Liberty & Legalism

How many of you had something besides coffee or Diet Dr. Pepper for breakfast this morning? How many had some form of egg in your breakfast? How many put salt and pepper on that egg? How many put ketchup on that egg? How many put hot sauce of some variety on that egg? Who would claim that any breakfast without an egg is not really a breakfast?

How many of us are celebrating a religious holiday tomorrow? Purim (taken from the book of Esther) starts at Sundown to celebrate God’s protection of the Jewish people during the reign of the Persians. Many Jewish families will eat 3-sided cookies to remember Wicked Haman’s hat & read the book of Esther to remember how God’s providence was at work even in captivity. Does refusing to celebrate Purim make one an anti-semite?

I doubt any of us would claim that our holiness increases if our breakfast includes an egg. I reject the idea that failing to eat a triangular cookie indicates some hatred for God’s chosen ones.

Just as breakfast may or may not involve and egg, worship may or may not involve a PA system, electric lights, seats, heating or air-conditioning depending upon the season. Many non-essentials may either help or hurt worship gatherings depending upon our individual preferences. These grey issues that are not mentioned in the Bible require us to be humble and responsible in our choices.

How did we get here?

Historical Practices of Lent

1. “Lent” comes from an old English word for “spring” (Lenten) rooted in the lengthening of days.

2. Baptism was done on Easter

The early church tested baptismal candidates to see how serious was their conversion.

As early as the 2nd century we have mention of baptismal candidates preparing by study & fasting (for 3 days) before making their public confession

By the time of the Council of Nicaea in 325, it was determined to be a forty-day fast in honor of Christ’s forty days in the wilderness. During this six-week period, just one simple meal was eaten, although the fast was broken on Sundays. From the ninth century on, especially in the Roman Catholic Church, Lent has become progressively more relaxed. As well as a time of fasting, Lent is a time of increased spiritual exercises and attention to the needs of the poor.[i]

3. Baptism moved away from an Easter-only event, but the time of spiritual preparation in Spring continued as a practice.

4. How do we get the dates?

Lent modeled after 40 day of Jesus in Wilderness (followed His baptism, preceded public ministry)

Celebration of Resurrection is NOT a day of mourning, so 40 days plus 6 Sundays = Wednesday.

5. What does Lent accomplish?

I believe it is a misconception that some Gospel-centered Protestants hold that any person observes Lent in order to earn salvation or merit God’s favor.

Lent is a time of re-evaluating one’s priorities just as many do around New Year’s as goals are established or resolutions are made.

Many claim that they don’t need special days like Lent or resolutions because we ought to live this way all the time. They’re right, we ought to, but do we?

I know I don’t love my wife the way I should every day. I need birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s and Sweetest Day to remind me of what I should be doing every day.

Biblical Referents

1. The 5 times “lent” appears in ESV is the past tense of “to lend”

2. “40 days” was the length of Jesus’ temptation

Matthew 4:1–2 ESV:2016

1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.

40 is also represented in the years Moses was prepared to lead the Israelites out of Egypt (Ex 7:7); the 40 days he was on Mt. Sinai (Ex 24:18) and the 40 years Israel wandered in the wilderness due to the lack of faith of the 10 spies (Num 33:38).

3. Fasting is mentioned by Christ just as prayer (When you…) in Mt 6. Christ said that his followers would fast after the bridegroom goes away in Mk 2.

4. Jesus never directed when or how long to fast, but he clearly sees value in this spiritual discipline.

Transition: So if Lent is an observance about which Scripture is silent that either may or may not help us move toward Christ-likeness, Does Scripture give any clues about our attitude toward issues like this? Romans 14 describes 2 attitudes to avoid.

Let me read this chapter then I will highlight some thoughts and conclude with challenges for each of us.

Romans 14:1–23 ESV:2016

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. 5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 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. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. 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. 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. 20 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. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.

The Strong should avoid passing Judgment (Romans 14:3)

Romans 14:3 ESV:2016

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.

3 Opportunities for Tolerance

1. Diet (vv.1-4)

The problem Paul highlights is NOT the choice, but the attitude toward those who chose differently.

That other person’s diet choice is a “nunya”—none of your business. The end of v.3 and the end of v.4 both make it clear that God can be honored by that person who chooses different than you.

2. Days (vv.5-8)

As many churches have grown, they have moved to multiple services. Some of those multiple services have moved to Saturday and other nights of the week.

For a season, Ann and I were worshipping primarily at a Saturday evening service which both honored the Lord and was very convenient for us at that stage in our lives.

Some in our church have very firm convictions about Sabbath and the Lord’s Day and those ideas get tested when a family who chooses not to work or play sports on Sunday goes to a restaurant staffed by employees who have to work on Sunday, or goes to a show or visits a store.

