Holy God,
We praise you for your desire to draw all people to
yourself. We thank you for the transforming power of
your Spirit, which turns rebellious hearts to you. Forgive
us our desires to live for ourselves, to dismiss our
neighbours, to despise and judge our brothers and sisters,
to elevate our small standards above your law of love.
Father, use these words which you have spoken and
written for our benefit to now benefit our souls for right
thinking, edifying speech and God-glorifying action, by the
mighty power of your Holy Spirit. We ask this in the name
of Jesus who desires and makes this possible, Amen.
Romans 14 – the Rule of Love
[CLICK] Sydney examples of self-love. But what is this new
rule of love?
The Transformed Church (Rom. 12 recap)
[CLICK]
- 12:1-2 – transformed MIND (right judgement)
- 12:4-8 – transformed RELATIONSHIP (humility and
other-centredness)
- 12:9-13 – transformed LOVE (genuine, nonhypocritical, desiring others to grow in faith i.e., not
causing them to stumble!)
12:6-10 (MSG)
“ If you preach, just preach God’s Message, nothing else;
if you help, just help, don’t take over; if you teach, stick to
your teaching; if you give encouraging guidance, be
careful that you don’t get bossy; if you’re put in charge,
don’t manipulate; if you’re called to give aid to people in
distress, keep your eyes open and be quick to respond; if
you work with the disadvantaged, don’t let yourself get
irritated with them or depressed by them. Keep a smile
on your face. 9-10 Love from the center of who you are;
don’t fake it. Run for dear life from evil; hold on for dear
life to good. Be good friends who love deeply; practice
playing second fiddle.”
The Weak
Paul starts off 14:1 with ‘As for the one who is weak in
faith…’ Note here, then, who Paul is contrasting these
people against. End of Ch 13: not these people. I.E., they
are not committing sin, just weaker in their faith. Who are
these weak Christians of Rome that Paul is talking to?
Some say that these might be Gentiles who had become
Christians from a pagan background, and were still
holding on to some notions of the dangers associated
with pagan rituals involving food and certain ceremonious
days, etc. However, what is more likely is that these weak
in faith were Jewish Christians with a long tradition in
Mosaic law; they were used to following the OT laws, so
legalistic, etc. More likely, due to references to food and
also their concerns about observing days (e.g., Sabbath,
feasts). Meat and wine not prohibited, but strict Jews
would avoid in certain situations due to uncertainty about
kosher or idol-worship-corruption of food/wine. No
question of their faith in Christ, but perhaps ‘weak’ in
terms of the effectiveness of their faith. Funny that Paul
identifies with the ‘strong’, given his background. Also
indicates that the weak are more legalistic Jews than
‘awakened’, ‘spiritualised’ Jews (e.g., Paul).
Three points:
- minority (hence Paul’s exhortation for their
acceptance)
- not gospel issue (again, Paul’s exhortation for their
acceptance)
- welcome them! Accept, befriend (not just tolerate).
Because, v1: not to quarrel over ‘disputable matter’
(NIV) ‘opinions’ (ESV)
Who are the weak today? [CLICK]
Christians out there who believe… radios / TV / drink /
dance / pubs…
Maybe you? Christ is enough. But it’s hard to let go of
traditions. My heritage: Korean Presbyterians. [CLICK]
Pressed notes for giving (not internet!). Sunday best.
Standing on Bible. Me too. Pray on my knees, feel uneasy
about certain expressions of music & worship, really not
sure about Christians with tattoos and piercings, don’t
know about Shayne’s gratuitous displays of flesh on
Sundays. These are my opinions (v1). Many over history.
Should be careful about shaming the weak. Great
forefathers of faith; saints, martyrs, prophets have been
‘weak’. [CLICK] E.g., Eric Liddell (wouldn’t run Sundays),
John Calvin (opposed instrumental music in church and
non-Psalm singing), George Muller (no salary). Many
more. One commentator notes, ‘People whose trust in
Christ is strong but whose understanding of what that
means in terms of liberty in daily living is weak have often
been driven to do great things for Christ. Let us not
despise the weak.’
The Strong [CLICK]
Most likely Gentiles, and also some Jews (like Paul).
Perhaps some background in paganism or Judaism, but
wholly converted to Christ. Their faith in Christ allows
them to do anything which is not Scripturally forbidden.
No qualms, foibles about practice of faith. Music, food,
days, dress. Who are the strong today? [CLICK]
Evangelicals, FIECs, SBC? Most of these verses address the
strong – because they have the ‘upper hand’, more likely
to cause harm, more capacity to do good. If this is you,
then listen…
Love vs Liberty [CLICK]
Paul addresses the strong in vv 3, 13, 15-22, 15:1.
