Pursue the Kingdom (Romans 14:13–23)

Introduction

We're continuing our series in the Book of Romans. Today will be in Romans 14:13-23. We're going to talk about pursuing the Kingdom of God. Did you know that you, as a Christian, can actively pursue the kingdom? We'll talk more about that.

The world wants you to pursue anything other than the kingdom of God. We're raised up to pursue an education so we can make an income, an income that's not enough in San Diego. We pursue a spouse through dating, trying to find love. We pursue entertainment, and today there's all kinds of options. You don't have to work too hard to find entertainment today. We pursue a job, so we can pay our bills. Some of us this week were pursuing air conditioning because it's too hot.

Whatever it is, we live our life in a constant pursuit. We won’t spiritually grow as Christians, until we learn to pursue God's heart. Sometimes we treat God as if he serves us, but we must remember we are people called to serve him.

We can only learn to serve the Lord when we pursue his heart. As a child to their father, we say, “Father, let me love what you love." How can we grow as people who pursue God's heart, who pursue his Kingdom values?

Please open up your Bibles to Romans 14:13-23. We're picking it up in the middle of chapter 14.

In this chapter, Paul has introduced to us two figures: one who is strong in the faith, and one who is weak in the faith. He says those strong in the faith should not judge those weak in the faith over what he describes as “disputed matters.” Instead of arguing over disputed matters, Christians should strive for unity amongst one another, because we will all stand before God one day. He ends verse 12 by saying, “Each of us will give an account of himself to God.” And that brings us to verse 13.

Scripture Reading

Romans 14:13–23 CSB

13 Therefore, let us no longer judge one another. Instead decide never to put a stumbling block or pitfall in the way of your brother or sister. 14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. Still, to someone who considers a thing to be unclean, to that one it is unclean. 15 For if your brother or sister is hurt by what you eat, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy, by what you eat, someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore, do not let your good be slandered, 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. 18 Whoever serves Christ in this way is acceptable to God and receives human approval. 19 So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another. 20 Do not tear down God’s work because of food. Everything is clean, but it is wrong to make someone fall by what he eats. 21 It is a good thing not to eat meat, or drink wine, or do anything that makes your brother or sister stumble. 22 Whatever you believe about these things, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23 But whoever doubts stands condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith, and everything that is not from faith is sin.

Pray

This text continues a conversation we started last week around one of the examples that Paul gives, eating and drinking, which had become a disputable matter in the church. Everything that he is describing about judging others has to do with arguments over disputed matters, which were really matters of personal conviction, and not matters of core doctrinal truth.

We should stand up for core doctrinal truth, like that fact that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, that he physically rose again from the grave on the third day, and that by believing in him, we can have eternal life. This is the truth of Christianity, a truth that we hold on to by faith and not by sight.

But the point that Paul makes here is that sometimes Christians argue about personal convictions as if they were core doctrinal issues.

We argue about personal convictions all the time. For instance, we’re in a political season. Some Christians wants to bring politics within the walls of the church, elevating a candidate as if that candidate is the obvious Christian choice. But no matter what your personal convictions are on the candidate of your choice, the church only has one king. We vote based on our Christian convictions, but we vote with eyes wide open knowing that each candidate is a sinner in need of the Savior. This nation is in a moral free fall, and neither candidate will save this nation. This nation does not need a politician. It needs Jesus.

As a good citizen of this nation, vote, but in whatever way you’re making your decision, just know that you are not voting for a Savior. There is only one person who can truly save anyone, the Lord Jesus Christ. And that is not an argument based on personal conviction. It's an argument based on core doctrinal issues. Jesus is our Savior and he is our king.

Pursue What Promotes Peace

You may think that’s a provocative statement, but it’s actually not. Its a statement based on core doctrinal truth in pursuit of peace among us. As Christians, we are to be people who pursue what promotes peace among his people. Take a look at Romans 14:19:

Romans 14:19 CSB

19 So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another.

The word pursue is the verb in the sentence, it’s the action step, and it means, “To move rapidly and decisively toward an objective.” We’re called as Christians to move rapidly and decisively toward, what? Peace.

Please note that this is not an ambiguous form of peace. This is not peace in the world, or peace in the nation, or even peace in the city. This is peace in the church. Christians are called to be people who strive for unity and peace amongst one another. Because if the church cannot be a picture of peace amongst one another, how in the world will we be a picture of peace to the world? We're called to move rapidly and decisively toward peace in the church.

He says it this way in Ephesians 4:1-3,

Ephesians 4:1–3 CSB

1 Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you to walk worthy of the calling you have received, 2 with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, 3 making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.

