Please turn in your Bibles this morning to Romans chapter 14 as we continue our in-depth study of Paul’s letter to the church in Rome. Well, we made it out of Romans chapter 13 but keep in mind that we are still in a section that deals with application. It is a section where Paul gives us principles to live by, how to apply the things of God to our lives. Paul spent the first 11 chapters of Romans giving to us doctrine or the things of God and now, starting in chapter 12 and on through Romans 15:13 he deals with this issue of application. Yes, it is important to know the truths of God found in the Word of God, but you also must apply them to your life. That is why Paul began this section by saying, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.” Romans 12:1-2.
And folks, to be able to live this kind of life you must be willing to place your life on the altar of sacrifice before the Lord. You see, first of all we are to PRESENT OUR BODIES AS A LIVING SACRIFICE UNTO GOD. That means our entire being, our eyes, our ears, our mouths, our hands and our feet! Secondly, Paul tells us that we are TO BE TRANSFORMED BY THE RENEWING OF OUR MIND. That means we are filling our minds with the things of God, we are in His Word and the outward manifestation of that is we are living what we say we believe! And the third point is that we are to GIVE HIM OUR WILL. In other words, we are not interested in fulfilling our will but the Lord’s will in our lives and as we give ourselves to Him His will becomes our will. We desire to do those things that please the Lord! It is from there that Paul launches into various things we, as Christians, should do, the things that should flow from our lives, how we are to live out our faith!
And starting here in Romans chapter 14 and through Romans 15:13 the focus is on Christian liberty, the principles and the practices of Christian liberty. Do you know what the opposite of liberty is? It is legalism and what ends up happening is that instead of Jesus drawing us together in unity we allow the Devil by his use of legalism to cause disunity, to separate us. Legalism divides and separates and if you doubt that this is an issue, read the letters in the New Testament, the ones to local churches, and see the disunity that was in them. Some based on legalism and all based in self-centeredness. It is just PRIDE! Listen to what was going on in some of the early churches during Paul’s day!
When Paul wrote to the Corinthian church there was division, there was disunity because of human leaders being lifted up. In I Corinthians 1:10-17 we are told, “Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. For it has been declared to me concerning you, my brethren, by those of Chloe’s household, that there are contentions among you. Now I say this, that each of you says, ‘I am of Paul,’ or ‘I am of Apollos,’ or ‘I am of Cephas,’ or ‘I am of Christ.’ Is Christ divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, lest anyone should say that I had baptized in my own name. Yes, I also baptized the household of Stephanas. Besides, I do not know whether I baptized any other. For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of no effect.”
Do you see the disunity that was going on here because some said that it was Paul who baptized them and others said they were baptized by Apollos and-so-on and it was bringing contentions among them, divisions and Paul is saying that they are missing the point. The main thing is Christ and the Gospel of Jesus Christ and you are dividing up because of who baptized you! How foolish that is, and yet, when you look at people today they do the same thing as they divide up among leaders, among teachings and-so-on. And in Corinth it was so bad, there was so much immaturity that some of them were suing each other as we are told in I Corinthians 6:1-8, “Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unrighteous, and not before the saints? Do you not know that the saints will judge the world? And if the world will be judged by you, are you unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Do you not know that we shall judge angels? How much more, things that pertain to this life? If then you have judgments concerning things pertaining to this life, do you appoint those who are least esteemed by the church to judge? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not a wise man among you, not even one, who will be able to judge between his brethren? But brother goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers! Now therefore, it is already an utter failure for you that you go to law against one another. Why do you not rather accept wrong? Why do you not rather let yourselves be cheated? No, you yourselves do wrong and cheat, and you do these things to your brethren!” That was the church in Corinth, disunity among God’s people!
Then there were the Galatian saints, and we are told of them in Galatians 5:13-15, “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!” In other words, they used their liberty in such a way that it was causing division, they were spiritual cannibals you might say, biting and devouring one another. Again, this was the Galatian churches, disunity among God’s people!
