Romans 14 Devotional

Servants of One Master

“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.”Romans 14:8 (BSB)

The church in Rome disagreed over food and special days. Some ate anything, while others ate only vegetables; some honored certain days, and others treated every day alike (14:2, 5). He tells both sides to stop looking down on and judging each other, because God has accepted each of them (14:3). Each believer is the Lord's servant, and the Lord is able to make him stand (14:4).

Beneath the argument lies a deeper truth. In life and in death believers are the Lord's, and Christ died and rose to be Lord of the living and the dead (14:7-9). So the strong are free, but not free to wound. Distressing a brother over food is no longer walking in love, and that brother is someone Christ died to save (14:15). God's kingdom is measured not by what is on the table but by righteousness, peace and the Spirit's joy (14:17). Because Christ has made the weaker believer his own, you can lay down a freedom for that person's sake and lose nothing that matters.

To think about: Is there a fellow believer you have been quietly judging over a matter of conscience, and how might you accept them as the Lord has?