If there is anything that will destroy the witness of a church, it is arguments and disunity amongst us. And if there's anything that's going to build up a church so that it can be a church that shines the light of Christ to the world, it is a church of believers who walk worthy of the calling they have received in Christ. And to walk worthy of the calling we have received is to move rapidly and decisively toward love and peace with one another.

Stumbling Block

To preserve peace and unity within our church, he encourages us to stay away from things he calls, “Stumbling blocks.” Take a look at Romans 14:13,

Romans 14:13 CSB

13 Therefore, let us no longer judge one another. Instead decide never to put a stumbling block or pitfall in the way of your brother or sister.

Now there are two verbs in this verse that in the English look like different words, but they're actually the same word in the Greek. He says, “Let us no longer judge one another.” That is a verb. Then he says, “Instead, decide never to put a stumbling block.” The word decide there is also the Greek word that in English can be translated as judge. So basically what he's saying is, “If you're going to judge anything, make a judgment to never to do this.”

What should you never do? The Christian should not place a stumbling block before a Christian. The stumbling block has a very specific meaning within the context of Romans 14. The stumbling block is anything that would cause a Christian to fall into sin or in some way violate their conscience before God.

The classic example of this would be in the area of alcohol. The Bible does give many warnings against drunkenness. At the same time, the Bible does describe the consumption of wine, which likely had alcohol, although some scholars believe it had less alcohol content than modern wine.

When I worked in the homeless shelter, we had to take college courses on addiction and recovery. Alcohol itself is a weird drug. The statistics say that if there's alcoholism in your family you're more likely to become an alcoholic than someone who doesn't have that history. Some can sit down and have a glass of wine with their Italian food and be fine, while there are others who, after having one glass of alcohol, can easily fall into an alcoholic binge.

So how does Romans 14:13 fit here? Let's say you are a Christian who feels the freedom in Christ that having a glass of alcohol in moderation is fine. You're not someone whoever falls into drunkenness or would justify drunkenness. But you don't mind having a glass of wine with your meal. You meet a new brother in Christ who's just come to the church. He's excited about what Jesus is doing in his life. He's been delivered from a life of alcoholism and substance abuse. He's got a personal conviction that he could never touch a glass of alcohol because he knows where that'll take him. God delivered him from that.

Now, even though you, as a Christian, may feel the freedom in Christ that having a drink in moderation is fine, taking this brother out to have a drink of alcohol would be placing a stumbling block before him. Pursuing peace for my brother would mean that, despite my own convictions about my freedoms, for the sake of my brother, we will have an alcohol free zone. I will not put a stumbling block in front of my brother.

This is made clear in Romans 14:15 when he says,

Romans 14:15 CSB

15 For if your brother or sister is hurt by what you eat, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy, by what you eat, someone for whom Christ died.

The greater principle we are to keep in mind is that Christians ought to be people who prioritize walking according to love over everything else. We’ll talk more about that later, but know that, as a Christian, we prioritize how our actions affect others, especially our family in Christ.

Conscience and Morality

I want to separate for us conscience and morality. This text in Romans 14 is focusing specifically on matters of conscience. The example he gave of matters of eating and drinking were matters of conscience.

Romans 14:14 says,

Romans 14:14 CSB

14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. Still, to someone who considers a thing to be unclean, to that one it is unclean.

“To someone who considers a thing to be unclean, to that one it is unclean.” It’s important when you are reading the Bible to understand things in context. Suppose someone came to you and just took this verse out of context, put it out in the air and said, “Look, even Paul says that whatever I feel about something, that's what it is. Therefore, if I don’t feel like this is a sin, than it’s not a sin.” Romans 14 is referring to disputable matters and not to things that the Bible clearly says are sin.

The Bible outlines things that are clearly sin despite what you feel about it. For instance, in 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,

1 Corinthians 6:9–10 CSB

9 Don’t you know that the unrighteous will not inherit God’s kingdom? Do not be deceived: No sexually immoral people, idolaters, adulterers, or males who have sex with males, 10 no thieves, greedy people, drunkards, verbally abusive people, or swindlers will inherit God’s kingdom.

What the Bible says is sin, is sin. Christians are people who stay away from sin, and who repent when they find themselves falling into sin. We are people who are committed to not putting a stumbling block in front of our brothers and sisters in Christ. And why are Christians committed to these things? We are committed to these things because we are people who pursue righteousness in Jesus Christ.

I love how Romans 14:14 starts, “I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus.” Think about that. He's talking about a mind shift, a perspective change that has occurred in his own mind. He has allowed the Lord Jesus Christ to change his wrong thinking. He has submitted his thoughts and his convictions to Christ. He has said that my personal convictions are going to be convictions that testify to Jesus Christ. Our testimony to the world should be, “I Know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus.”

The Kingdom of God

And what is he persuaded about? He is persuaded that his values, his convictions, are going to be the convictions and values of the Kingdom of God.

