CONSIDER OTHERS

Background Passage: ROMANS 14:1-12

Lesson Passage:ROMANS 14:1-12

BIBLICAL TRUTH: CHRISTIANS ARE TO BE CONSIDERATE, NOT CRITICAL OF OTHER BELIEVERS.

KEY BIBLE VERSE: ROMANS 14:1

“Did you know that Russian believers are so respectful of Scripture that they refuse to write in their Bibles?” a fellow traveler asked me. It was our first night in Russia; we were teaching at a St. Petersburg pastors' school. Already I was impressed with the students, some of whom had traveled hundreds of miles to receive our instruction. Their commitment to Christ had been forged by years of persecution under Communism.

On meeting these pastors, I quickly learned they had an incredible knowledge of Scripture sealed in their hearts as well as their minds. “Why am I here teaching them?” I thought. “They should be my teachers.” Imagine my horror when another fellow presenter admonished these pastors rather condescendingly that writing in their Bibles was permissible as a tool to help their Bible study. My Christian brother had a big heart and loved the Russian pastors. Yet his words must have come across as spiritually arrogant and patronizing.

Were the Russian pastors wrong to resist “defacing” their Bibles with notes? Perhaps they loved God's Word more than I, with my Bibles filled with notes. Was my faith stronger, as evidenced by my freedom to write in my Bible? Was their faith weaker, as evidenced by the special care they showed their Bibles? After a week I had a good idea who had the stronger faith—and it was not me.

Throughout church history, spiritual pride has caused believers to swap criticisms over forms of Christian practice that he Bible leaves open to interpretation. In this lesson, you will study how Paul encouraged church members to accept one another and to avoid being critical when someone practices his or her faith in a way that is different from you.

BACKGROUND PASSAGE OVERVIEW

In matters of religious practice where there is room for interpretation, believers are to accept one another, whether they agree or not. Believers are accountable to the Lord, not to one another, when deciding how to live the Christian life in matters that are open to interpretation.

A believer who feels freer based on a strong faith may tend to look down on a believer whose conscience is more sensitive. On the other hand, a more conscientious believer may tend to be critical of a believer who is less conforming. If the religious practice of two Christians (who live their faith differently) is focused on the Lord, then the requirement of faith is fulfilled. All believers will answer to God for the way they apply their faith in daily living.

STUDY QUESTIONS 1.How should you treat another Christian with whom you disagree on disputable matters?(Rom. 14:1)
2.To whom are believers responsible in matters where there is disagreement among faithful believers?(Rom 14:4)
3.How might different believers observe a special day dedicated to God?(Rom 14:5-6)
4. What caution did Paul give to the believer with the weaker faith? The believer with the stronger faith?(Rom 14:10)

ACCEPT OTHERS (ROM. 14:1-2)

Romans 14 1 Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. 2 For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs.

VERSE 1 ~ When Paul wrote of the weak he meant those who are weak in faith—believers who may understand freedom in Christ in their heads, but living out this freedom in their lives is still in development. Instead, they remain bound to some degree by religious customs practiced before their salvation or by ascetic disciplines related more to the spirit of legalism than that of liberty. The literal meaning of weak describes someone who is feeble only temporarily, until gaining strength over time.

In the meantime, the weak deserve understanding from other believers, who are to accept (welcome) them as part of the church family. (The same Greek word is used elsewhere in Scripture to describe God's acceptance of us by His grace) This act of welcoming is to be free of any motive other than love. The stronger in faith must not seize the advantage just because the weaker in faith are vulnerable with doubts or questions (doubtful issues). Debates over the interpretation of Christian practice serve no purpose in the body of Christ.

VERSE 2 ~ The quality of a person's faith can even affect a believer's choice of food. One believer chooses for religious reasons to abstain from meat, believing that a vegetables-only-diet is more spiritual—perhaps because of a poor understanding of Scripture or an overly sensitized conscience. Another believer realizes that eating one food and refusing another as religious practice is not necessary in light of Christ's once-and-for-all sacrifice. Paul's discussion focused on dietary restrictions motivated by religious and not dietary reason.

AVOID CRITICIZING OTHERS ( ROM. 14:3-4)

3 Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him.
4 Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.

