“For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.” (Romans. 14:7-9 NIV)
The great Apostle cites this principle in the context of accepting those “whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters” (v.1) because “we will all stand before God’s judgment seat” (v. 10). We must remember that both our living and our dying is to honor the Lord.
Disputable matters are those ceremonial practices and rituals that were cancelled by Calvary. And whether our faith is weak or strong, we belong to Christ so we live and die in service and honor to him. No matter the individual’s conscience, he/she is still accountable to the Lord. “For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.”
Weak or strong faith is directly connected to the sacrificial work of God in Christ. Through his sacrifice on Calvary, Christ cancelled any and all effects of ceremonial practices. The observance of one day as more important than another . . . no spiritual effect. The distinction of only eating “clean” meat and rejecting all other . . . no spiritual effect.
Those “whose faith is weak” refers to anyone who thinks something (Holy Days or clean meats) must be practiced in addition to faith in Christ. They are literally adding their ceremonial practices to Calvary’s sacrifice. This is why their faith is weak. Their faith is not strong toward Christ as the sole “lamb who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29).
On the one hand, we, whose faith is strong in Christ as our only source of eternal hope, must not flaunt our liberty in front of those whose faith is weak. We must not judge them to be “wrong” since they are practicing their belief “to the Lord.”
On the other hand, our strong faith in Christ must exhibit a higher plane of understanding. Our liberty must be seasoned with wisdom. Everything we do affects others — none of us lives to self alone. Our liberties affect those who in good conscience cannot practice such liberty. Both our liberty and their restraint should honor Christ because “we (both) belong to the Lord.”
Whether we are living or dead, Christ is still Lord. He died and is resurrected “so that he might be Lord” in both realms. Today’s Scripture passage isn’t an argument about honoring Christ by dying for him. Rather, the great Apostle argues that we must honor Christ by not offending others by the practice of our liberties. “For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost” (Rom. 14:17 KJV).
Dear Father, thank you for the liberty we enjoy through Christ. Empower us to guard our practices so that we do not offend our fellow believers. I pray this in the name of Jesus. AMEN
Be encouraged today by living for Christ,