October 11, 2024

Romans 14.1 (NIV)

Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.

In . . . differences of opinion the natural reaction is to seek to bring about uniformity – to one’s own opinion!*

I have been a Christian for nearly 60 years. In that time, I have missed attending Sunday church services perhaps a total of ten times (until the COVID shut-down, and even then I watched the online service). I faithfully attended Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, and church camp, and I graduated from Bible college. I have taught Bible classes for children and for adults. I have a daily quiet time with the Lord which I have not skipped more than ten times in over 20 years. But guess what? I don’t know everything.

 

Recently, a young woman who is a new Christian came to me with a question about something she had read in the Bible. It turned out to be a passage that I have long wondered about so I couldn’t help her. It was not a matter of salvation but it could become an important issue in her life. My point is this: how could I pass judgment on her when I, the wise old woman of God, didn’t know any more than she did?

When our church leadership announced plans to start a Saturday night worship service, I had concerns. Rather than cause trouble – or ignore something that shouldn’t be ignored – I researched the book of Acts. There, I found nothing that proved to me that a service on Saturday was wrong, and nothing to indicate that a Sunday morning service was a commandment.

   

Ah, but do you agree with my assessment? If you believe that you are right and I am wrong, why would you even think of the matter as “disputable?” Which of us is the one whose faith is weak? What if I am wrong? What is your responsibility to me? Paul says to accept me without passing judgment. Can you manage that? 

Rather than viewing differences as right or wrong, learn to see them as alternative perspectives and stop passing judgment on one another.*