The main point of this text is that we are to be Christians who pursue the Kingdom of God.

This is the big idea of the text,

Pursue the kingdom of God through a heart of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, driven by faith and love to build up and edify brothers and sisters in Christ.

He brings up the kingdom of God to us in Romans 14:16-17 where he says,

Romans 14:16–17 CSB

16 Therefore, do not let your good be slandered, 17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.

And by bringing that up to us, he is describing the greater pursuit for the Christian. The greater pursuit for the Christian is not to win the battle in the disputable matter. The greater pursuit for the Christian is not to win the argument. The greater pursuit for the Christian is the pursuit of the Kingdom of God in Jesus Christ.

Our mindset is to be a kingdom mindset.

Our values are to be kingdom values.

Our love for one another is to be a kingdom of God love.

The Kingdom of God is both a now and not yet. The Kingdom of God is a now because wherever the king is, the kingdom is there. If Jesus truly is in you, if you live your life in him, if King Jesus is on the throne of your heart, you pursue the values of his kingdom.

He outlines for us three Kingdom values.

The first Kingdom Value is the kingdom value of righteousness.

Kingdom Value #1: Righteousness

Righteousness has to do with being in a right standing before God. It’s the quality, state, and characteristic of being right before him. The Christian life is a life that values the pursuit of righteousness.

We pursue the kingdom value of righteousness because, for the Christian, righteousness is now part of our identity. Take a look at 2 Corinthians 5:21,

2 Corinthians 5:21 CSB

21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

As Christians who now identify in Christ, we have become the righteousness of God. His values are now our values.

We pursue righteousness for many reasons:

We pursue righteousness as a response to God's grace.

We pursue righteousness because it leads to God’s blessing.

We pursue righteousness because it demonstrates the faith that God placed in us to the world.

Ephesians 6:14 says,

Ephesians 6:14 CSB

14 Stand, therefore, with truth like a belt around your waist, righteousness like armor on your chest,

Righteousness protects the Christian from sin and from harm. So as people who love our identity and Christ, who love Jesus, we pursue the kingdom value of righteousness.

Second,

Kingdom Value #2: Peace

We pursue the kingdom value of peace. We spoke about this earlier, where in Romans 14:19 he says,

Romans 14:19 CSB

19 So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another.

We often think of peace as something that affects us internally. And it's true. Jesus says in John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you.” The Christian has an incredible internal peace that we have with Jesus Christ. But peace for the Christian is not just something that happens to you. It is also something you pursue in the world with others.

Matthew 5:9 says,

Matthew 5:9 CSB

9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.

Christ calls us to be a peacemaker. You could also look at Romans 12:18,

Romans 12:18 CSB

18 If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.

The Christian is called to actively pursue peace with everyone, as long as it’s up to you. What about Hebrews 12:14,

Hebrews 12:14 CSB

14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness—without it no one will see the Lord.

One last one. How about 1 Peter 3:11,

1 Peter 3:11 CSB

11 and let him turn away from evil and do what is good. Let him seek peace and pursue it,

The Christian should actively pursue peace with others. Why do we pursue peace?

We pursue peace out of obedience to Jesus Christ.

We pursue peace because it promotes unity in the body of Christ.

We pursue peace because it is part of our Christian witness, and it fulfills the law of love.

Christians pursue the kingdom value of peace.

The third kingdom value is,

Kingdom Value #3: Joy in the Holy Spirit

We pursue the kingdom value of joy in the Holy Spirit. Now the wording of joy in the Holy Spirit is very intentional. Because joy is found when one's heart is in alignment with God's presence. Psalm 16:11 says,

Psalm 16:11 CSB

11 You reveal the path of life to me; in your presence is abundant joy; at your right hand are eternal pleasures.

We find joy in the Lord when we are in his presence, when we are abiding with him. We need to pursue abiding with God, because there is abundant joy in his presence.

Jesus describes joy as something that he puts in your heart and in your life. He says in John 15:11,

John 15:11 CSB

11 “I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete.

There is an abiding in Jesus Christ where his words are ingrained in your soul. His words are in you, and his presence overwhelms you. He says my joy will be in you and your joy will be complete because in his presence is abundant joy.

And I believe the pursuit of the Kingdom values of righteousness, the kingdom values of peace, leads us to the kingdom value of joy in the Holy Spirit. Because as we seek righteousness in him through faith, as we seek peace with others, we are being obedient to his commands and taking joy in him. It says in Psalm 19:8,

Psalm 19:8 CSB

8 The precepts of the Lord are right, making the heart glad; the command of the Lord is radiant, making the eyes light up.

There is something that drives all the pursuits of the kingdom. For the Christian, what driving motivations need to be within me so that I can pursue kingdom values?

