Articles
Receiving the Weak
As Paul neared the end of his letter to the Roman Christians, he turned inwardly and set about instructing the brethren how they were to receive one another, particularly, instruction on receiving the weak. There have been countless arguments, discussion, and debate over what is meant by these instructions, but I do not believe they are so hard to understand. Paul is writing to brethren who were not unlike we are: we come from differing backgrounds, with different teachers and different influences, and we all came to obey in different ways and through the teaching of various people whose ideas and opinions no doubt influenced us all as to what was right or wrong in the sight of God.
No man has ever come to a knowledge of the gospel and the truths contained therein in a vacuum. All of us have been influenced by others, whether we admit it or not. But this does not necessarily mean we all have some amount of error in the way we understand the truth. The differences we have may not be differences of doctrine, or differences of any importance at all. Maybe I was raised in a place where everyone thought we should have Bible classes on Sunday evenings and you didn’t. Maybe I grew up where the congregation met on Thursday nights and you went on Wednesdays. What is under consideration are differences, and not errors; it is a matter of liberties we have in how we serve the Lord, based on our conscientious beliefs.
The thing we must first understand when considering this passage is the background that led to it being written. [Who the people were and what backgrounds they came out of.] Understanding this will go a long way in understanding the true message of the letter in this portion. The most important part of this background information is the knowledge of the Jewish Christian’s influences before becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ. These were ones who grew up being taught that certain meats were unclean and not fit to be eaten by the people of God. The rules were clear and they were strict. Now, having obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ, he knows that he is no longer bound by those same laws that were a major part of his life for so many years. But, that does not mean he is not still influenced by those things he was taught and which he had so diligently followed for so many years. Maybe he knew that he was not under the Old Law anymore, but maybe he still could not bring himself to eat that which was previously considered unclean. Maybe he could not just “overnight” see that all was acceptable in the sight of God for consumption. Maybe his conscience would not allow him to do so without self-condemnation. This is the situation and the circumstances for which this letter is written.
Receive, and Not Judge. (Rom. 14:1-4) I believe we would understand this better if we read it “receive into the faith one who is weak.” What Paul is talking about is not matters of the faith (the system by which one becomes a disciple of Jesus Christ, including the plan of salvation), but matters of conscience. And he begins by commanding that we receive others into the faith who are weak in conscience regarding certain matters (which will be covered later). The current situation was that one believed he could eat anything, while another did not and ate only vegetables (or herbs, KJV). These differences arose because of the differing backgrounds of the people in Rome
The immediate command is that none should show contempt toward (look down upon) those who did not eat, and one should not judge (as in condemning) those who did. The reason? God had received him (either one). The command is given because it is simply not our place to judge another one’s servant for how they are serving their master. In this case, we are talking about how the servants of the Lord are serving Him. It is the Lord’s place to make judgments about His servants’ actions, and Paul said that He had received them! (Rom. 14:3)
In Matters of Conscience, Do What You do to the Lord. (Rom. 14:5-13) Regarding the observation of days, Paul commanded that if they did so, it was to be done as a part of their service to the Lord, and if they did not, it was also to be done as a part of their service to the Lord. Pertaining to the eating or not eating, the same instruction applied: do it as a part of service to the Lord, giving thanks to the Lord whether he ate or not.
The reminder is that none of us is doing this for self, but in service to the Lord. The stronger argument for this behavior is that whether we live or die, it is for the Lord (our service to Him). Whatever we do, we are the Lord’s servants. And to further bolster the need for doing all things for the Lord, Paul points to the death of Christ and reminds us that He died that He might be the Lord of both the living and the dead, so whether we are dead or are alive, we are the Lord’s. With these things in mind, we should be fully convicted that what we do is in the service of the Lord — for Him and not self.
Paul then turns to the matter at hand: the judging (condemning) of one another over these matters of conscience. Paul wanted to remind them that there was a much greater, more important judgment that was to come that we should be more concerned about than whether or not our brethren ate meat or observed days — the judgment before Christ, when we will be giving account of ourselves in that judgment, not judging others. Because of this, Paul admonished them to forget about their petty differences, matters that related purely to their own conscience, and forget about judging one another in those matters. What we should be more concerned about is not doing that which would cause another to stumble or fall. Instead of judging, be concerned about their brother’s soul..
Walking in Love. (Rom. 14:14-23) Paul knew, and was convinced by the Lord Himself, that nothing was unclean, but he had to consider others. When we disregard the conscience of our brother and grieve them because of these things, we are no longer walking in love.
Again, Paul reminds them that they should not cause the destruction of another’s soul over matters of food; the overriding thought that they needed to keep in the front of their minds was that nothing should be done that would cause a brother to stumble, be offended, or made weak. If anyone goes against his own conscience and does that which he does not believe is right, he is not doing it “of faith” and to him it is sin.
All for the Good of Others. (Rom. 15:1-7) Paul’s instruction is to those who are able to do things without a violation of conscience, that they should bear with those whose consciences would not allow them to do the same things. The guiding principle being a desire to “please (our) neighbor for his good, leading to edification.” We do what we do that others might be built up.
Paul then points to our supreme example, Jesus Christ, as one who laid aside His own rights that others might benefit and then concludes that the end result should be a group of brethren who were like-minded and whose actions brought glory to God, instead of shame over things that God would accept one way or the other. To emphasize this portion of the letter, Paul stresses again, “Therefore receive one another, just as Christ also received us, to the glory of God” (Rom. 15:7).
Do for others what Christ has done for you: Love them! — Steven Harper
