RISING ABOVE DIET, DAYS, & DRINK (Part 1)
God’s Invitation to Grace ❧ Part 60
Romans 14:1-3 ❧ Pastor, Dr. John Denney
Sometime ago I remember reading the story of a man who had been stranded on an island for a long period of time. When his rescuers finally arrived, they noticed there were three buildings on the island. Curious, they asked the man to explain them. “One is my home,” he said, “and one is my church, and the other one is the church I used to go to.”
Have you ever noticed that not all Christians get along or are united? Not only do we struggle to get along with others, but there are times when we can’t even get along with ourselves! The Bible tells us there is one Body, one Spirit, one hope of your calling, one Lord, one baptism, one God and Father who is over all and through all and in all (Ephesians 4:4). One person commented, we are often compared to an army: we sing “Onward Christian Soldiers” and we read, Put on the whole armor of God. Imagine, he says, if Jesus were reviewing His troops, who are supposed to be fresh and ready for battle. But some have recent wounds; black eyes, bruises, nicks in their armor, arms in slings, some are leaning on crutches. Jesus asks, “What’s the matter here? Why are you all wounded already?” The answer He receives is: “Oh, we’ve been fighting in the barracks again.” Let’s be honest, sometimes Christian unity looks like two cats with their tails tied together thrown over a clothesline. But this has been true of God’s people all through the Bible. Even the Old Testament is filled with civil wars, religious skirmishes, family feuds. Just about every New Testament church had its fair share of inward struggles as well. Yet, despite all of this we long for unity.
Part of the problem is we often confuse unity with uniformity. Jesus never commanded uniformity, but unity, consolidation, not conformation. In John 17 Jesus prayed that believersmay all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me(John 17:21). If you read in the first five chapters of Acts, Luke says ten times that the church was of one accord, united. God’s people have the power of the NT church when they have the unity of the NT church. But not all Christians are alike. In fact, many of us are as different as night and day. This was especially true when Paul wrote Romans; people came from a wide variety of cultural and racial backgrounds. Not much has changed about the Church in 2000 years. The fact the not all Christians are the same can really be a source of contentions for a church. The Bible is very clear on many issues: don’t steal, lie, commit adultery, get lie, cheating is out. There are specifics that the Bible is very clear on. But there are other issues it is not so clear on, not easily discerned. In the first verse of our passage today (Romans 14:1 Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions), Paul calls these disputable matters opinions (NAS), doubtful disputations(KJV), disputable matters(NIV), personal opinions(GNT). What are opinions or disputable matters? It is an issue that the Bible is silent about or does not give a clear stance on; when there is not a choice between right or wrong, it is a matter of personal preference.
The three main disputable matters that Paul deals within the NT are issues of diet, days, and drink (Romans, Colossians, 1 Corinthians, Galatians). What should a Christian eat? When should a Christian worship, Saturday or Sunday? Should we totally abstain from drink or is moderation, okay? Typically, we’re sure those who hold a different view than ourselves are less spiritual than we are, or not spiritual at all!
Rome was known for its excessive eating and drinking. Many of the same issues that the early Church had to deal with are still the same for us. I’m not talking about doctrinal issues, but amoral issues like music, dancing, movies, playing cards, watching TV, make-up, jewelry, how should someone be baptized, what is your view of prophecy, spiritual gifts, which version of the Bible should you read? The moment some of you heard these topics you immediately recoiled inside thinking, “Of course that is not biblical!” How do you get along with folks who see things different than you in these areas, and still maintain a sense of togetherness? Every one of us has our own list of dos and don’ts. What happens when my list does not match your list? One commentator entitled this passage: One Man’s Faith Is Another Man’s Poison. That’s what Paul works through in this passage. How do you rise above diet, days, and drink? How do you get along with others who don’t square up to your personal opinions? He is going to show us that God does give us guidelines while at the same time doesn’t place us in a straightjacket of legalism. (Read Romans 14:1-12). We’re going to look at just the first three verses. Rising above means…
- Begins with caring acceptance. Now accept(παραλαμβάνω [v. 3])the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions(διαλογισμός – lit. argue differences of opinion) (Romans 14:1). The word for accept is more than simply acknowledging someone’s presence in the church, but literally embracing them with the kind of welcoming acceptance God has given you. Paul uses the same word in v.1 for accepting each other as he does in v.3 of God’s acceptance of others (also 15:7). When Jesus promised to welcome His people to Him in Heaven in John 14:3, this is the word He used. Paul says, in effect, here’s how I want you to accept those who don’t quite see eye to eye with you on non-essential issues, welcome them from your heart just as God has already welcomed them from His heart. In other words, don’t expect others to conform to your opinions as a requirement for acceptance. God is less concerned about your point of preference as much as He is concerned about how you live out that preference in relationship to other believers. Paul’s point is we accept believers of differing opinions as they are. We don’t accept them for the purpose of trying to win them over to our way of thinking. Agree to disagree and welcome them.
Does agreeing to disagree mean there will be no more tension? We’d be fooling ourselves to think as much. Christian leadership author Richard Wolff writes, The imperfectness of even regenerate human nature makes some conflict inevitable. In any organization, ecclesiastical or secular, leadership creates certain tension. . . Some is normal and healthy. Tension between reality and ideal – is indispensable to wellbeing. Every challenge carries tension within itself. We do not need a tensionless state, but a challenging goal and purpose. Like a perfectly tuned piano producing beautiful sounds of harmony. It sounds amazing, but if you look at the strings producing those sounds, you’ll find there is a great deal of tension!
