Romans 14
14
Cultivating Good Relationships
1Welcome with open arms fellow believers who donât see things the way you do. And donât jump all over them every time they do or say something you donât agree withâeven when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.
2-4For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background, might assume he should only be a vegetarian and eat accordingly. But since both are guests at Christâs table, wouldnât it be terribly rude if they fell to criticizing what the other ate or didnât eat? God, after all, invited them both to the table. Do you have any business crossing people off the guest list or interfering with Godâs welcome? If there are corrections to be made or manners to be learned, God can handle that without your help.
5Or, say, one person thinks that some days should be set aside as holy and another thinks that each day is pretty much like any other. There are good reasons either way. So, each person is free to follow the convictions of conscience.
6-9Whatâs important in all this is that if you keep a holy day, keep it for Godâs sake; if you eat meat, eat it to the glory of God and thank God for prime rib; if youâre a vegetarian, eat vegetables to the glory of God and thank God for broccoli. None of us are permitted to insist on our own way in these matters. Itâs God we are answerable toâall the way from life to death and everything in betweenânot each other. Thatâs why Jesus lived and died and then lived again: so that he could be our Master across the entire range of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other.
10-12So where does that leave you when you criticize a brother? And where does that leave you when you condescend to a sister? Iâd say it leaves you looking pretty sillyâor worse. Eventually, weâre all going to end up kneeling side by side in the place of judgment, facing God. Your critical and condescending ways arenât going to improve your position there one bit. Read it for yourself in Scripture:
âAs I live and breathe,â God says,
âevery knee will bow before me;
Every tongue will tell the honest truth
that I and only I am God.â
So mind your own business. Youâve got your hands full just taking care of your own life before God.
13-14Forget about deciding whatâs right for each other. Hereâs what you need to be concerned about: that you donât get in the way of someone else, making life more difficult than it already is. Iâm convincedâJesus convinced me!âthat everything as it is in itself is holy. We, of course, by the way we treat it or talk about it, can contaminate it.
15-16If you confuse others by making a big issue over what they eat or donât eat, youâre no longer a companion with them in love, are you? These, remember, are persons for whom Christ died. Would you risk sending them to hell over an item in their diet? Donât you dare let a piece of God-blessed food become an occasion of soul-poisoning!
17-18Godâs kingdom isnât a matter of what you put in your stomach, for goodnessâ sake. Itâs what God does with your life as he sets it right, puts it together, and completes it with joy. Your task is to single-mindedly serve Christ. Do that and youâll kill two birds with one stone: pleasing the God above you and proving your worth to the people around you.
19-21So letâs agree to use all our energy in getting along with each other. Help others with encouraging words; donât drag them down by finding fault. Youâre certainly not going to permit an argument over what is served or not served at supper to wreck Godâs work among you, are you? I said it before and Iâll say it again: All food is good, but it can turn bad if you use it badly, if you use it to trip others up and send them sprawling. When you sit down to a meal, your primary concern should not be to feed your own face but to share the life of Jesus. So be sensitive and courteous to the others who are eating. Donât eat or say or do things that might interfere with the free exchange of love.
22-23Cultivate your own relationship with God, but donât impose it on others. Youâre fortunate if your behavior and your belief are coherent. But if youâre not sure, if you notice that you are acting in ways inconsistent with what you believeâsome days trying to impose your opinions on others, other days just trying to please themâthen you know that youâre out of line. If the way you live isnât consistent with what you believe, then itâs wrong.
Chwazi Kounye ya:
Romans 14: MSG
Pati Souliye
Kopye
Konpare
Pataje
Ou vle gen souliye ou yo sere sou tout aparèy ou yo? Enskri oswa konekte
THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright Š 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.