Rom. 14:10 ... "Why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God."
The Latin phrase, E PLURIBUS UNUM, "one from many," is the motto of our nation. It calls attention to the way in which our citizens are a blend of people from many diverse countries, cultures and languages. This idea applies just as well to the church of Christ. Its commission is to "go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation," (Mk. 16:15). As people believe and accept baptism (v.16), they are added by the Lord to the church, (Acts 2:47). A common bond is then established among all these redeemed souls which Eph. 4:3 refers to as "the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." A fellowship of faith, love and obedience to God's will is thus established that prevails among Christians even though they might differ greatly in race, speech, social customs and the like. That, of course is the ideal. As everyone knows, however, it is not always the practice.
Where the Lord has specifically spoken about something, for Christians that is the end of the matter. The pronouncement is to be accepted by faith and enacted without question. Any violation of this is sin, since Rom. 14:23 declares that "whatever is not from faith is sin." In other words, when an idea or action does not proceed as a response of faith in God's direction for us, it is sin. When such transgressions occur, the Lord Himself will judge the offender. Thus v.12 states that "each one of us shall give account of Himself to God." Beyond the specific declaration of the Lord's will, however, there are myriad things that lie within the realm of opinion or personal preference. As long as one does not cause another Christian to stumble by these things, or try to impose them as obligatory upon others, or violate his own conscience by them, the Lord permits the individual to believe or practice them. This is the context of the apostle's discussion in Romans 14. Lying on your side on a mat or couch at a dinner table, greeting others with a kiss, and washing the feet of strangers are customs peculiar to society in apostolic times and are optional for Christians. Abstaining from meat, wearing no makeup or jewelry, and praying to God in 16th Century English are also optional for us.
We promote peace and true fellowship in the church by acquiring the wisdom to separate what is opinion from what is faith and by developing the self-control to respect the difference. Any violation of faith in practice must be addressed by the instructions in Mt. 18:15-18, both for the sake of the integrity of the church and for the rectification of the offender. When we notice someone acting on a matter of opinion, it is not our prerogative to challenge him and demand that he change. Unto this purpose our text asks, "Why do you regard your brother with contempt?," and then answers in v.13, "Let us not judge one another anymore." The church of God is too precious and important to disrupt and bring it into disrepute it by our petty scruples. Paul writes in v.20, "Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food." The reference to food (in some versions "meat") is general and may refer to any other item of personal preference. We do much and needless damage to the fellowship of the saints when we make an issue of faith out of something that is really only opinion. At times we may be so emotionally involved that we are unable to see the difference. In such cases we need the calm, detached counsel of third parties, (themselves being men of faith and truth). Our grand object must be always to "pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another," (v.19).