The church at Ephesus had to be reminded of their Christian liberty as Paul said, “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:1-3.
Also, the church in Colossae had to be reminded of their Christian liberty and the importance of it as Paul once again said to them, “For I want you to know what a great conflict I have for you and those in Laodicea, and for as many as have not seen my face in the flesh, that their hearts may be encouraged, being knit together in love, and attaining to all riches of the full assurance of understanding, to the knowledge of the mystery of God, both of the Father and of Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” Colossians 2:1-3. You see, Paul wanted them to be knit together in love, no divisions, no disunity!
And remember Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, we are told in Philippians 4:1-3, “Therefore, my beloved and longed-for brethren, my joy and crown, so stand fast in the Lord, beloved. I implore Euodia and I implore Syntyche to be of the same mind in the Lord. And I urge you also, true companion, help these women who labored with me in the gospel, with Clement also, and the rest of my fellow workers, whose names are in the Book of Life.”
We see here Paul mentioning a dispute between two women from the church at Philippi, Euodia (yoo-od-ee’-ah) and Syntyche [SUNTUCHE, (soon-too’-khay)]. These two women were believers and fellowshipped in the church at Philippi and they worked with Paul for a time in spreading the good news of Jesus, assisting in that work but now they were at odds with each other and their behavior, their fighting was affecting the church in Philippi, the people! It was bringing disunity into the church!
What was the problem? Paul doesn’t tell us. Who was right? Paul doesn’t care! Then what is the point? They forgot the Lord, they forgot that they are sisters in Christ and because they were so self-centered instead of Christ-centered that it affected their behavior. Thus, Paul tells them to “Knock it off! Grow up!” I’m paraphrasing of course, but Paul tells them to put on the mind of Christ, let whatever happened melt away in the love of Jesus!
Remember what Paul said in Philippians 2:1-5, “Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Thus, get back to where you once belonged, back to Christ, for there is too much work to be done than to fight amongst ourselves!
This is no small matter and I don’t think disputes are ever a small matter, they affect too many people and they are self-centered. Thus, Paul not only urges these women to heal their relationship but he urges some people in the church to assist them in the healing, to motivate them to get right. Paul speaks of a “true companion” or “yokefellow.” Who is Paul speaking of? There are many ideas, some say the elders of the church in Philippi, others say it is the church members in general, some even say it was Epaphroditus. But, by the context, SUZUGOS (sood’-zoo-gos) is probably his name. And then Paul calls on Clement and the rest of the fellow workers to assist these women to come together in Christ and not to be at odds with each other! Folks, God takes this issue very seriously and so should we! When there is no unity there is instability in the church! Thus, Paul tells us that we need to deal with it before we let the enemy get the better of the situation! And once again we see disunity in the church in Philippi!
And there are so many issues that can cause disunity, division in the church of Jesus Christ. Some come from our backgrounds, other issues are legalistic in nature or the things we can and can’t do, and there are so many things that divide us and yet, it is the Lord who has broken down those walls of division and united us together. Why are we tearing apart what He has united? Remember what the Psalmist said in Psalm 133:1, “Behold, how good and how pleasant it is For brethren to dwell together in unity!”
Now I do realize that some would argue that we can’t be united with everyone and I would agree. But in Christ we are to be united. That does not mean we support false doctrine but we must expose it in love. But we can walk in Christ with people from various backgrounds and ideas and still be in unity in Christ! Again, this is an issue even today and yet, remember what the Lord prayed in John 17:20-21, “I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.”
The unity Jesus is speaking of is not ecumenical; just believe whatever you want, accepting all things. This unity is based on the truth and Jesus just got done telling us that His Word is truth. Thus, as the Scriptures teach, Jesus is the One who unites us all together into the family of God and without Him there is no unity!
