Unity in Diversity: Navigating Christian Liberty with Love

Introduction

A problem had arisen in the church at Rome. The problem centered around the relationship between Christians who had differences of opinions over whether certain activities were right or wrong. Spiritually mature Christians were doing things which were causing some of the spiritually immature believers to stumble or become offended. Each group insisted that they were right and the other wrong. Thus the title of this sermon. The result was a devisiveness in the church which was not Christ-honoring.

Their problem was not unique to their day. There will always be problems in the church when an individual or group insists that there way is right and measures the spiritualness or lack of it in others by their own actions.

Paul speaks to both groups and lays down some basic principles which would be good for Christians--especially Southern Baptists--to hear and heed.

I. THE PRINCIPLE OF INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY

ILLUS. When my brother and I were growing up we each had our daily chores around the house which we were responsible for. Being typical brothers, it never failed that one of us would always assume that the other was doing less work than he was. Soon we would be fighting about. Eventually we would take our grievances to mom. Her standard response was always, "You just worry about what you're supposed to do and not what the other is not doing."

1. ya know, that's pretty good theology

2. there seems to be a growing tendency among Southern Baptists to look down upon those brothers and sisters who are not just like us

a. if they don't walk like us . . .

b. if they don't talk like us . . .

c. if they don't think like us we assume there is something wrong with them

3. this leads to two problems among Christians in the church

a. one group will have an inflated opinion of themselves

b. the other group will have an inferiority complex

1) they will assume that they can never measure up to the explanations of the other group

2) this often keeps them from service and ministry

4. Paul's answer to this problem?

A. PAUL SAYS EVERY CHRISTIAN WILL GIVE AN INDIVIDUAL ACCOUNT BEFORE GOD OF HOW WE TREATED OTHER CHRISTIANS

ROM 14:10 "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."

1. this is not a reference to the judgment of our salvation

a. the seat Paul refers to here was the bema seat

1) from this seat the athletes would be rewarded for their effort in the competition

2) some were rewarded more than others, but all were in the race

2. one of these days all of us will stand before Jesus and have to give an account of what we did as a Christian to build the Kingdom of God

Romans 14:11-12 "As 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."

a. you will have to give an account of your talents and how you used them

b. you will have to give an account of you influence whether it was for good or for bad

c. you will have to give an account of your stewardship whether it was selfish or selfless

d. you will have to give an account of your witness whether it was righteous or unrighteous

1) depending upon your life as a Christian--whether you produced hey, wood and stubble or gold, silver and precious stones--will determine the degree of your reward in heaven

3. if this is true, Paul says, ". . . why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thous set at nought thy brother? . . ."

a. that word judge is a legal term

b. it means to put on trial or to call into question

c. the phrase set at nought is one word in the Greek and it means to despise or see as contemptible

3. have you ever felt like you were on trial because you didn't measure up to someone eles's expectations?

4. have you ever looked with contempt upon a brother or sister in Christ because you didn't feel they were doing all that they should?

5. Paul says don't you worry about what other believers are or are not doing

a. you worry about your service and Christian lifestyle

B. WE ARE TO KEEP OUR EYES ON JESUS!

1. someday I'm going to stand before God's throne

a. ya know what?

b. none of you are going to be on it

1) by the same token, I'll not be on it for you

2. these verses say that there is no room for finger pointing in the body of Christ

a. besides, did you ever notice that when you're pointing a finger at someone else, you're pointing three back at yourself?

ILLUS. "The Peter Complex" John 21 "Lord, what are you going to have him do?"

C. INTROSPECTION MUST ALWAYS TAKE PLACE BEFORE OUR INSPECTION OF OTHER

Matthew 7:1-5 "Judge not, that ye be not judged. (2) For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. (3) And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? (4) Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam {is} in thine own eye? (5) Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

1. too many believers spend more time inspecting the other fellows fruit than cultivating their own orchid

2. Roman Christians spent more time judging each others faults and actions than practicing the dynamics of Christian fellowship

a. dynamics such as love, forgiveness, patience and edification

3. the sins of backbiting, gossip, contentiousness and slander do more harm in the body of Christ today than any of the sins of the flesh

a. rather than looking at others, Paul says we would do well to

II. THE PRINCIPLE OF CHRISTIAN BROTHERHOOD

1. here Paul gives practicle guidelines for showing love in the body of Christ

A. DON'T JUDGE FELLOW BELIEVERS

1. here is a direct command from the Apostle

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.”

