Rom. 14:1-15:7

Accepting Those Whom Christ Accepted

We now come to the end of Paul's commands to the body of Christ in light of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Paul has told us in 12:1-2:  to present our bodies as a living sacrifice that we might prove what the will of God is.

We have seen that this sacrificial living is lived out within the midst of the body of Christ and is lived out through true God-like, unconditional love for one another.  It is not merely individual piety >> communal (church body).

Because we have been so greatly loved by God, we therefore ought to love one another, and by loving our neighbor as ourselves we therefore are fulfilling the very essence of the Law of God in Christ.

It is through this mutual acceptance of one another in Christ that we are truly putting on the garment of Christ in light of the Day at hand.  It is by this mutual acceptance of one another that we seek to thoroughly edify one another (15:2, 7).

Paul now turns to a very practical, concrete concern among believers:  How do we treat one another when we differ over what is often called in theology as the “adiaphora” in the Christian life?

The term "adiaphora" is to be distinguished from the “essentials” of the gospel.  It refers to those things which are indifferent and really have no effect on the heart of the gospel.  Grey areas:  those areas where we don't have either an explicit command nor can we rightly deduce from good and necessary consequence the will of God on a particular subject.  The essentials of the gospel are those clear, explicit teachings of Scripture.

Two Groups of Christians:  Weak in faith (14:1) & Strong in faith (15:1)

Three issues of this immediate Division:  (a) the strong eat all foods, incl. meat vs. the weak eat only vegetables or vegetarians (2); (b) the strong makes no distinction among days of the week vs. the weak who value some days as more important than others (5); and (c) the strong drink wine vs. the weak who abstain from drinking wine (17, 21).

What we have here is an on-going debate among Jewish Christians vs. Gentile Christians (along with those liberated Jewish Christians – among whom Paul himself numbered [14:14, 20; 15:1]) in the church of Rome. 

These who are weak in faith are those former Jews who are struggling with the glorious transition from the old Mosaic Covenant – along with its unique law-code, which has now passed away AND the New Covenant in Christ which far surpasses the old in everlasting glory.  The weak in faith in Rome were those who believed they were still bound to keep the law of Moses in their daily lives.

In the OC, God required the Israelites to be distinct from other nations:   placing certain special holy days, distinctions in foods, drinks and clothing.  Certain foods were clearly restricted in order to be a good Jew.

But with the coming of the Kingdom of Christ and the New Covenant and the New Israel, these earthly distinctions were no longer necessary:  cf. Mark 7:14ff, 19.

Peter also learned this in a vision prior to Cornelius' conversion -- Acts 10 – These matters were finally settled in the Jerusalem Council in Acts 15.

Peter learned an even greater lesson than the fact that the old distinctions between clean and unclean animals is no longer normative for the Christian, he learned that the old distinctions between Jews and Gentiles; between circumcision and uncircumcision are no longer relevant:  Peter himself was brought by God to finally confess to Cornelius himself:

Acts 10:28  You are well aware that it is against our law for a Jew to associate with a Gentile or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean . . . Acts 10:34-36  "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism  35 but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right.  36 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, telling the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all.

Now, Peter being only human, slipped back into his old sinful way of thinking when he arrived in Galatia and was latter met by “certain men from James.”  Before these men arrived, Peter would eat and fellowship heartily with fellow Gentile brothers and sisters in Christ.  But once these men arrived, fearing their opinions Peter began to withdraw and stand away from his fellow brothers and sisters in the body of Christ, treating them as if they were outside the promises of God (Gal. 2:11-15). 

Paul rightly rebuked Peter to his face for his sinful rejection of these fellow members of the body of Christ, which surely brought Peter to repentance evidenced in his reply at the Jerusalem council in Acts 15.  Peter stood up in this very debate and said:

Acts 15:7-11  "Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe.  8 God, who knows the heart, showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as he did to us.  9 He made no distinction between us and them, for he purified their hearts by faith.  10 Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear?  11 No! We believe it is through the grace of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are."

In Christ, God has forever broken down the wall of partition/division and as promised through the Prophets, God has brought to two together into one new house, one new body (Eph. 2:11-22; cf. Rom. 15:8-13).

There is now a blending of peoples from every tongue and nation into the one new heavenly Kingdom of God. 

But as you can imagine:  Old habits are hard to break, as we saw in Peter’s own life – and these Jewish Christians, who were weak in faith in Christ who brought about these radical changes – continued to live under the Mosaic Law abstaining from these meats and wine because they were not kosher in the hands of these Gentiles in Rome and they continued to follow special Mosaic Sabbath days and festivals.

Therefore, the strong were those Gentiles and some Jewish Christians (like Paul) who realized that in the NC these distinctions have been forever removed.   That no food or wine is unclean, no day is holier than another.  Those days of distinctions have been removed.  Now all food and wine is clean in Christ.  All days are holy unto Christ.  Why?  Because in Christ there is no longer any of the old divisions that was put in place in the Law of Moses to distinguish Israel from the nations of the world.  Those days are gone.  Christ has brought about true reconciliation and to fall back into those old distinctions is to ultimately deny the radical transformation that has occurred with the coming of Christ.