Now is this unity important? Some might not think so but it is for Jesus tells us that it is this unity that will cause people to believe. It is the disunity, the fighting over silly things that causes the world to shake their heads and walk away in unbelief and how it must grieve God! Jesus said in John 13:34-35, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” You see, our unity with believers is linked to the way the church represents Jesus to the world! As Augustine wrote, “On essentials – unity; on non-essentials – liberty; in all things – charity.” That is what it is all about. We tend to find disunity, division over the silliest things and yet, when it comes to doctrine, there seems to be no concern. Let me give you this example and then we will dig into our text this morning. We are told:
I
knew a lady who attended a legalistic church. The church
made her feel guilty because she didn’t wear dresses which
had sleeves that came down to her wrists. They told her someone
might lust after her because her arms were exposed.
She tried to explain to them that it was unlikely this would happen since she was almost eighty years old. They continued, however, to make her feel condemned for wearing short sleeves.
Finally she bowed to their pressure and bought a pretty dress covered with strawberries with sleeves down to her wrists. She was excited to go to church that day, thinking the guilt trips would be over. She asked the pastor’s wife, “Well, how do you like my dress?”
She answered, “Those strawberries are much too red. The dress is worldly. You are just trying to attract attention to yourself!”
Legalism always uses guilt to make other people change their beliefs.
- Kent Crockett, The 911 Handbook, p. 179
So with that as our introduction, our background, let’s begin reading in Romans chapter 14, starting in verse 1 and see what the Lord has for us as we look at this issue of Christian liberty.
Now this is once again a very difficult section for many of us. And we are going to break this down into four sections. First there is our INTRODUCTION in Romans 14:1-4. Then we will look at CONVICTION in Romans 14:5-21. We will then move onto CONSCIENCE in Romans 14:22-23. And lastly we will look at CONSIDERATION in Romans 15:1-3. Now before we start to break these verses down, let me share with you some words from J. Vernon McGee on this subject. And again, this is not easy, as you will see in his life and some of the struggles his wife had with this issue. We are told:
There
are two areas of Christian conduct. In one area the Bible is very
clear, as we saw in the preceding chapter. The duty of the Christian
to the state is submission. He is to obey the laws of the land,
he is to pay his taxes, and he is to show respect to those in
authority. Also chapter 13 was specific on a believer’s relationship
to his neighbor. He is to pay his bills; he is not to commit adultery,
kill, steal, bear false witness, or covet what another has. In
fact, he is to love his neighbor as himself. The believer is to
be honest, and he is to avoid reveling and drunkenness, strife,
and jealousy. The Bible is very clear on these things.
However, there is another area of Christian conduct on which the Bible has no clear word. Let me mention only two things: the use of tobacco and mixed bathing (that is, both sexes swimming together). If you don’t think these are questionable, let me give you an illustration out of my own experience. My wife was reared in Texas in a Southern Baptist church. She was brought up by a mother and father and pastor who believed that mixed bathing was sinful. Then when she came to California, you can’t imagine the shock she had the first time she went down to the beach with the young people from our church - even in those days they weren’t wearing much. My wife was in a state of shock for twenty–four hours after that! She had never seen anything like it. However, in the area from which she came the use of tobacco was not frowned upon. The officers of her church smoked; in fact, her pastor smoked. When she came to California, she found that using tobacco was taboo. If you were a Christian, you did not smoke.
Is mixed bathing all right in one place and wrong in another place? Is smoking right in one place and wrong in another place? I am sure that the hair on the back of the necks of some of the saints is standing on end, and they are thinking, Dr. McGee, you ought to give a lecture against smoking, and you let this subject of mixed bathing alone. Let me assure you that I am not condemning either one, nor am I condoning either one. I’m not going to stick out my neck on questionable things any farther than Paul stuck out his neck.
