Romans 14
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Take Care of Each Other...
Take Care of Each Other...
Good morning my brothers and sisters!
Happy New Year!
Well, here we are the first day of the New Year, 2023!
Friends, that doesn’t even seem possible. Were did 2022 go?
When I thought about that question, where did 2022 go? I thought what did I do last year, I thought did I do enough last year.
So I would ask you as I reflect as well, What was accomplished for the kingdom of God of 2022? Did you do enough?
I am not trying to lay a guilt trip on any one, I am not asking we be legalistic, but simply were we faithful?
Did you make the most of our conversations?
Did we take time to serve? Did we help? Did we tell others about Jesus?
When we think about the church, there is a golden rule about the church, do you know that 25% of the people do most, now I said most of the work.
So where are the other 75%.....
That is a grand questions… Not like I said I am not trying to lay any guilt trips, no one is better than any one else. But there is room for us ALL to get involved for the Kingdom of God.
So as we walk into 2023, what will we do? What will we accomplish for His glory
Will we story up treasure in heaven? I want to see people enter the kingdom of God and grow to be productive kingdom citizens.
What we do for Jesus will last for all eternity! Everything else will be lost.
So this morning we are looking at Romans chapter 14.
We will look at the chapter as a whole, but our key passage will be this verse today....
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.
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One of the first responsibilities as a child of God is to worship and honor the Lord, and then second, we must take care of each other.
Remember, we are the body, many members of a larger body, a family if you will so we must consider each other.
So with that, lets begin.
1. Don’t Judge Others....
That is a theme we are familiar with, right. We are called not to judge others.
Now to be honest, most of the time when we hear this, someone is shouting it, Don’t judge me!!
That’s not what’s happening here...in the context of our passage, it is about different believers that are in different places in their walk with God.
Lets look at verses 1-4
1 As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
As we open this text we see that at the church in Rome, there were those who were identified as strong in their faith and others who are referred to as weak in their faith.
Why?
The church in Rome was comprised of two types of believers, those of Jewish background and those who were of Gentile background.
So you had people, who were once those tied to Jewish worship practices, they were those who keep the law, those commands concerning everything from worship, keeping the Sabbath and dietary restrictions.
Being raised in that atmosphere, it is difficult for one to simply abandon all that they have practiced in Judaism, as they walk in faith with Jesus. It takes some time to learn and embrace freedom in Christ.
So some of those ritualistic behaviors and customs were still practiced. And at that point it becomes a matter of personal conviction, not the requirements of God.
They were afraid they might eat or entertain something that was unclean., and thus dishonor God, that would make them guilty in front of God.
There was a real issue during those days concerning the issue of eating meat that was offered to idols or used in Idol worship.
Is the meat clean or unclean? For those living and having a strong faith, it was just meat, probably more cost effective, and the other meats may have originated from those animals the OT dietary restrictions applied too. Yet there again, those who had stronger faith proclaimed this things to be acceptable and it left those of a weaker faith disillusioned.
And so in regard to this way of living, Paul says do not allow it to become a point of disagreement, don't quarrel over this matter.
Why is Paul voicing this so strongly?
Freedom in such matters tend to create an attitude of superiority. As such it is real easy to ridicule those who hold a more restricted life style.
Likewise, those who lived a more restricted lifestyle, they are not to think wrongly of those who choose to “eat other foods”.
As the Body of Christ, we cannot judge each other, nor despise each other. If God has welcomed them into the family of God, who are we to say other wise??
Remember this doesn’t pertain to sin… If its wrong, its wrong no one should practice it.
But these matters pertain to items once prohibited by the law, that now have been made clean.
We are called to take the higher road, loving and treating each other with respect and dignity.
So there are things today, perhaps one group abstains from, while others participate… and it really doesn’t matter.
So do not pass judgment upon one another, instead focus on the kingdom matters of the church.
Love is always the greater action....
Are you loving your brothers and sisters regardless of our personal thoughts?
And secondly this morning, Paul would remind us that we are not our own, we belong to the Lord.
2. We Belong to the Lord...
There is a statement we don’t always consider. We belong to the Lord, we are not our own. Consider the Apostles words in His letter to the church at Corinth.
19 Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, whom you have from God? You are not your own, 20 for you were bought with a price. So glorify God in your body.
In coming to Christ, we have given our life and devotion over to Him. And so this obligation must be remembered in all we say and do.
Lets return to our text and look at verses 6-8 Romans 14:6-8
6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.
So there are a couple things I want you to see here from our text. The first is diversity, there was a lot of diversity in the church during those days as there is today.
Paul says there are those, mostly likely Jewish believers who regarded some days more sacred than others.
There were Old Testament feast days that had been celebrated by their families for hundreds of years. These were special times, and then there was the Sabbath day.
