Romans Chapter 14:1-15:6

Why can't people just mind their own business?

Do you ever feel like people are at you all the time? One of the most challenging times in our house is meal time. It's not because of the company. We enjoy the time together as a family to get caught up on our day and hear how everyone is doing. It's not the food either. We look forward to the dishes we prepare day in and out and with the BBQ season on us, we're enjoying outdoor cooked meals. What we find challenging is the myriad of telemarketers who phone our home during meal time to see if we are interested in whatever product they are trying to sell.

The frustrating part about this is that the phone call is an attempt by someone to manipulate us into buying their product. That person doesn't necessarily care about who we are as much as they care about our believing what they say and literally "buying" it. In Romans chapter 14:1 to 15:6, Paul enters into the area of church community life where people get into each other's face about what they believe and how they go about behaving in light of that belief.

Coming off of chapter 13 where Paul encourages the believers in Rome to be decent and true in everything they do - especially when it means the well-being of others, he now delves into how they have been treating each other. Apparently, it wasn't pretty. The believers were divided and the labels of "weak" and "strong" were attached to individual points of view on how to live out one's faith. The scenario went something like this:

"I think you're going about living for God all wrong. You Jewish believers still keep all of your ceremonial food laws and observance of special holy days. Don't you know that Jesus did away with all that? You're wasting your time. In fact, you're showing how weak you are in your faith because you use these things as a crutch. Look at us Gentiles! We don't have such hang ups. We eat meat sacrificed to idols and it doesn't bother us. We have no problem eating pork and shrimp because God made all of it and its all good. Be 'strong' in your faith like we are."

A tad obnoxious isn't it? And yet, this was the kind of interaction that was undermining the christian community in Rome. Paul addresses this issue by pointing out that it is up to every individual person to determine what they feel is a right response to their faith in Christ. Only they can determine that what they are doing is truly honouring to God.

"Who are you to condemn God's servants? They are responsible to the Lord, so let him tell them whether they are right or wrong. The Lord's power will help them do what they should." 14:4.

Paul encourages the believers that rather than live in condemnation of your fellow brother and sister in Christ, live in such a way that you will not put an obstacle in another's way. [14:13] This was targeted to those who considered themselves "strong in faith" because they didn't succumb to what they thought were silly rules, regulations and observances. One persons liberty in a certain area could possibly be another persons stumbling block. Paul encourages the believers to be conscious of this and to not let their liberty cause others to stumble in their faith.

"Don't eat meat or drink wine or do anything else if it might cause another believer to stumble. You may have the faith to believe that there is nothing wrong with what you are doing, but keep it between yourself and God. Blessed are those who do not condemn themselves by doing something they know is all right." 14:21-22.

I have friends as well as family who hold certain behaviours as suspicious and not honouring to God that I personally do not have a problem with. This does not mean that I judge them according to my standard of what is right and wrong. What Paul is encouraging the believers in Rome and us indirectly is that our personal sense of right and wrong is not a matter to judge others but to honour God. I hear God saying through Paul to me that I need to respect the scruples of others in terms of their devotion to God. My job is to honour their faith and the way they live it out and let God be the judge of right and wrong in their life. That is not my place. My place is to love them [shades of what we talked about in chapter 12].

Paul encourages the believers in Rome to acknowledge the personal and private commitment that each individual makes to following Christ. Paul's prayer is that the believers follow Christ's example in this with each having the attitude of Christ Jesus toward the other. [15:5]. We anger and annoy each other when we get in each other's face about how we live out our beliefs. This is a personal matter between each individual and God and God is big enough to deal with this even though at times there seems to be such inconsistency in how each of us chooses to follow Christ. Above all, what Paul is encouraging in this passage is that we remain consistent in demonstrating love toward each other!

Questions:

1. Ask yourself, "Have I judged someone's behaviour in following Christ because I thought it was wrong?" How can you make this right?

2. Work out some strategies in your small group about how to stay out of each other's face in respect to what Paul has written in chapter 14:1 to 15:6?

3. Review what is essential about following Christ. Come to a consensus on this in your small group in light of this week's passage.

4. Pretend that you have a hat rack that represents the things you hold important in your life as a follower of Christ. Evaluate the "hats" you have hanging on your rack. Do some of them need some rethinking? Should you ask God's Spirit to give you more wisdom on this issue?

5. Share your hat rack with others in your group. As you listen to your fellow group member, understand why that hat on their rack is important and how it helps them in staying committed to Christ.

Romans Chapter 13

There is no doubt that the church throughout history has had a significant impact on society at large. There is a long history of individuals, who, in the name of Christianity, fought for decency in the public circle. One such individual that comes to mind is William Wilberforce. Wilberforce lived from 1759 to 1833. He was a parliamentarian in the government of England and was instrumental in abolishing the slave trade. He grew up in the wealthy Clapham Sect, an elite group in England in his day out of which young men were groomed for influential positions in their country. Wilberforce introduced a bill in parliament in 1791 that would significantly reduce the activity of the slave trade in England but the bill was unsucessful. He fought for the rights of slaves for the majority of his political career and passed away one month before the Act of the Abolition of Slavery was passed in 1833.

In 2004, CBC ran a program to determine who is the greatest Canadian. The winner, elected by the Canadian people, was Tommy Douglas. Douglas served as Priemier of Saskatchewan for a series of 5 election terms [close to 20 years]. In those years, Douglas led his government to pass into legislation several laws that influence how Canada treats its citizens. One of the most famous is the medicare bill that ensured medical care to every Canadian. Douglas also passed a bill preventing discrimination of Canadians due to race, religion or creed. Douglas held strong Christian roots and was a Baptist Minister prior to entering politics. He was the first federal leader of the New Democratic Party. All in all, the founding roots of a Douglas led socialism are Christian to the core.

These two examples from different times in recent history show the influence of Christians as they saw their place in society as that of promoting the well-being of people and the good of society. In our passage this week, Paul the apostle expands on his explanation of what "loving others" looks like [chapter 12:9ff] by pointing out what the behaviour of the Roman Christian community should be to society. Living in harmony with civil leaders and encouraging a continual debt of love owed to their fellowman, Paul points out that such behaviour fulfills God's law. Paul warns that self examination is crucial so that the follower of Christ can ensure that they are living in the "day" and not the "night." [imagery for good and evil]

Being "decent and true in everything we do, so that everyone can approve of our behaviour" was not an appeal to tolerance of evil but an appeal to embrace fellow men and women and share the love that Christ has placed in our hearts by His Spirit so that we can join God in His mission to redeem the world. In Paul's day, it was far too easy to point the finger at government, civil leaders and non-believers as the source of evil in the world. Paul refreshes the minds and hearts of the Roman believers to the behaviour that Christ has called them. This behaviour is not accusatory [shades of Chapter 2:1ff] but embracing and accepting. In order to continue in such behaviour, Paul encourages his readers to "clothe themselves with the armour of God's light" and let Christ take control. This again is a confirmation of what Paul encourages the Roman believers to do in light of a God who has done so much for us: give our lives as living sacrificies. The explanation of what a life given to God looks like has come full circle at the end of chapter 13.

As followers of Christ, our behaviour can directly affect our society in ways that bring about what God desires for the human race. As a community of believers, we can make a difference in people's lives and be "Christ" to them. May we be the compelling community that the early church was so that our neighbours can know the love Christ and God's plan for their lives as well.

Questions:

What other characters from history have lived out their faith and affected the society they lived in? [check out Wikipedia.com]

How can our church community continue making a difference in our neighbourhoods?

How can we keep ourselves from the trap of living in the "night" rather than the "day"?