WHAT BELIEVERS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FOOD, DRINK, HOLY DAYS AND UNITY
Romans 14:1-15:13
As taught by Dave Lindstrom
I. In matters of Christian freedom, believers should warmly accept one another (Rom. 14:1-12).
A. A person who is weak in faith is a fellow believer in the faith. The context of this weakness relates to a believer's conscience and comes from their family background, personality, previous teaching and life events (vs 1; I Thes. 5:14).
1. In the church at Rome, believers argued over whether to eat everything or only vegetables (vs 2-5).
a. This probably had to do with Jewish dietary law practices, the way which Gentile Romans prepared food, and Roman pagan food sacrifices (vs 2,3; Lev. 11, I Cor. 8)
b. Paul's view is that we, as believers, are servants of Christ and therefore need to be careful and gentle with each other (vs 4).
2. In the church at Rome, believers argued over whether certain days were more holy or important than others. (vs 5-8)
a. This relates to Jewish feasts, new moons, and Sabbaths (Gal. 4:10; Col. 2:16).
b. Paul's view is that believers have freedom to be fully convinced in their own minds in regards to special days and food (vs 5). As long as we commit our lives to Christ and give thanks to God, we keep our walk with Christ's Spirit (vs 6-8; I Tim. 4:4,5).
B. All believers will stand before God's judgment seat which will be administered through Christ to give an account of how well we followed Christ for the purpose of reward (vs 9-12; I Cor. 3:11-15; 2 Cor. 5:9,10).
Thought: What has granting Christian freedom looked like in your life?
II. A believer's walk with Christ is a walk of love that bring glory to God (Rom. 14:13-15:13).
A. In regard's to a weak faith-conscience or a strong faith-conscience believers should not judge each other (vs 13).
B. Believers should try not to be a stumbling block (proskomma- something which trips people up) or an obstacle (skandalon- a trap or snare) to fellow believers (vs 13; I Cor. 8).
C. Paul has been convinced by Jesus that nothing is unclean (koinon- ritually impure) in itself (vs 14; Mark 7:15-23; Acts 10; I Tim. 4:4). Yet he seeks to love all believers (vs 15, 16).
D. The kingdom of God in verse 17 refers to living out our present salvation primarily in the context of the Christian community.
1. It consists of the internally motivated aspects of living life in the Holy Spirit such as righteousness (Christ-like thinking and acting), peace and joy (vs 17, 18; Mark 7:15-23; Gal. 5:13-26).
2. It consists of looking for ways to build other believers up which might include giving up an acceptable freedom, for a specific event or time, for another believer's faith (vs 19-15:2; I Cor. 8:7-13).
3. The power to live this life in the Spirit comes from looking at the life of Christ and studying and meditating on the Scriptures. These give believers and the Christian community the ability to endure hardship, stay encouraged, and have a spirit of unity (homothumadon- with the same mind, purpose. Rom. 15:3-6; Ps. 119:105; 2 Tim. 3:16).
4. It consists of accepting one another as Christ has accepted all believers, including Jews and Gentiles, to the praise and glory of God. The Gentiles coming into full salvation with the Jews fulfills certain prophecies of the Scripture and brings hope to all believers (Rom. 15:7-13; II Sam.22:50; Ps. 18:49; Deut. 32:43; Ps. 117:1; Isa. 11:10).
Thought: What are some ways we can know we are walking in the Spirit according to Romans 14:17 though 15:13? Which areas have you struggled with and how are you overcoming through Christ?