I’ve heard the reasoning that workers on Sunday may not be believers or that believers choose to practice Sabbath on another day of the week so please don’t interpret my word as throwing shade.

Since I “work” on Sundays, my day of sabbath is on Friday. In that practice I believe I am honoring the principle that God created in 6 days, then designated a separate day of rest. It is my general practice not to set an alarm clock on Fridays.

I’m fully aware that this is not only an employment issue. I know the way a person chooses to view a day of sabbath effects sports, homework and chores as well.

Paul says that one person chooses to honor the Lord in one way, another person chooses to honor the Lord in another way. What is most important in Paul’s mind is that each of us is living to honor the Lord.

3. Deity (vv.9-12)

The “judgment seat” mentioned in v.10 is the Judgment seat of Christ (determines rewards), not the Great White Throne Judgment of Rev. 20 that determines eternal destiny

You will not appear before the Judgment Seat of Dave and I will not stand before the Judgment Seat of You, so we can both extend our grace and leave God to settle His accounts.

Transition: The first half of this chapter is all about what I expect of others. The second half is about what others can expect of us.

Free Believers should avoid causing stumbling (Rom 14:20)

Romans 14:20 ESV:2016

20 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.

3 Warnings of Grace

1. Distress (vv.13-18)

My lifestyle should not cause distress to others.

2 standards can be found in v.18: acceptance and approval.

Only God has the right to determine what is and is not acceptable.

For the sake of my brothers and sisters in the Lord I am to live in such a way that they can honestly say, “I approve that he is living his life to the glory of God the best he knows how.”

It would cause you distress to hold you to the things that I know, so I am free to let you live according to the things that you know.

The movie Heartbreak Ridge is a story of a Drill Instructor who shapes a platoon of misfits into a cohesive fighting unit. As one point he tries to break their individualism and build esprit de corps in the unit by demanding that they all wear the same style of T-shirt during PT, or go bare chested.

For several days they jog in just their shorts and shoes because although they all match each other, they never know what T-shirt the D.I. will choose to wear. His demand that they measure up to his knowledge causes significant distress.

Eventually they find the person who does his laundry and they work out a deal so that they know which T-shirt she will lay out for him. When they know what he knows, distress is eliminated!

2. Destruction (vv.19-21)

Do not allow your high expectations to ruin (destroy) the work of unity that God wants for His people.

For a season I worked in retail and I had to learn a secret for customer service. I am the type that wants to excel at everything, so I often made promises (with the best of intentions) that went unfulfilled due to circumstances beyond my control and created complaints. If the computer said that an item was in the warehouse and I knew that deliveries happened on Sunday and Thursday I would promise the item to be in store by Tuesday or Friday. Occasionally something got rerouted or a natural disaster in another part of the country delayed UPS flights and I would have an unhappy customer.

I was trained to manage expectations by promising low and delivering high. This last week I ordered an item that was to be ready by the end of the week. When I got the call on Tuesday that it was ready, I didn’t mind the 5 days I waited, I was thrilled that it was 3 days early.

If we learn to set our expectations of other graciously low about menial things like diet and days, it allows the delight of harmony to keep from destroying the uniting work of God.

Not everything is of equal importance. There are commands in Scripture and we all have convictions and opinions. When our opinions determine our fellowship, we destroy the Spirit’s work of Discipleship in another.

3. Doubts (vv.22-23)

The final warning is about putting on airs, to pretend that you are something that you are not.

Don’t pretend! Live out what you think to be right. If your understanding of God’s will permits you to eat bacon, and it won’t cause a weaker brother to sin, order a double. If your conviction is that everything is better with bacon, but it causes your brother to doubt his faith, it might be better to pass on bringing a platter of bacon to the church potluck. If your understanding of God’s will limits you to a salad, then order the salad! Don’t violate your conscience to impress another person, but don’t flaunt your conscience if it may hurt another person.

Conclusion:

Doug Moo formulates three principles that relate to today: (1) Believers continue to differ over certain matters that are not essential to the Christian faith. Paul did not expect such differences to vanish. (2) Thus we should learn to relate to people in terms of their background and particular scruples in a loving manner. (3) The unity of the church and the glory of Christ should be our ultimate goal.[ii]

1. Baptists, Presbyterians, Lutherans, Non-denominationals and Catholics will probably continue to disagree over Ash Wednesday.

2. If people choose to pick a date 6 weeks before Easter to begin a time of personal reflection, it doesn’t hurt anything!

3. If I don’t look down on another man’s forehead and he doesn’t envy mine, we can both pursue Christ together!

[i] Nathan P. Feldmeth, Pocket Dictionary of Church History: Over 300 Terms Clearly and Concisely Defined, The IVP Pocket Reference Series (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2008), 90.

[ii] Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans, ed. Robert W. Yarbrough and Joshua W. Jipp, Second Edition., Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic: A Division of Baker Publishing Group, 2018), 713.