In this section Paul puts down principles of conduct for Christians relative to questionable matters. He gives us three guidelines: conviction, conscience, and consideration. A Christian should have a conviction about what he does. Conviction means “that which anticipates.” Does he look forward to what he is going to do in high anticipation and enthusiasm? The second guideline is conscience. Does he look back on what he has done, wondering if he were right or wrong? Or does he even hate himself for what he has done? The third guideline is consideration for others. Are other people adversely affected by what he does? These three guidelines give us principles of conduct for our Christian lives.
In our day there are actually two extreme viewpoints about this matter of Christian conduct in questionable matters. And it has created an artificial atmosphere in which one is to live the Christian life. As a result we have abnormal or subnormal Christians in these extreme areas. One extreme position has no wall of separation from the world; the lives of these folk are carbon copies of the unsaved man of the world. Their lives are no different from what they were before their so–called conversion. They indulge in all forms of worldly amusement. They go everywhere the world goes, and they spend their time and energy in activities that have no spiritual profit. There are certain passages of Scripture that have no meaning for them at all. For example: “Brethren, be followers together of me, and mark them which walk so as ye have us for an ensample [pattern]. (For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: Whose end is destruction, whose God is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who mind earthly things.)” (Phil. 3:17–19). There are other folk who do not indulge in any form of worldly amusement, yet they are as worldly as they can possibly be. They gorge and gormandize themselves. They don’t get drunk, but they certainly overeat. Also they overtalk—they are great gossips. They even tell questionable stories.
Again let me quote Paul: “Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things” (Phil. 4:8). My friend, your thought life is bound to affect your conduct sooner of later. What you keep thinking about you will eventually do. I have found that a great many Christians think about a temptation for a long time before they actually submit to it. This sort of thing is done by a great many so -called Christians. Paul seemed to question whether or not they were Christians because they lived exactly as the worldling lived.
Now there is a second group that is extreme in the opposite direction. They have reduced the Christian life to a series of negatives. Paul warned the Colossian believers against the group that was characterized by “Touch not; taste not; handle not” (Col. 2:21). These folk rejoice in salvation by grace and deliverance from the Mosaic Law, but they immediately make a new set of ten commandments - only they usually double that number. They become very self-centered, very critical, and very proud. These are the ones that Paul labels “weak in the faith” (v. 1), by the way. And they are the folk who have become very “separated.”
The following letter which I received several years ago illustrates the sad state of one who adopts this position.
I’ve returned to California after a year of full–time Christian service in Ohio and an extended trip east. But I’ve come back almost spiritually shipwrecked! Have been a Christian for three and one–half years and until recently was able to give a glowing testimony about being saved out of Unity.
But lately, I’ve been so dead that Christ seems way up there, and I’m way down here. I have all the negative virtues of a Christian (don’t smoke, drink, play cards, attend movies, use makeup), but those things do not make a happy Christian! My friends tell me I’m becoming bitter—and oh, I don’t want that to happen!
Before becoming a Christian, I was very ambitious, worked hard for whatever I believed in (and incidentally I was listed in Who’s Who)—but now I wonder what’s the use? The world is going from bad to worse. Everything is heading for disaster, and the only hope is to wait for the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now, my friend, this person was in a terrible condition! Notice how “separated” she was, but this kind of separation will not bring joy in the life.
Somewhere between these two extreme viewpoints of questionable matters in Christian conduct the believer is to walk.
- J. Vernon McGee, Thru The Bible, Vol. IV, pp. 738-740
You see, not easy but I believe it is very important as Paul is showing us how we need to live out our Christian faith, apply the things of God to our lives. Let’s break these first four verses down as an introduction to this topic of Christian liberty and what this is all about.
Who is Paul speaking to here? He is not speaking to those that are weak in the faith but to those that are strong in the faith. What does it mean to be strong in the faith, what is the point that Paul is making here? He is speaking of those that understood their spiritual liberty that they had in Christ, that they were not enslaved or bound by diets or holy days or things like that.
