Fluff and puff

DEVOTION

ROMANS

FLUFF AND PUFF

Rom 14:13-18

13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. 14 As one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. 15 If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. 16 Do not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. 17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18 because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.

NIV

We are still with this passing judgement idea, but now there is a different twist to things. There isn’t any food which is unclean in itself, it is about how people regard certain food and drink which makes it either clean or unclean. However, if someone regards something as unclean and is distressed because we eat or drink it, then we should stop eating and drinking it. However, that is certainly a passing judgement on us by them for eating or drinking something they consider unclean. What does it mean that we should not allow what we consider good to be spoken of as evil? On the one hand if a brother thinks of a certain food or drink as evil, then we should not allow him to speak in that manner? No, it seems to imply that if a brother thinks it is evil, then we do not consume that food or drink, at least in their presence, or make it point to argue our case that we do not believe it is evil. The kingdom of God is not about this anyway, we should not make any theological truth out of this matter. However, some denominations do make a point about drinking wine, saying it is evil. Although in the day of Paul it was more about Jews observing the law regarding unclean types of animals, wine was never an issue, they all drank wine. But because we all eat everything, some have to make the issue over the wine. Again passing judgement. However, this distress issue still is front and center. If we enjoy the freedom to drink wine, but it  is causing a brother to stumble in his faith, then we should not drink it. That is simple enough, but we both should know that it is not against God. Abstaining from wine is not a law of God, it is simply a believed interpretation of some scriptures. Right or wrong it is a belief of a brother in Christ. The point is neither of us should allow anything to come between us for the kingdom of God is not about all that. The kingdom is about relationships, righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. It would seem that there is not this peace and Joy within the riff of denominationalism. How can we live for Christ and be approved by men, when some men do not agree on the meaning of scripture and have such a harden heart to any other meaning of scripture, to a point they split off and form another church? That seems to be more of an issue then what we eat and drink, although over the years some churches have had rules for membership which including abstaining from drink with no abstaining of over eating, alone with abstaining from movies, dancing, rolling rinks, bowling alleys and even mixed bathing. That is boys and girls not going to the beach together. Oh my, we should not see each other in a bathing suit, but today girls appear in public with less than a bathing suit, and some boys have their butts hanging out over their pants and cut up tee type shirts showing more than they should. Enough of this nonsense, let us live to enjoy the life God has given to us, and be open and honest with each other and not get so upset over what one person believes is good and another not good. What is wrong with us, have we allowed the culture to dictate our beliefs over food and drink? Don’t tell me wine in bad when you eat so much it harms your health. Don’t tell me we eat too much when you drink wine. Can’t we just love each other for who we are, brothers and sisters in the Lord? The rest is all fluff and puff.