The Spirit of Division
October 16, 2024

Sermon 10.13.24 The Spirit of Division.jpg

Romans 14:1
“Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.”

  • The Bible tells us that some things are disputable matters.

  • But not everything is a disputable matter…
    Acts 4:12 (NIV) “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”

    • So How do we know a disputable matter vs. an non-negotiable?

      1) A Clear Christian Command: An explicit New Testament instruction with no Biblical counterpoint.

      • 1 John 2:22-23 (NIV) Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.”
      • 1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 (NIV) “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life. Therefore, anyone who rejects this instruction does not reject a human being but God, the very God who gives you his Holy Spirit.”

      2) Partial Clarity: There is no explicit command, but there are principles that readily apply.

      • Example: the Bible doesn’t mention cigarettes by name, but it does give us principles that readily apply to the subject of substance abuse:

        • 1 Corinthians 6:19-20 (NIV) “Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

        • 1 Corinthians 6:12 (NIV) “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.”

        • Ephesians 5:18 (NIV) “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.”

      3) Disputable Matters: More than one possible viewpoint based on scripture

      • End Times views
      • Predestination vs. Free Will
      • What constitutes modesty vs. senuality and vanity
      • Appropriate Entertainment
      • Vaccines
      • Health & Diet Practices
      • and many more…

  • Don’t Treat a Disputable Matter Like a Command from God:

    1) Don’t judge others who don’t share your personal conviction

    • Rom. 14:3 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. 4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
      • Just because you personally feel strongly about something, does not mean God is requiring it of everyone.
    • Romans 14:12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.
      • God is the judge of all mankind, not us, and no one can “get away with it” or “put one over” on God.

    2) Walk according to your conscience until the Lord changes your mind about it.

    • Romans 14:5 …Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.
    • Romans 14:14 …But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.
    • Romans 14:23 …But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
      • Not because you are violating a rule, but because doing so would teach you to ignore the conviction of the Lord and override your sense of conscience, and dull your discernment between right and wrong.

    3) Bring these matters to the Lord to ask:

    • Is there something you’re requiring of me personally that’s not for everyone?
    • Or am I being religious / legalistic about this?
      • Romans 14:1 As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions. 2 One person believes he may eat anything, while the weak person eats only vegetables.
      • Romans 14:14 …I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. (see also Ecc. 3:1-8)
      • Romans 14:22 … Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves.
      • 1 Cor. 4:6 “…Do not go beyond what is written.”
      • Colossians 2:20-23 (NIV) Since you died with Christ to the elemental spiritual forces of this world, why, as though you still belonged to the world, do you submit to its rules: ‘Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!’? These rules, which have to do with things that are all destined to perish with use, are based on merely human commands and teachings. Such regulations indeed have an appearance of wisdom, with their self-imposed worship, their false humility and their harsh treatment of the body, but they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence.”
      • Titus 3:9-11 (NIV) “But avoid foolish controversies and genealogies and arguments and quarrels about the law, because these are unprofitable and useless. Warn a divisive person once, and then warn them a second time. After that, have nothing to do with them. You may be sure that such people are warped and sinful; they are self-condemned.”- Romans 16:17 (NIV) “I urge you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them.”
      • Gal 4:8-12 (NLT) 8 Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist. 9 So now that you know God (or should I say, now that God knows you), why do you want to go back again and become slaves once more to the weak and useless spiritual principles of this world? 10 You are trying to earn favor with God by observing certain days or months or seasons or years. 11 I fear for you. Perhaps all my hard work with you was for nothing.12 Dear brothers and sisters,[f] I plead with you to live as I do in freedom from these things, for I have become like you Gentiles—free from those laws.
        • This is an example of how which day of the week we meet for worship services has no ultimate impact on our faith!

    4) Don’t encourage others to participate in things that violate their conscience

    • Romans 14:19 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21 It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.
    • Romans 14:15 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. 16 Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil.
      • It’s totally ok to have a respectful conversation with one another about these things
      • But it’s better to enjoy these freedoms privately (Rom. 14:22) than to confuse or damage another Christian’s faith by encouraging them to do something in bad conscience before the Lord gives them freedom in that area!

  • 5) Don’t take someone else’s personal convictions as bondage on yourself unless God is leading you to it!

    • Romans 14:22 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
    • Romans 14:3 …the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.

  • 6) Don’t allow your personal preferences to cause division in the church!

    • 1 Corinthians 8:1 knowledge puffs up with pride but love builds up (oikodome)
    • Ephesians 4:2-3 (NIV)“Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.”
    • Ephesians 2:13-16 (NIV)“But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.”
      • The blood of Jesus unites us and destroyed division!

    The Bottom Line:

    • In essential beliefs — we have unity.
      “There is one Body and one Spirit…there is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of us all…” Ephesians 4:4-6
    • In non-essential beliefs — we have liberty.
      “Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters… Romans 14:1
    • In all our beliefs — we show charity.
      “…If I hold in my mind not only all human knowledge but also the very secrets of God, and if I have the faith that can move mountains — but have no love, I amount to nothing at all.” 1 Corinthians 13:2