Bible Studies

GROWING UP IS FOR REAL

by Luella Campbell
09/09/14
Not For Sale
Author requests article critique

  Message Writer
  Hire Writer

Tweet

GROWING UP IS FOR REAL

"Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.

"So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin." Romans 14:20-23.

So there you have it! But, wait a minute. Doesn't it put me into bondage to other people if I have to consider their weak consciences before I can eat or drink, or do anything that another believer considers sin? It should work both ways. A weaker brother should not judge me if I am free from his scruples but, at the same time, I should not deliberately provoke him by flaunting my freedom in his face.

I have to ask. "Who has the great responsibility?" I have, because my freedom allows me to give away my rights for the sake of his soul. I will not suffer if I abstain from what bothers him when I am in his presence, whereas he will suffer if I refuse to abstain because I am free. If I cause my brother to fall because of my stubborn attitude, I will bear the guilt of turning him away from Christ because I did not love him enough to forgo my right for his sake.

"Blessed," said Paul, "is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves." Blessed ("asher" in Hebrew) implies the Father's pleasure that comes from making the right choice and doing the right thing because the Father approves of the attitude that considers another above oneself. There is no bondage in that as long as I have the right attitude. There is no place for resentment in my heart as long as I remember that it is Jesus, my Master, whom I serve when I serve others.

This leads Paul to another blanket statement that is a principle of life in God's kingdom. Life in the kingdom of God is a walk of faith and is governed and directed by our confidence in what God has said. God's goal for every believer is freedom from everything that hinders our faith in His word and our obedience to Him which sets us apart as followers of Jesus.

We have many slave-drivers - behaviour patterns, habits, addictions, ways of coping, emotions, all of which interfere with the freedom Jesus bought for us so that we can walk with Him unhindered by these things. We gain our freedom, one step at a time as we learn the truth and submit to it by faith, replacing the things we believe in and do that keep us in bondage with God's word. Paul called it "renewing our minds" (Romans 12:3).

We are set free when we believe and act upon what Jesus has said.

"To the Jews who had believed Him, Jesus said, 'If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.'" John 8:31, 32.

Since it is a journey, it happens gradually, not all at once. However, the operative word is faith. To the Jew, to believe something intellectually but not to act on it was a meaningless exercise. Paul said, "If you believe something to be true, even if you are wrong, but do not act on it, is sin."

We have to trust God enough for ourselves and for our fellow believers that we allow them to walk their own path with the Lord, just as we walk ours. God will reveal truth to us and to them as and when we are able to receive it, remembering that none of us has perfect knowledge of the truth. This is the beauty of our journey - that it is a journey of discovery and a journey from bondage to freedom and God is more interested in the outcome than in the process.

Our task, if we consider ourselves mature believers, is to protect love, preserve unity and promote contentment more than it is to demand our rights. And this is really growing up into Christ because He is passionate about unity.

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.