Christian Self Denial

Tense or Relaxed

From chapter 14 verse 1 through chapter 15 verse 13 Paul is going to be talking about two types of Christians - weak and strong;

Remember who this letter was written too - the church of Rome - believers in Christ;

“Weak” meaning they felt constrained, restricted, and fearful in their faith;

This group felt the rules had to be followed, what rules the rules of the church that could not be clearly defined by Scripture;

“Strong” meaning they felt relaxed, free and liberated in their faith;

This group felt the only extremely strict rules that had to be followed where clearly defined in Scripture;

Now eventually there was then, and still today, conflicts that occur between these two groups;

Today we are going to see how Paul shows how both groups threatened harmony in the church;

How do you feel when you go to church tense or relaxed?

Contempt

The first disagreement that Paul points out is about food and what was approved for eating;

The “strong” felt God had provide all food and therefore it was all able to be eaten;

However the “weak” felt that the only approved food was vegetables - this is possibly based off an extreme legalism of the of the Old Testament;

These seemingly unimportant issues are what causes disunity in the body which then filters to the outside;

However the “stronger” should be more receiving of the “weaker” and reject them based on something like this;

However this does not mean or allude to acceptance of sin or sinful actions - this majoring on the majors and letting the minors be minors.

Condemnation

Now Paul is pointing out that the “weaker” will seem to jump judgmentalism much quicker;

The Book of Romans The Fearful Must Avoid Condemnation (Verses 3b, 4)

The trouble with those who observe rigorous, detailed rules in their religion is that they have a tendency to be censorious and intolerant of other brethren who do not observe the same rules.

Both sides have a tendency to hold to only their thoughts, or traditions, as relevant and absolutely correct;

And when you have a church with both groups tensions run high;

The Book of Romans The Fearful Must Avoid Condemnation (Verses 3b, 4)

Both sides can easily be wrong in such a disagreement. What each side must have is genuine respect for the Christianity and views of the other, and a spirit of acceptance and brotherly love.

The only absolute correct view of Christianity comes from Christ Himself.

The Book of Romans The Fearful Must Avoid Condemnation (Verses 3b, 4)

What sort of disagreements do Paul’s observations apply to? The answer is not to matters of basic morality, where right and wrong are clearly indicated in the Bible. On these there is no need for tolerance about differing views. But to matters about which the Biblical principles are not altogether clear, matters about which true Christians can disagree with each other, Paul’s principles apply.

Self Denial

How are you willing to set self aside for the betterment of gospel;

Remember we are created in Christ’s image and easy is slow to anger and quick to love;

Are you willing to put others first;

Are you willing to put Christ first?