The first recommendation is that the strong are to
embrace the weak (v1). They’re just opinions! V13 (‘any
longer’) indicates they’ve been doing this a while. Paul
mentions eating, drinking, and observation of days in
particular, because these most likely to cause stumbling.
What is stumbling: v 15, ‘do not destroy the one’ v20 ‘do
not destroy the work of God.’ Are we threatening
salvation of the weak? Their faith in Jesus which has lead
them to be justified by faith (Rom 8)? No, but creating
impediments to their growth in maturity and Christlikeness. At best, it can cause some offence and hurt for
the weak, who questions the behaviour of the strong, as
it conflicts with their own conscience. At worst, it can
embolden the weak to follow their example and thus sin
because it still goes against their own conscience; it
threatens the integrity of their faith. [CLICK] 1 Cor 8:8-10
“But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse
if we do not eat, and no better if we do. Be careful,
however, that the exercise of your rights does not
become a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone
with a weak conscience sees you, with all your knowledge,
eating in an idol’s temple, won’t that person be
emboldened to eat what is sacrificed to idols?”
So how do the strong do this? There are a few
temptations for the strong here:
- insist on their freedoms (selfishness)
- despise (look down) on the weak (pride)
Historical examples:
- [CLICK] Shinto worship in Korea: some members
found it acceptable because their conscience was
clear. However, caused a problem for others.
- Vietnam war: 567, 238 drawn in ballots, 553
exempted for being theological students or
ministers; 1242 conscientious objectors. Many
Christians were pacifists. Many not (eg, CS Lewis)
Church-wide debates.
Modern example:
- Steve and pizzas
- Joshua and alcohol
- SBC and communion [CLICK]
Paul calls on the strong to do two things in particular:
- consider the impact of your actions on others
(refrain)
- consider how to build up / please others (pursue)
v13 (‘decide’ ESV, ‘make up your mind’ NIV), v19
(‘pursue’)
Both of these involve LOVE. It is the triumph of Love of
others over the love of liberty. We love liberty. We love
the idea that freedom is our God-given right and that no-
one should take it away from us. [CLICK] For Christians,
Love is the standard and Love is the motive (v15). The
danger is that the strong do not take the weak seriously
enough and accuse them of being legalistic, when they
are just trying to protect their conscience.
So, what does this look like for us today? I think majority
at SBC are ‘strong’. Solid Bible teaching, good grasp of the
gospel and godly examples. So what sort of things can we
be causing our weaker brothers and sisters to stumble
over? Let me give you 3 broad categories:
- how you spend your time
- how you spend your money
- how you relate with others
Time: Biblical and non-Biblical ways we can spend our
time, but lots of freedom. There are many ways which
you might be spending your time which could pose a
serious stumbling to the weak. Again, not sinful things,
but ways in which a weaker brother or sister might
consider to be unhelpful or ungodly. Maybe you have a
particular hobby you like to spend time in: fishing,
camping, eating, holidaying, reading, whatever. None of
these things are bad in themselves. But perception of
how much of your time you invest here can be divisive… If
you think you might be spending your time in ways which
are Biblically questionable, then despite your clear
conscience, don’t put it on show for others. And when
you see others being more disciplined about how they
spend their time, resist the urge to despise…
Money: again, besides the Biblical principles of being
generous, sacrificial, and joyful in our stewardship of the
money God give us, we are quite free as Christians to
spend our resources in ways which honour God. Again,
think of the ways in which you might be spending which
are perfectly legitimate and Biblically sound, but might
cause others to stumble. You see, the way it looks is
actually pretty important. We don’t live with our bank
balances on show, but how we spend our money is quite
evident. Again, you may wish to spend money on Sundays,
or buy nice things, or go on luxury holidays – all with a
clear conscience. Hannah and I have struggled with… we
don’t spend on… Beware of your insistence to do these
things, and don’t despise the ones who are more
disciplined about how they spend.
Relationships: authority and between sexes. Martyn’s
great talk on authority last week. [CLICK]. Free conscience
to vote for whoever we think appropriate. Don’t despise
those who hold a particular or passionate political view
because of their faith, as long as it doesn’t go against the
word of God. Not license to vote for the openly immoral.
V5: Separation of the sexes during traditional worship;
why? Called to treat women in church as sisters and
mothers; purity is challenging at the best of times. I
usually call on OCFers to avoid deep platonic friendships –
wisdom and purity, not to mention tempting the weaker
members.