For those that were weak in the faith, it is not that they lacked faith; they were not “weak in faith” but “weak in the faith.” These are the ones who felt spiritually superior to others because they kept all these rules and regulations, they were the strictest and thus, they saw themselves as the most mature in the faith because of that. I don’t know if you heard this story before, but it does speak volumes of what some Christians feel, the way that they think. We are told:
The story was told some years ago of a pastor who found the roads blocked one Sunday morning and was forced to skate on the river to get to church, which he did. When he arrived the elders of the church were horrified that their preacher had skated on the Lord’s Day. After the service they held a meeting where the pastor explained that it was either skate to church or not go at all. Finally one elder asked, “Did you enjoy it?” When the preacher answered, “No,” the board decided it was all right!
- Today in the Word, MBI, December, 1989, p. 12
Now we laugh at that but that is the way some Christians practice their faith. If it is enjoyable it must be of the Devil and if it is not, then it is of God! I don’t know about you, but for me, there is joy in the Lord not joylessness! Now don’t get me wrong, we need to stand up for foundational issues. But the things we fight over many times are just plain foolishness, like this pastor skating to church. Paul here is speaking of the weaker Christians judging and condemning the strong Christians and the strong Christians were despising the weak Christians and these things should not be!
Now the Lord may convict you over a certain issue, how to dress, what to watch on television, the music you listen to, the length of your hair and-so-on and thus, then don’t do it, obey the Lord. The problem comes when you take what God is showing you and you make it into a Law and everyone must follow or they are weak in the faith. They are compromising their faith. And, like I have said, the opposite tends to be true. In fact, I have had people call this church “Compromise Chapel” because of the style of music we use!
Joe Stowell puts things in perspective for us when he wrote:
In contrast to the two commands of Christ, the Pharisees had developed a system of 613 laws, 365 negative commands and 248 positive laws. . . . By the time Christ came it had produced a heartless, cold, and arrogant brand of righteousness. As such, it contained at least ten tragic flaws.
(1) New laws continually need to be invented for new situations.
(2) Accountability to God is replaced by accountability to men.
(3) It reduces a person’s ability to personally discern.
(4) It creates a judgmental spirit.
(5) The Pharisees confused personal preferences with divine law.
(6) It produces inconsistencies.
(7) It created a false standard of righteousness.
(8) It became a burden to the Jews.
(9) It was strictly external.
(10) It was rejected by Christ.
- Outlined from Fan the Flame, J. Stowell, Moody, 1986, p. 52
In other words, we are not to make up laws nor are we to place the convictions that God has placed on our hearts upon others. And here Paul is saying that we are to receive those that are weak in the faith into the church and then we are not to dispute over things that are doubtful. We are not to welcome them into the church with the idea of changing their convictions by debating them and arguing with them. That is not what we are to do!
Think about the variety, the diversity, the assortment of people within the body of Christ and yet we are to have a unity that is centered in Christ. A. W. Tozer picks up on this and he wrote in his book, The Pursuit of God the following:
Has it ever occurred to you that one hundred pianos all tuned to the same fork are automatically tuned to each other? They are of one accord by being tuned, not to each other, but to another standard to which each one must individually bow. So one hundred worshipers [meeting] together, each one looking away to Christ, are in heart nearer to each other than they could possibly be, were they to become ‘unity’ conscious and turn their eyes away from God to strive for closer fellowship.
- A. W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God
Now, what was the problem in Rome? Let’s read the next two verses and Paul will give to us some insight into what was going on, the disunity they had.
The thing that was causing division, disunity in Rome was the issue of special diets and special days! You see, there were those who thought eating meat was not spiritual, it was a sin, so they only ate vegetables. “You know, that is the food that Adam and Eve ate in the Garden of Eden, so we should do the same!” is the rational here. Others thought it was not spiritual, that it was a sin not to celebrate, not to observe the Jewish holy days. “If it was good enough for Jesus then it is good enough for me!” is the rational here.