2. rather than a judgmental spirit, Paul says let's have a spirit of love toward a fellow believer who may not have the spiritual maturity we feel we have

3. to set in judgement of others is presumptuous

a. it assumes we have the insight and wisdom of God

1) you cannot know all the circumstances of a person's life

2) you may not know all the facts

3) you cannot know another's inner motivation

b. when it comes right down to it, the only exercise some Christians get is jumping to conclusions about other Christians

4. the specific problem in the Roman church is alluded to in verse 14

a. here was a church made up of both Jews and Gentiles

1) the Gentile converts felt free, under the grace of God, to eat anything they wanted--including meat offered to idols

2) the Jewish converts still had reservations about certain foods and many still, undoubtedly, followed the strict Jewish dietary laws

b. the fact that some believers were doing what they felt free in their conscience to do was bringing spiritual harm to less enlightened believers

ILLUS. Such problems are not unusual in the Body of Christ today. In Purdy, Missouri, Christian fundamentalists have successfully defended a 100-year-old ban on school dances. There are Christian on the other side of the issue that see nothing wrong with school dances and want to legalize it. Most Baptists I know choose to obstain from alcoholic beverages, yet talk to a Methodist or a Catholic and you obviously find a difference of oppinion in regard to the use of alcohol.

5. what is Paul's answer to the situation in the Roman church and like problems among Christians today?

B. DO NOT DO ANYTHING WHICH PLACES A STUMBLING BLOCK BEFORE OTHER BELIEVERS

1. the word "stumbling block" literally means a "stub" or something that one may trip over

2. Paul says that we are not to do anything that would give a brother "an occasion to fall"

a. this is one word in the Greek and is the word from which we get our English word for scandal

b. in Paul's day it meant to ensnare

1) we are not to commit acts that would lay a snare for a weaker Christian to fall into and become entrapped

c. our attitude often is, "If I do not believe this action is harmful to my spiritual life, what right does some narrow-minded believer have in telling me what to do?"

1) Paul asserts this in v. 14 "As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself . . ."

d. Paul says, no, no, no, this is the wrong attitude

v. 15 "If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love."

1) for the sake of your own Christian liberty you are not to, as Paul says, ". . . by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died."

1 Corinthians 8:9–13 “But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, will he not be encouraged, if his conscience is weak, to eat food offered to idols? And so by your knowledge this weak person is destroyed, the brother for whom Christ died. Thus, sinning against your brothers and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.”

3. I don't know about you, but that seem pretty explicit to me!

a. we are to abstain from actions which we know will cause a brother to stumble spiritually or be ensnared by the devil

Romans 14:20–21 “Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.”

ILLUS. Playing cards in the B.S.U. caused one girl to stop coming.

C. WE ARE TO DO ONLY THAT WHICH EDIFIES THE BRETHREN

Romans 14:19 “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.”

1. the word follow means to press forward

a. Paul is saying we are not to push for our own rights, but for a lifestyle which pushes forward the rights of others

2. the word edify means to build up as in creating a sound structure that will withstands the storms

We should not come to church to hear the pastor’s opinions about politics, psychology, economics, or even religion. We should come to hear a word from the Lord through the pastor. God’s Word edifies and unifies; human opinions confuse and divide. John F. MacArthur

III. THE PRINCIPLE OF GOD'S GLORY

1. when it comes right down to it, our rights do not matter when compared to bringing glory to God through His church

Romans 14:17 “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.”

A. OUR EXAMPLE IS CHRIST

Romans 15:3 “For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, “The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.””

1. the question of Christian liberty is not a question of my rights and my privileges, but God's glory

2. God seeks to be glorified in the relationships between His people because it is a testimony

a. when we are busy judging each other--that's also a testimony--but it's the wrong one

John 13:34–35 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.””

B. JUDGING OTHER BELIEVERS IS ALWAYS GOD-DISHONORING

Romans 15:1–2 “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.”

The Christians of Rome were guilty of judging each others activities and motives by the wrong yardstick. They were measuring each other against themselves and not Christ. It brought disunity and dissension to the congregation.

Have you a contention with a brother or sister in Christ over some action or lack of action? Paul says the one who is spiritually strong must not look with contempt upon his over-scrupulous brother. On the other hand, the weak one is forbidden to accuse the stronger of insincerity or inconsistency.

These principles, if firmly held in the body of Christ today would make for fuller fellowship among the saints and save from many heart-burnings.