Today, as in the days of the New Testament, we see Satan trying to bring about division and disunity among the believers. Disunity in the early church was one issue that Paul addressed in several of his letters, and here in Romans 14 we see him speaking to the believers in Rome about this. Paul addresses two groups of believers in this passage: the “strong” believers, and the “weaker” believers. The strong believers from a Jewish background did not feel compelled to continue in keeping the Jewish religious or ceremonial Law. They knew that they had been set free from that through the sacrificial death of Jesus. They knew that they did not need to continue to eat kosher food only, bring sacrifices to the Temple, abstain from befriending Gentiles, or celebrate the Jewish holy days, in order to be right with God. The weak Jewish believers still felt compelled to keep all the Jewish religious Laws.
The same problem also plagued Gentile believers. Weaker believers worried about meats at the market that might have been used in pagan sacrifices. Meats that had been used in religious sacrifices to the Greek and Roman gods were often then taken to the local markets and sold cheaper. Would it be okay to eat them? Weaker believers felt it would not be, as it would be like they were participating in the pagan sacrifices themselves, or at least giving a tacit approval to them. For fear of eating any meat that might have been used in a sacrifice, some were resorting to being vegetarians. Stronger Gentiles believed that this was okay, as pagan, false gods were not even real. Both groups were judging each other harshly, with each accusing the other of being wrong, being sinners, etc. Weak Christians versus strong Christians.
Paul wrote that this was wrong on both sides. Believers are not to fight with fellow believers over matters of opinion (vs. 1). Disagreements are to be handled in love, and with respect. We honor God by helping others grow in their faith, treating one another with love and avoiding legalism.
How does this issue affect us today? In most parts of the world there would be no issue of eating meat which had been previously sacrificed to false gods. Most believers today from a Jewish background are not condemning those who do not keep the Old Testament Laws. There are, though, some issues that divide Christians today, such as whether it’s alright for a believer to drink alcohol, the type of clothing they wear, or what day they worship on. Often they judge others for what they eat, or what music, TV shows, or movies they watch. Good Christians are torn on these issues, often getting so emotional that they condemn or belittle the other. Like the believers Paul was addressing, we should not be judging or condemning Christians we disagree with on non-doctrinal issues. Everything we do should be done with the aim of pleasing God (vs. 7 - 8). If another Christian has a glass of wine or a beer with their pizza, and are not getting drunk, the other Christian who does not believe one should drink alcohol should not sit in judgment and condemn. The vegetarian Christian should not judge the one who eats meat. Sunday worshippers and Saturday worshippers should not argue.
There are some issues that are worth taking a stand for: the essentials of the faith, the fundamentals of our faith. These would be the virgin birth of Jesus, the inerrancy of the Scriptures, the atoning death of Jesus for our sins, and His bodily resurrection. These are beliefs that are essential for a Christian to believe and still call themselves a Christian. These are beliefs that there can be no compromise on. Any disagreement on them must bring a parting of the ways. Other issues are just matters of opinion, and should not bring about a fight. We are to take a stand on things expressly spoken of in the Scriptures, and not create additional rules, giving them equal standing with the Scriptures.
In verses 10 - 12 we read that all believers will come before the judgment seat of Christ. This is where Christians are judged, and is not for unbelievers. They are judged at the great white throne of judgment. At the judgment seat of Christ we will give an account of ourselves and the decisions we have made. We are accountable to Christ, not to others, and when we stand before Him we won’t be asked about others. We will only be asked about ourselves. With this in mind, we need to follow Paul’s admonitions here, and treat all of our fellow believers gently, building them up in love, not tearing them down for minor issues.
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