Reflection:
When I make others stumble I…
- read my Bible: am I really acting within Biblical
freedoms? Or just excusing myself to do what I feel
like doing?
- re-examine my heart: am I acting out of love? Or
insisting on my own freedoms above the
opportunity to build others up in love? (15:1)
"On the essentials, unity. On the nonessentials, liberty. In
everything, love." Jack Hyles
Love vs Legalism [CLICK]
Vv 3b – 12 address the weak and their temptation to
judge the strong. The first danger is that the weak will
take the strong too seriously and label them as being
licentious / lawless, because they are not conforming to
patterns of behaviour which they see as being important.
In many cases, the weak are actually the stronger tyrants,
as they hold others hostage against their standards. Often
have much to complain about. Their greatest danger is
the trap of falling into legalism as they let works obscure
the centrality of the message of the gospel. Paul’s primary
call to the weak is: ‘don’t judge!’ Remember, these are
not people who override the gospel with works, but have
firmly-held beliefs about certain ways their faith is
worked out in real life.
So, what does this look like today? Some examples: You
might be convicted of a saving grace through faith in
Jesus, but insist that:
- creationism / eschatology
- Churches should only use certain
instruments/chords [CLICK] during singing
- Christians should only vote for a particular party.
Conservative Americans  republicans
- Christians should home school their children
because…
- Pastors should only drive cars <$5000 [CLICK]
- Only the KJV should be read because…
- Christians should never drink, or even enter pubs
In some ways, we all have these tendencies – to set our
own standard upon others. Personally, certain resolves in
our family because of the stumbling it might cause others,
but we should also be wary of judging others. Again, the
standard for the Christian is LOVE. Instead of judgement,
love should reign supreme in the believer’s attitude to
one another.
First danger – judging the strong. Second danger: falling
into sin as they go against their conscience in emulating
the behaviour of the strong. (v23) If you are convinced
that drinking alcohol is not good for your faith, then
abstain. If you cannot send your children to a state-run
school without considering your conscience in trouble,
then educate them at home. If you consider internet
banking an inappropriate way to give to church, then
don’t!
Dangers of social media: for the strong and for the weak.
Politics, parenting, sex, education, feminism, climate
change, you name it… Christians out there showing poor
examples of being strong and weak. LOVE is missing from
the public discourse amongst Christians.
Reflection:
When others make me stumble, I…
- read my Bible: am I putting my own scruples and
standards above what the Bible requires in faith?
- re-examine my heart: am I acting out of love? Is it
more important to insist on my standards above
the relationship with my brother/sister? (v12)
The Price of Unity [CLICK]
Why are we to do this? Why should the strong avoid
stumbling the weak? The weak avoid judging the strong?
1. Because of LOVE (v15). Seek to ultimate good of
others, even if it costs us something. For the Strong
= Liberty. For the Weak = Traditions / habits /
preferences.
"I do verily believe that when God shall accomplish
unity, it will be the effect of love, and not the cause of
love. It will proceed from love, before it brings forth
love." - John Owen
2. Because God is the judge (vv4, 10-12)
3. Because of the price that has been paid for these
individuals. (vv9, 15)
John Stott quote: [CLICK] “It is safe to treat others as we
would like them to treat us, but it is safer still to treat
them as God does.” God has welcomed the strong, so
they shouldn’t be judged. God has redeemed the weak,
so they shouldn’t be despised. V9 – Christ died for all. If
you think you identify with the strong, and tempted to
despise those who are being stubborn or backward in
their weakness by holding on to principles or habits, then
consider this: Jesus died to redeem that person. Their
faith is precious, and their growth towards Christ-likeness
is at stake. Surely, that’s worth laying down your freedom?
If you are weak, and tempted to judge the strong because
they are acting in ways contrary to your own conscience,
then remember: Jesus died so they would experience the
fullness of freedom! Who are you to tie them down?
You see, unity has come at a great cost – what Christ has
brought together by his blood, we shouldn’t tear apart.
The Purpose of Unity [CLICK]
Not for our own gain! The purpose of the church is:
Bringing glory and honour to God (15:5-7)
Paul ends this section with a prayer for the church,
because he knows it is a cycle of supernatural unity
which needs to happen in the church: God provides
the same sacrificial mind for the believers that Christ
had, they bring glory to God. This is impossible
through human effort, but ultimately achieved
through the outpouring of the HS.
Conclusion: the New Law of Love
[CLICK] So, which bag are you carrying? Which coffee cup
are you drinking from you? Hear from Jesus Himself:
[CLICK] John 13:34-35 “A new command I give you: Love
one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one
another.”
‘Oh How Good It is / is it’ (v3)