Many held that worship needed to be take place on the last day of the week, (remember, Sunday is the first day of the week). They held that God worked six days and therefore resting on the 7th day as he created the world and all in it should still be recognized.
While others held the mind set that worship was to take place on the first day of the week, in honor of Jesus resurrection. But also their belief was even deeper, every day being God’s, well they believed every day was holy and every day deserving of our prayer and worship.
So who is right?
Well each of these groups were fully persuaded in their own minds that they were right.
So who was right? Well ask this? Did it really make any difference? Can we worship on Saturday the Sabbath day, or Sunday, Monday or any day for that matter...
Here is where a question should be asked? Was God honored in both groups in dietary issues or in the matter of worship and service? Yes, He was!
Verse 7 is really key here. Rom 14:7
7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself.
This phrase can be understood in the idea of the modern phrase that “...no man is an island unto himself… “
Here is why.....
Paul wants people to live out their lives accountable to God. Robert Mounce said this “… Decisions about such matters as special days and eating meat are not made in isolation but in accordance with the will of God as understood by the individual...”
In life and death we want to do our best and live our best in front of our God, and we do so according to the convictions of our heart. And our convictions are led because we are His, and His alone.
So in all things honor the Lord! Why? We belong to the Lord!
Now verse 9 is important… Rom 14:9
9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
Jesus death, burial and resurrection occurred so that He might be Lord of both the living and the dead, a Lordship that is universal!
So again remember, we all belong to the Lord! Amen...
So lets consider one last thought today my friends here on this first day of the New Year, 2023.
In Christ, we must live in order to give a proper account of our lives...
3. We Must All Give An Account....
This last thought summarizes what Paul has been telling the church, not only in the chapter , but throughout the letter itself.
God will hold us accountable for our actions.
We should understand this, this isn’t difficult. Do you remember your parents as they dropped you off at school or a fiends house and they warned you, if you get in trouble you will get a whooping when you get home.
So in their absence, the way we acted was judged and if we found guilty, well, we got that whoop’n
Paul is sharing a similar truth with the church, and it is not a new one.
No, not at all, This is a truth all were familiar with, as we have studied Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth. He reminds them to live their best life for Jesus, why???? … we must give an account of our words and deeds. Do you remember 2 Cor 5, verse 10.
10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.
What we fail to consider at times is the truth that it is mentioned more than once in the New Testament. In our passage today we see it as well.
Lets look at verses 10-12 Romans 14:10-12
10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,
“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall confess to God.”
12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
So again, Paul has communicated this thought that. The children of God, in Rome, Corinth, Ephesus, or Big Stone Gap. we are accountable before the Lord.
Since we belong to the Lord, it is not our right to judge, we cannot look down on others who perhaps are weak in the faith, or young in the faith.
If someone needs to be judged or held accountable for actions, God will take care of it.
Do you remember Jesus words on the Sermon on the mount Matthew 7:1
1 “Judge not, that you be not judged.
Here is a true thought, one we must keep in mind, God is a good, Sovereign Judge.
So what did Jesus mean by not judging others? Jesus is talking about those harsh, critical and hypocritical judgments. It’s not that we cannot disapprove of what a person says or does.. no, not at all.
There is good judgment, one where by we offer insight and help to a person. And if biblical truth cannot be followed by them, God will judge them.
So for us, every person is our brother and sister. As such the greatest call is to lend a hand and try to help, to teach, to uplift. Look with me at verses 13-19
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. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. 15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. 16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. 19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
Do you see that mindset in Paul’s words here?
In light of all you know, He says instead of judgment, and most certainly don’t make it worse by placing a stumbling block in front of them and their faith.
(Don’t go by those who were opposed to the eating of meat and you are licking the sauce of those ribs)...
Paul says, I know there is nothing unclean any longer, in reference to food, Pork is now on the menu friends, but instead of grieving your brothers and sisters, walk in love. Do not tear down the person, your brother or sister whom Christ died for...
And don’t tear them down to make yourself feel superior...
Food and drink are secondary matters, take the higher road and be found pleasing to Christ because you put others and their thoughts, feelings ahead of your own.
In this you glorify God...
Listen the Kingdom isn’t abut me, nor you. It is about Jesus!
So our greatest purpose is to live in harmony and love the Lord God
And when you choose to care for others, look at Paul’s words in verse 18
18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men.
Here is where we find the blessing of God, now verse 19 again...
19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
Let us pursue, make the choice, desire all that brings peace within the family of God so that all, every child of God is built up, edified, strengthened.
We are called to take care of each other so that we can all do well in front of our God and can bring honor to His name.
We want all to be mature believers so that we can be our very best.
In this we model the path of Jesus, that we put the will of God ahead of self.
Is that your goal?
What are you doing or what do you hope to do for His Kingdom in this new year?
Will you help all grow, be built up and thus bless the Lord.
Pray