ROMANS 14
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. 21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. 22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. 23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. – Romans 14:20-23
ROMANS 14 BE CONSIDERATE
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
When someone has a different view other than yours
Do not be quick to judge or quarrel over that difference
In the body of Christ, we are considerate of other people
We do not highlight conflicts that will create division
Instead, we do our best to accommodate our differences
We do not want to cause our brothers to stumble and fall.
In this letter, Paul addresses the church regarding using their liberty among their brothers so that they do not become a hindrance to their faith growth. He explains that the freedom that they have in Christ must not be used for their own conveniences if it aggravates another brother. He pleads them to be considerate of their fellow believer’s preferences and not be legalistic and judgmental about their own preference.
In verse 20, he lays down the basis of consideration for others. They must not continue to eat anything that exacerbates another believer. They must take into account their brother’s preference and not judge them or provoke them into creating contentions and divisions. It is a trivial matter to argue about what to eat and what not to eat.
The whole point of this letter is how a believer uses his freedom to ensure that their brothers are built up in their faith. The Jews created a lot of laws within the laws that and have all these rules about what to eat and what not to eat. Paul is simply saying that legalism has no room in the Christian faith. Consideration is loving but legalism is not.
REFLECTION
- What’s happening in a believer’s heart if he isn’t being considerate?