Drive to Pursue the Kingdom #1: Faith

If we're gonna be people who pursue Kingdom values, the first inner drive we need to have is faith. Romans 14:23 says,

Romans 14:23 CSB

23 But whoever doubts stands condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith, and everything that is not from faith is sin.

Faith is foundational to the Christian life. If you don't believe that Christ is working in your life, you've already lost at the start. We must believe that Jesus is who he says he is and is able to do what he says he is able to do. Hebrews 11:6 says,

Hebrews 11:6 CSB

6 Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

The belief that you have in God is crucial to your ability to pursue his kingdom. Faith is the journey of the Christian life. In 2 Corinthians 5:7 it says,

2 Corinthians 5:7 CSB

7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.

We don't believe that God is going to do things based on what we see. We believe that God will do what he says he will do based on who he is. We have a drive to pursue the kingdom that is grounded on faith.

Drive to Pursue the Kingdom #2: Love

If our first drive to pursue the kingdom is based on faith, our second drive to pursue the kingdom is based on love. We mentioned this earlier in Romans 14:15:

Romans 14:15 CSB

15 For if your brother or sister is hurt by what you eat, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy, by what you eat, someone for whom Christ died.

The message of that verse is that, as Christians, we are people who should walk according to love. Love has been a constant theme in these last three chapters of Romans. If we want to be people who pursue the Kingdom of God, we need to pursue it through faith and love.

Take a look at 1 Corinthians 13:1-2:

1 Corinthians 13:1–2 CSB

1 If I speak human or angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.

We need a faith that is strong, a straight faith that is powerful. But if that faith is not accompanied with love, we have nothing. We cannot pursue kingdom values without faith and love. The Bible says that God is love, and when the king is present in your heart, love is present in your heart.

As we pursue the kingdom values of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, driven by a heart of faith and love, it will move us to build up and edify our brothers and sisters. The church should be a representation of Christ's love to the world. If I want to see the love of God, I should see it first and foremost in God's people.

And so the main point of this text is one that encourages us to love one another. That love is bigger than our arguments. It's bigger than our convictions. Take a look at what James says in James 2:5,

James 2:5 CSB

5 Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Didn’t God choose the poor in this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom that he has promised to those who love him?

We are the family of God, heirs to the kingdom of God. We are chosen to be rich in faith through a powerful love. God has called you to be a testimony to the world of the riches of his faith and the riches of his love.

I was taking a walk through the garden yesterday and, if you haven't seen it lately, it's incredible. There are vegetables just growing back there. We have tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, watermelons growing. There is a big pumpkin. There are collard greens and all kinds of vegetables and plants growing back there. And it looks to me as if it just kind of just happened overnight.

But I know it's not the case. I've seen those beds when nobody cares for it. When nobody cares for it, it's just weeds. Men and women in our church have been working hard in those gardens, growing the seeds, planting the plants, watering them, pulling weeds. You'll probably see some today working after church.

In the same way, sometimes we see a brother and sister in Christ, see someone strong in their faith, and we think it just happened. Yes, the Spirit of God changes our life. He does the transformation. But our minds and hearts must be aligned with his transformation in our life. We must be committed to pull out the weeds of sin and pursue the Kingdom values of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit in our hearts.

The Christian is in a spiritual pursuit to know God’s heart, and God’s heart is found in knowing his kingdom values. A life that seeks him and wants to know him is driven by faith and love, a love for God and a love for others.

Maybe you're someone who doesn't know what that love is. Jesus died on the cross for your sins and mine, out of the abundant love of his heart. The Bible says that God loved the world so much he gave his only son, and whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. He calls us to be people who trust him, who submit to him, who believe him.

Conclusion

Brothers and sisters, I want you to be people who have a rich, powerful Christian testimony and an incredible spiritual life in Jesus. There must be a pursuit in your own life, a pursuit towards righteousness because we want to reflect his character, reflect our identity in Christ, reflect who he is to the world. We need to have a pursuit of peace. People who move forward, running towards peace with everyone. And we need to be people who pursue joy in the Holy Spirit, a joy that comes when we abide in his presence.

These pursuits must be driven by a rich faith in our heart, a belief, a trust in who he is. And it must be driven by a love for God and a love for others. Let us build up one another through hearts rich in faith and in love. Amen.

Prayer

Last Song

Doxology

Numbers 6:24–26 CSB

24 “May the Lord bless you and protect you; 25 may the Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you; 26 may the Lord look with favor on you and give you peace.” ’

Jude 24–25 CSB

24 Now to him who is able to protect you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, without blemish and with great joy, 25 to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority before all time, now and forever. Amen.

You are dismissed. Have a great week in the Lord!