for a moment that you were having a dinner party, one of your guests is highly allergic to dairy or peanuts for example… and you knew this fact, but all of the dishes you served consisted of one or both of those ingredients. You and your other guests don’t have a problem with what’s being served and dig in, but the guest who cannot consume the food that’s being served is completely left out. Verses 14:20-23 are specifically talking about a deep religious belief as to what food or drink can be consumed, but can you see how it would cause a wedge between people if there isn’t a sensitivity to how your beliefs and another’s belief may differ?
In verse 14:22 it says,
22 “You may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who don’t feel guilty for doing something they have decided is right.”
If you feel there is absolutely nothing wrong with what you are doing and you have COMPLETE peace with the Lord with those actions, then as this verse states, you are blessed. In context, these verses are talking about the food and drink a person feels is right or wrong to consume. But do you think this verse can apply to everything else in our lives? Think about the beginning of verse 14:22, “…you may believe there’s nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God…” Our actions play a huge part in how the world sees Jesus. If you truly believe your actions line up with what you read in the Word of God and you have complete peace with the Lord to continue in those actions, then, you don’t need to feel guilty.
Let’s move on to verse 14:23,
23 “But if you have doubts about whether or not you should eat something, you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions. If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.”
I want to highlight, “…but if you have doubts…” How many of us continue in a particular action that we may not have complete peace with the Lord about, we push down that little voice that says we shouldn’t be doing what we are doing. Maybe because it’s a selfish desire that you don’t want to give up, no matter who it hurts. Look at the next part of verse 14:23, “…you are sinning if you go ahead and do it…”
Have you ever felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit? He is pointing out something in your life that is not giving complete honor and glory to the Lord and you are ignoring those prompts? Continue reading verse 14:23, “…you are sinning if you go ahead and do it. For you are not following your convictions.” Each of us have different convictions in many diverse areas, it doesn’t matter if I think something is wrong and you don’t, what matters is if the Holy Spirit is repeatedly pointing something out to you and you do not respond. The rest of verse 14:23 says, “If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.” Period. There is no getting around that statement.
Let’s go back to the dinner party where you are serving dishes that one of your guests cannot eat because of severe allergies. Who is at fault for preparing foods that cannot be consumed by your guest? It certainly is not the guest. You are at fault for not being sensitive to that person’s needs. You were not right in preparing foods that didn’t satisfy the hunger of each guest. “If you do anything you believe is not right, you are sinning.”
What if we use verse 14:23 to blanket our entire life… Try to visualize how many actions we willingly do each and every day without much thought. Are we sinning with blatancy because we choose to ignore our convictions? Do we consciously do things that cause another believer to stumble and fall into sin because we are not being mindful of their convictions? What about the non-believer? What are they seeing when they watch you? Are you walking honorably in your convictions? Or do you push those convictions aside and do what your sinful nature wants you to do instead?
These can be some tough questions. Remember, we need to have confidence when we approach the throne of God. If we are not walking honorably in the Holy Spirit’s convictions, we might cower at the feet of Jesus.
This chapter has probably given you a lot to think about and that’s good! I hope as we continue to study the Word of God together, that all of us will increase in our knowledge and wisdom by listening to the powerful words of the Lord.
~AMEN~