And again, please understand, the problem was not with the conviction, it was when they made it into a law and made everyone follow it or they were not mature in the faith, they were carnal, they were weak Christians. And maybe one of the reasons people do that is because they feel that if they can’t do it then nobody can, but that is not the case in these areas that are not black and white or clearly stated in the Scriptures.
Folks,
lets face it, we are all going to have our differences, Paul is
not saying to erase them but to rise above them and embrace your
brothers and sisters in Christ in His love. Don’t allow
silly differences to cause divisions among you, for if you do,
you let the Devil win! Instead of having “The First
Church of the Carnivores” and “The United Assembly of
Vegetarians” be united in the Lord and see what awesome work
He will do through people who love Him and love each other!
A favorite Christian sport is judging others, and that can be very dangerous and not what God desires. Let me show you what I mean in regards to the diversity there is with Christian churches, a diversity that should not cause division but enhances the body of Christ! And the point is simple, have fellowship without arguing over non-essentials. Everyone doesn’t have to agree with everything you do in the area of non-essentials and vice-a-versa!
And let me say this, none of us are excluded from going down this path, we must guard ourselves and be careful in what we do and say to others because this issue of contending and fighting over non-essentials continues on even today. Think of the great Charles Spurgeon and yet he had a problem with Joseph Parker and accused him of being worldly because he went to the theater! Well, Parker was not going to let him get away with that and he thought Spurgeon was carnal because he smoked cigars!
What about D. L. Moody, he could never fall prey to this could he? You bet and he did. Moody almost fell over when he saw Spurgeon smoking a cigar. He couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Spurgeon puffing away on that cigar. But Spurgeon, when he looked at Moody couldn’t believe his eyes because Moody was over 300 pounds in weight and Spurgeon said to him, “At least I eat in moderation.”
And folk’s, please understand that many things we do and don’t do are cultural in nature. Let me give you this example. Imagine if after church we all went out to have a beer, a nice cold beer. Many if not all of you would think that is just being carnal. Now most if not all of you women out there this morning are wearing make-up or as J. Vernon McGee said to a woman who had a problem with this issue of make-up, “Madame, if the barn needs painting – paint it!” Guess what, in Germany if you wear make-up that would seem very carnal to them but to have a cold beer after church, not an issue. Remember what Augustine said, “On essentials – unity; on non-essentials – liberty; in all things – charity.” May we not forget that!
And notice what Paul said in verse 3, “for God has received him.” In other words, the ones you are rejecting, the ones you are judging, the ones you are disputing over, God has received them and thus, why can’t you? When Calvary Chapel got its start back in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s many hippies were coming to Christ. God was moving in a powerful way. The problem was that in many churches they were not being received until they cut their hair, put shoes on their feet, put a suit on and took a bath! In other words, “Unless you look and dress like me, you are not welcome here!” Thank God that Calvary Chapel opened their doors to them because, Paul said, ““for God has received him” and thus, so must we! And notice what Paul says next.
The bottom line is this. God is the Master and we are the servants. So if we begin to interfere in this relationship, we are wrong. We stand before God for our actions. Now please understand, if someone is living in sin, we do need to confront them. That is not what Paul is speaking of here. He is talking about the non-essentials, those personal convictions. You wouldn’t like it if someone came up to your children and started to discipline them, would you? I doubt it! So why do we mess with God’s kids? We are His servants and He is the Master and we stand because of Him!
Again, there are those things that we must judge as wrong, things that the Scriptures clearly speak on and when we do judge them we must do so with righteous judgment! But again, these are areas that speak more on personal conviction than what is black and white in the Scriptures and Paul is calling for there to be unity and let God be the one who makes the person stand.
Now, how do we have unity in the body of Christ when there is so much diversity? The answer is simple, by love, the AGAPE love of God that is not out to seek its own but to reach out to others, a sacrificial love, an unconditional love. You see, we are not talking about foundational truths here but personal convictions as I have said. If God told you to get rid of your television set, praise the Lord, do it. If you don’t, then it is a sin to you.
