Living in the occupied territory of the risen Christ, we have learned three key behaviors that glorify Christ: 1) submission to the authorities; 2) fulfilling the law through love; and 3) not passing judgment on each other. The fourth and final part of Paul’s teaching is not causing others to stumble, given that each of us will give an account of ourselves to God (Rom 14:12):
“Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean” (Rom 14:13-14).
When Paul says “brother” he means fellow believer in Christ, that is, the ones we consider family in our church. While his concern is for Jewish and Gentile believers who have different beliefs with regard to what foods are clean, he forces you and I in the year 2020 to address something very urgent among believers: grappling with health precautions ordered by the authorities during this year of pandemic. As churches struggle to reopen (in submission to the authorities!), we see the same kind of fear and division that Paul is describing in the early church. Let’s follow the parallel:
“For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then let us pursue what makes for peace and mutual upbuilding” (Rom 14:15-19).
As Christians we have long since moved past the issues of unclean foods. But today we face a dilemma almost as taunting: to wear a mask or not to wear a mask. And this is causing division among many brothers and sisters. Wearing a mask gives those in fear of the virus a sense of security, especially if their health is weakened and they are more vulnerable. But wearing a mask is considered by others to be “unclean” because bacteria can build up on the inside, and for the hard of hearing, because muffled words become a nightmare of garbled communication.
In reality, if someone wants to wear a mask, they should. And if someone does not want to wear a mask, they should not be criticized, because a mask wearer is protected by the mask and social distancing. There is little or no risk going either way.
So we could say that we as a church stand at the fork in the road to perfect unity and must recognize the difference between the bad fork, leading to disunity through judgment of brothers and sisters, and the good fork of repentance and the never-ending love of God that leads to restoration and perfect unity in Christ. This cuts both ways.
In other words, in the presence of potential disunity, we must raise ourselves to a higher standard:
“Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats. It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble. The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin” (Rom 14:20-23).
So as churches open, let us judge neither ourselves or our brothers and sisters, and keep our faith between ourselves and God.
Let us reach for the higher ground – perfect unity in Jesus Christ!
Let us not speak of what someone believes is good, as evil.