27/05/2021
Rom 14 v 1-23; Deut 27 v 1-28 v 68

Abound in faith

“For the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (Rom 14 v 17)

Are you convinced that we are still bound by the law of Moses and that we cannot eat certain foods, neither wear certain clothing? We are committing a dreadful sin If this is the case, while our hearts and minds are distanced from the Lord.

For some, eating pork is a sin, while for others it is not and both parties will find scriptures to justify their conviction.
Who is right then? Is it really a matter of winning the argument?
As children of God, we are called to peace and “in (y)our relationships with one another, [to] have the same mindset as Christ Jesus” (Phil 2 v 5) [NIV]

There is so much more to our faith, than following a set of rules and thinking that through that we are being obedient to the Lord.
We have been indoctrinated through the ages and taught not to touch, neither to taste, but when you have tasted, not to swallow and yet God is very clear when He says that “whatever is not from faith is sin” (Rom 14 v 23). Of course, this also does not been that we can do anything in the name of faith, seeing that there are certain things children of God should not familiarize themselves with. The kind of things that harm the spirit and damage the soul…

What is faith really?

“Now faith is the assurance (title deed, confirmation) of things hoped for (divinely guaranteed), and the evidence of things not seen [the conviction of their reality—faith comprehends as fact what cannot be experienced by the physical senses]” (Heb 11 v 1) [AMP]

Paul says that, “the faith which we have, we should have as our own conviction before God” (vers 23) [paraphrase]. Does this mean we can make up the substance of our own faith? I don’t believe this is what the writer is saying, but it clearly shows that he warns against using the material, i.e food, day of observance (worship), etc. to bring division among believers as is the case even today.

Our focus should therefore not be on what our brothers (and sisters) in Christ eat or do not eat, which day they observe as the sabbath, the materials they wear for clothing, the feasts they uphold, etc…
If a person considers something to be sin to them and they abstain from it, do not cause them to stumble. At the same time, if you do not consider something to be sin, yet doubt and convict yourself when you partake in a meal, festival or ritual, this is considered as sin.

How do we then abound in faith? Let us build up one another. Do not allow the material things to be the deciding matter in the spiritual realm. For God is Spirit and should be worshipped in spirit and in truth. Whatever you do, do it with the right conviction, being convinced that everything is done for the sake of Christ, who is the Head of the Church.

Scripture quotations taken from the NASB, Life Application Study Bible, unless stated otherwise. Copyright by “The Lockman Foundation“