The
problem comes when the Lord gives you a personal conviction and
then we take it and make it into a law and tell everyone “Thou
shall have no television sets!” In other words, if
you don’t get rid of your television set like I did, then
you are living in sin, you are compromising your faith!
That is ridiculous and it is wrong! Granted there are not
a lot of good shows on television now but I have checked it out
in the Hebrew, there is not an 11th commandment that
says, “Thou shall have no television sets!”
What tends to happen is that in legalistic circles they tend to look down upon those that walk in the liberty of Christ. Why is that? Because they are jealous, I guess. Because they are prideful, I guess. I am amazed at what Christians argue over in the church and some even leave because of these issues that are meaningless when you consider every day millions are dying not knowing the Lord. We argue over what color to paint the church, what color carpeting to get, chairs to get and-so-on. Here is one issue that was seen here before I came up here and believe me, I have heard this at many other churches also, and that is how do we collect the tithes and offerings, by collection plate or a box at the back of the church? Churches have had fights and even splits over this issue!
As we fight over these silly, non-foundational issues, the Devil and his demons must just laugh at how easy it is to cause division, fights, to get our eyes focused on that which is not important! And again, the issue is pride, holding on tight to what you believe and if others don’t believe the way you do, they are wrong, they are compromising their faith. Out of that we see walls built up, fights, and divisions.
Now let me make this a little more personal as I begin to close this morning. The church is not a building, but individuals and thus, is there someone in the body of Christ that you are fighting with; has there been a division because you don’t agree on some non-foundational issue? Guess what, you are wrong! I’m sure you have a list of reasons why you are right, things to justify your actions, your behavior, but you are wrong! Love goes beyond those things, you may not agree with them, and that is fine, but can you love them with the AGAPE love that comes as we surrender our lives to the Holy Spirit, that unconditional love? If you can’t it is an issue of pride on your part and you need to repent and love that person.
Jesus, in John 13:34-35 said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” Isn’t it amazing what God tells us we are to do and then how we justify why we are not doing it! Yes, there are people who will rub us the wrong way, they may irritate us, and we are to love them as Christ loves us, unconditionally! And think about it, how many people do you rub the wrong way and they still love you? Wayne Brouwer put it this way in regards to rubbing people the wrong way. He said:
The German philosopher Schopenhauer compared the human race to a bunch of porcupines huddling together on a cold winter’s night. He said, “The colder it gets outside, the more we huddle together for warmth; but the closer we get to one another, the more we hurt one another with our sharp quills. And in the lonely night of earth’s winter eventually we begin to drift apart and wander out on our own and freeze to death in our loneliness.”
Christ has given us an alternative – to forgive each other for the pokes we receive. That allows us to stay together and stay warm.
- Wayne Brouwer, Holland, Michigan, Quoted in Leadership, p. 68
May we not be like porcupines but stay close to each other in the love of Christ, keeping each other warm in Him! As I have said, there is diversity in our unity and our unity is based in Christ. Don’t allow relationships to be ripped apart by disagreements, but reach out in love and see what God can do. If we surrender to the Holy Spirit, then we can say as John Wesley said, “I want the whole of Christ for my Savior, the whole Bible for my book, the whole Church for my fellowship, and the whole world for my mission field.” May we be able to pray like that, to have the love of God flow in our lives and through our lives reaching out to people, but it does start with us, we can’t blame others for how we respond. Folks, we are the Lord’s and thus, may we live to the Lord! May we, as Paul said, and this is from The Amplified Bible, “AS FOR the man who is a weak believer, welcome him [into your fellowship], but not to criticize his opinions or pass judgment on his scruples or perplex him with discussions.” Romans 14:1. May we listen and learn and apply these things to our lives!