How do you welcome them?Welcome with open arms fellow believers who don’t see things the way you do. And don’t jump all over them every time they say or do something you don’t agree with – even when it seems they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department (v.1, TM). Don’t jump all over them by calling them names. Don’t label them. We tend to call people names when we disagree with them: Legalist! Worldly! Liberal! Fundamentalist! Name calling is a form of weakness in itself; we’re trying to put someone down. Paul is careful to label the two groups as the strong and the weak. He’s not putting anyone down here. Both are Christians, both are sincere. One feels he can do anything the Bible does not specifically prohibit, the other is uncertain about what his faith says he can and cannot do.
By the way, who is the weak person? J. Vernon McGee says, “It’s always the other guy.” How many of us would admit that we are the weaker believer? Let’s be clear here, the weakness Paul is talking about is not a weakness in character, or will, but a weakness of conscience. It’s when you feel guilty over things the Bible doesn’t prohibit.
We need to be careful here. Weakness can be made to look like strength when we try to impose rules where there are no rules. That’s called legalism. A person who is a legalist doesn’t understand grace. Believe as I believe — no more, no less That I am right and no one else confess Feel as I feel, think as I think Eat what I eat and drink what I drink Look only as I look, do always as I do, For then and only then, I’ll fellowship with you.
Paul is going to mention three areas of major disagreement; three areas of personal opinion among Roman believers: diet, days, and drink. He addresses the issue of diet in verse two. We’re to accept each other as God has accepted us…
- Regardless of the diet they follow. One person has faith that he may eat all things,
but he who is weak eats vegetables only(Romans 14:2). Paul is distinguishing the meat eaters from the vegetable-only eaters, free and the fearful. The person who doesn’t eat meat doesn’t feel it is right. It may have been meat sacrificed to an idol (1 Cor. 8:4,7). Or it simply wasn’t kosher. Even though Jesus had declared all foods clean (Mark 7:19), many of the Jewish believers still maintained the dietary customs they were raised in. They saw no reason to change their dietary customs. But Paul doesn’t say who exactly he has in mind or their reason. That’s not his point. He is more concerned how the weak and the strong get along. He says those who are weak are a vegetable-only-kind-of-person. Whereas those who are strong feel free to eat meat. He says, The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him(V.3). The strong is not to look with contempt (ἐξουθενέω) look down at the weaker believer as they are worthless or have no value. While the weaker is not to judge(κρίνω – condemn as guilty) the stronger one who eats. Why? Because God has accepted them both on the basis of their faith in Christ.
Notice how this works. The weaker, though weaker, does not see themselves as weak but rather the stronger. Why? Because he is more strict, more disciplined than the other. His weakness is made to look like a strength because they “keep the rules.” They are in fact weak in their faith because love is conditional for them. Keep the rules and I’ll love you. They see their own acceptance by God as one of keeping the rules. Keep the rules and God will accept you. The reaction of the stronger-in-faith would be to condemn or judge them. But Paul says that’s not the answer. The answer, he says, is to accept them as God does. They, like the strong, are a work in progress in which God is doing the growing (Phil. 2:13 for it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure).
Today, the dietary questions of meat or vegetables may not be the hot buttons of debate they once were, but there are plenty of others that are! R. Kent Hughes, in his commentary says he can think of at least eleven issues which Christians are divided today. None of them are taboo or sinful in Scripture, but if you wouldn’t know it by the way some believers handle them! Number one on his list is theater. Obviously, some movies should be avoided, but not all. Two, cosmetics. I’m glad he’s saying this and not me! They are the issue they used to be. Three, alcohol. This is a growing issue today. The Bible doesn’t prohibit drinking, but it does prohibit excess and being a stumbling block to other believers. Four, Hughe’s lists as tobacco. He says the Mason and Dixon Line has been the dividing line for many Christians. Personally, you may feel free to use tobacco and Scripture may not address it explicitly. But the Bible does tell us our bodies are a temple of the Holy Spirit and that our bodies are not our own (1 Cor. 6:19). We’re to be good stewards of what belongs to God. This applies to more than just tobacco though. Five, cardplaying. It’s association with gambling makes it controversial for some. He goes on to mention music, dancing, fashion, sports, music, material wealth. Hughe’s point is none of these are prohibited in the Bible. At the same time, Paul tells us All things are lawful, but not all things are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things edify(1 Corinthians 10:23). I do all things for the sake of the gospel, so that I may become a fellow partaker of it (1 Corinthians 9:23).
If you read through our constitution, a quote, I believe from Augustine, toward the end of the doctrinal statement of what we believe: In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in everything love. That’s what Paul is saying. The mark of maturity is being able to love those who you know don’t see things the way you do. The reality of it is, we are all in the same race, heading for the same finish line – heaven. God is not concerned whether or not you’ll make it if you’ve given your life to Christ, He’s concerned how you’re going to make it.
A number of years ago at the Seattle Special Olympics, nine contestants, all physically or mentally disabled, assembled at the starting line for the 100-yard dash. At the gun they all started out, not exactly in a dash, but with relish to run the race and finish to win. All, that is, except one boy who stumbled on the asphalt, tumbled over a couple of times, and began to cry. The other eight heard the boy cry. They slowed down and paused. Then they all turned around and went back. Every one of them. One girl with Down’s syndrome bent down and kissed and kissed him and said, “This will make it better.” Then all nine linked arms and walked together to the finish line. Everyone in the stadium stood, and the cheering went on for ten minutes.
What a beautiful picture of what God is showing us in His Word! CV).
