Romans 14:23 (NASBStr)
But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.
Chapter fourteen of the Book of Romans is, perhaps, one of them of the most practical chapters in all the Bible. In the Roman church there were a number of Jewish believers. The entire first portion (chapters 1-11) of the book is to lay to rest, for mainly the Jews, that the Gentile believers were second class believers in the church. The Jews had the thought that since they were the chosen people of God, they had privileges in the Christian faith that Gentiles could not and would not experience. Paul debunks this, while at the same time teaching the Roman Christians (Gentiles) that national Israel was still precious in God's sight and they were not second class believers, simply because the nation had rejected their Messiah. With all that written and established Paul turns to what must have been a difficult issue in the church. Apparently, as we read chapter fourteen, there were some in the church (probably of Jewish descent) who would not eat the meat sold in the local market place and became vegetarians as a result. The meat in the market place was sold, most of the time, after it had been offered to idols in the gentile false-worship systems. The Jewish-Believer was offended by such consumption of idol meat and "judged" the Roman-Believer, who had no issue with the meat. The Roman-Believer was offended by the lack of eating meat by the Jewish-Believer and their vegetarian ways and, apparently, ate their meat in front of the Jewish-Believer, with no regard for their offense. Paul writes the entire chapter to bring both groups to the above and final passage. There is much written before these words that bend the heart to understand what Paul says here, but, in the final stroke of his pen, Paul tells them whatever you do (eat meat or avoid the meat), do it in faith. There are many reasons for both groups to do what they do. Being pure in their own eyes is not a reason to make either choice. Being proud and trying to demonstrate your holiness in front of others is not a reason to make either choice. Judging the other for their choice is not a good choice. Paul tells them to focus on the reason they have made their choice. In the immediate proceeding verses he tells them to make sure they are doing it to honor and bring glory to God. Prior to that he tells them to make sure they don't do something to cause an offense to the other group and thus void the command to love. In the above verse Paul brings in the element of faith in their choice. They might have some historical, political, ethnic, or personal reason to choose to eat meat or not. But, Paul tells them that whatever the choice is it ought to be driven by faith. He tells them that making a decision of what to eat is first and foremost faith based. If God leads you to do one thing or another it ought to have its catalyst in faith. Paul seems to indicate that both groups had missed the point. They had fallen into ethnic and cultural arguments about a very practical aspect of human life: What to eat? He is telling them whether you eat meat, drink wine, wear lipstick, wear particular clothes, is all a matter of faith. If we can't first believe God lead us to such a decision; and if we can't show how God lead us to this matter by faith, we are fooling ourselves that the choice is honoring to God. In Hebrews 11:6 we read that without faith we can't please God. So, making a choice that is personal or cultural and absent faith is not honoring to God, no matter the choice. Are your daily choices a matter of faith?
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