But these theological divisions within the church lead to a more serious display of sinful attitudes among the body – on the one hand, the WEAK in faith (who were the minority in the church) began to look down their noses and condemn those who did not practice these strict Jewish customs and thought of them as being "loose" and abusing their freedom in Christ.   They thought of themselves as being the more serious about the faith; more pietistic and faithful to God. 

However, the STRONG quickly became frustrated and annoyed with the legalistic tendencies of the WEAK and began to flaunt their freedom in the face of the WEAK.  They RIGHTLY realized that Christ had set them free from these types and shadows and that they were no longer required to keep any of them, however they responded with a sinful attitude towards those who were WEAK in faith.   

Now, Paul enters into this divisive atmosphere and attempts to bring these two parties together.  What can Paul possibly say that will bring unity to these two warring factions in the church at Rome?

Notice that Paul’s immediate concern here is not to debate these issues – he has already provided everything they need to know to settle all these issues in the first part of his letter.  Rather, his concern here is for the peace and unity of the body (14:13, 19; 15:5, 7).  

While Paul clearly sides with the STRONG in their beliefs (14:14; 15:1), he does not side with them in their attitudes and actions.  His command to them is summed up in 15:7.

The only answer Paul can give to bring unity and peace to these two sides is Christ – the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Because God has accepted and welcomed the actual participants both sides of this debate into his family through the glorious work of Christ – AND if God has accepted all of us – and Christ is not ashamed to call us brothers – then shouldn’t we accept one another?

Paul’s answer is entirely Christological.  The gospel is the very life of the believer and it is to be lived out in our relationships with one another.

Now, today, we may not find any relevance at all with these issues of division among the church at Rome, but we certainly have our own list of taboos or adiaphora that we divide over in the body of Christ.  Those areas that are not essential to the gospel and are not clearly forbidden in the New Testament.

Paul’s answer to the Roman Christians is the same to you.  When you are tempted to divide over such things – and Satan and our flesh can come up with an innumerable things to divide over – What are you to do?  How should you respond to those around you in the body of Christ?

Well, Paul first addresses those who are the Weak in the Faith (1-12)

Do not judge those who have been received by God in Christ (vv. 2-4, 10-12).

Paul is providing the basis of the doctrine of the liberty of conscience.

WCF 20:2  God alone is Lord of the conscience, and has left it free from the doctrines and commandments of men which are in any thing contrary to his word, or beside it, in matters of faith or worship.

Christ alone is judge and one day he will straighten out you and your neighbor better than either one of you can do.  So don’t stand around and try to find new ways to condemn your brother and sister in Christ.  Instead – LOVE ONE ANOTHER (12:9-21; 13:8-10).  If you were to put all your energy into fulfilling that one word you will have plenty to keep you busy until Jesus returns.

You love and accept one another because Jesus loves you and your brother and sister in Christ.  Because he has accepted both of you into his own body.

To the Strong in the Faith (14:13-15:7)

Do not use your freedom in Christ to cause the WEAK to stumble from the faith.

Paul says that even though we are free in Christ from these commandments of men, there are times when it would be better to temporarily and voluntarily refrain from expressing our freedom when it could possibly lead someone to actually apostatize from faith.

1.  Paul agrees that we are free from these commandments of men (14).

2.  And Paul is concerned that the WEAK may not simply be annoyed, but that they would be destroyed.  That they would leave the faith over it (13, 15, 20, 21).

3.  In those rare cases where our acts of freedom in Christ could lead someone astray from Christ, we should choose love and peace over our freedom (17, 21, 22; 15:2-3).

When we consider the whole body of Christ, the peace and mutual edification of one another is of higher importance than the expression of our freedom in Christ.

But note:  our temporary abstaining from certain practices is for the edification of the WEAK in the faith.  For their "building up".  We never wish to see someone who is WEAK in the faith to remain there.  We choose to temporarily give up our freedoms until we can see the WEAK become strong in the faith and therefore give up their unbibilical scruples for a more Biblical view of the world.  Paul says:

1 Corinthians 9:22  22 To the weak I became weak, to win the weak.

Therefore, the goal of the WEAK in the faith is to remember that the Lord alone is the Lord of the conscience and you have no right to speak where the Lord has not spoken.  You may have your own personal convictions and taboos about what a "good" Christian should do and not do, but if the Bible neither commands nor forbids such things, then for the peace, unity, and mutual edification of the whole body you should keep those scruples to yourself and should refrain from judging one who has been received by Christ.

The goal of the STRONG in the faith is to lovingly accept those who are WEAK in the faith and to not criticize them for not yet seeing their freedom in Christ worked out consistently in their lives.  You must fully accept those who are WEAK into your fellowship and though their is no material thing that is intrinsically evil, you may have to be willing to temporarily and voluntarily abstain from certain things that are otherwise good in the presence of those who might be lured away from the faith.  However, the STRONG should rejoice in their freedom in Christ and should gently and patiently seek to win the WEAK to the position of the STRONG.  15:5-7. 

What’s Paul point in all of this?  There is something much bigger and more important in the Kingdom of Christ than yourself:  it is Jesus Christ.  And we have the glorious privilege of shining all our light upon Him and His incredible love and mercy for sinners.  Therefore, expend your energy in this life to demonstrate that love and mercy toward one another.  Love those who are weaker than you.  Be patient.  Bear with one another.  And it will be this love, Jesus said, that the world will know you belong to Jesus, by your love for one another.  AMEN! +SDG+