VERSE 3 ~ Both the weaker and the stronger in faith may be tempted by spiritual pride. The stronger in faith may look down on (or “despise”) the believer who feels the need to follow a certain dietary code as a religious duty. That is, the one who feels free to eat meat may consider the conscientious abstaining by another to be silly and ridiculous. His or her fellow Christian, so conscientious about seeking righteousness that he would not eat meat, may be dismissed with an attitude of spiritual superiority. The better attitude would be to seek understanding and communicate loving acceptance, in spite of a disagreement among spiritual family members regarding “doubtful issues” (v.1).

On the other hand, the weaker in faith may be tempted to criticize (or “judge”) the believer who feels a freedom to eat meat as having an obedience problem and needing to get right with God. The better attitude would be for the vegetable eater to realize that all believers are accepted by God through Christ, meat eaters or not. The tense of the Greek verb for accepted implies an action that occurred at one moment in time, with the results continuing to the present. Salvation does not happen over a period of time but in a single instant through faith, moving the believer from death to life—from darkness to light..

VERSE 4 ~ Paul's question is addressed to the weaker in faith. The position of the Greek words in the original text shows an emphasis on who. Thus, the phrase could be translated, “As for you, who are you to criticize....?” In spite of Paul's concern for the believer who is weaker in faith, it is this believer who is the target here of Paul's sharp rebuke. Fulfilling the expectations of one's own conscience must not be broadened to include the judging of another person's conscience, a practice reminiscent of the Pharisees. In short, the Christian who feels free to eat meat is not responsible to one who abstains. Rather, both are answerable as servants (literally “household slaves”) to Jesus Christ.

Stands or falls does not refer to salvation but to the Christian walk. Living in Christian liberty has its own challenges. Even if a believer stumbles in faithfulness along the way Paul was confident that the power of grace would be triumphant. Even with its peril, living in freedom is preferable to living in legalism.

LIVE FOR THE LORD (ROM 14:5-9)

5 One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind.
6 He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.
7 For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
8 For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
9 For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

VERSES 5-6 ~ The spirit of Christianity and legalism are mutually exclusive. Christianity makes demands only according to the law of love. That is, Christian practice is to be formed out of love and is to be carried out by faith.

Even the observance of the Lord's Day (the first day of the week) originated in faith and not in legalism. One may be fully assured by faith that Sunday is the only day for Christian worship. Another may be convinced by faith that any day of the week can be a Lord's Day for worship. Either position may be rooted in love and not legalism, as shown by the inward motive as being to the Lord.

One believer may observe the day by fasting, while the other observes the day by feasting. Both show their love and thanksgiving to Christ in different ways. One believer is no more spiritually correct than the other. Neither deserves criticism nor verbal dismissal by the other with spiritual condescension.

The Holman CSB omits “and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it” found in the KJV; the reason is that the two translations follow different Greek manuscripts at this point.

VERSES 7-9 ~ That none of us lives to himself means that we live with accountability to the God who created us and saved us rather than having the freedom to set our course by ourselves. Later (v.14) Paul pointed out the influence Christians can have on others through their conduct. Here, however, Paul's focus is on believers' Christian responsibility to Christ, not to others. How we live and how we die is not ours to choose.

In life and in death, the Christian is called to be faithful. Notice the number of times Paul wrote” to the Lord” (vv.6-8). The purpose of our lives is not about us but about God. Christ's death and resurrection make possible our participation as co-laborers with God.

REMEMBER GOD'S JUDGMENT (ROM 14:10-12)

10 But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11 For it is written, As I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.
12 So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.

VERSES 10-12 ~ The first question (why do you criticize) is addressed to the one weaker in faith. The second question (why do you look down on) is addressed to the one stronger in faith. Neither criticizing nor displaying a condescending contempt is appropriate within the body of Christ. Every believer, whether free or bound by conscience, is answerable to God and not to another believer.

Notice that Paul's examples of eating meat versus vegetables or worship on certain days of the week are questions of religious practice and not of moral choice. Paul was clear elsewhere in Scripture that willful and open sin within the church is harmful to the body of Christ and must be judged by the church (1 cor. 5: 1-8).

Give an account is a bookkeeping term. All believers will one day undergo an audit by God and will be accountable for the motive and form of their religious practices.

WHAT ABOUT YOU?

Do you look down on other believers with an air of spiritual enlightenment or superiority because they practice faith in Christ in ways that differ from your religious practices? Pray fervently and sincerely that your heart and relationships are right with God.