David Bahn – Reflections

Romans 14:1-12

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. 3 Let not the one who eats despise the one who abstains, and let not the one who abstains pass judgment on the one who eats, for God has welcomed him. 4 Who are you to pass judgment on the servant of another? It is before his own master that he stands or falls. And he will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

5 One person esteems one day as better than another, while another esteems all days alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6 The one who observes the day, observes it in honor of the Lord. The one who eats, eats in honor of the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, while the one who abstains, abstains in honor of the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. 9 For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.

10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written,

12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God.

When our sons were growing up, we had two sayings we would regularly provide to them in the throes of arguments or protestations about how each of them were being treated – over against the other, or compared to their friends. One was, “Because the sky is blue when the sun shines” (they hated that!). The other was, “Worry about yourself.” Actually, there was a third one: “I can’t be fair;” we weren’t going to get caught in that trap!

It seems especially important to revisit that second admonition in light of Paul’s reminder here, “…each of us will give an account of himself  to God” [emphasis added!]. We each have plenty enough to deal with in our own lives; we really don’t need to worry about trying to manage others’ lives as well. Sufficient unto ourselves is the sin thereof!

When I was growing up my mother would tell me that the bullies and braggarts were insecure and weak. “That’s why,” she said, “they have to brag. They feel bad about themselves and want to make everyone think they’re great. If people don’t think they’re great they have to puff themselves up.”

The two are related: both those who feel they must be in other people’s business (judging others) and those who feel they must brag and bully others suffer from a deficiency of faith in God and fail to recognize that their true place in the universe depends on God’s assessment of them. His assessment – in behalf of Jesus Christ, and for Jesus’ glory – is that we are loved and redeemed. We have standing before the King of the Universe!

So whether you’re in the crosshairs of a bully, or you feel unloved and of no value; whether you are too easily inclined to judge others, or constantly tempted to compare yourself to others, God has a word for you: Repent and believe the Good News! Jesus is your Savior. Through faith in him (even when weak and stretched thin) unites us with God’s love and grace. We become sons and daughters of God through faith in Jesus. And when that faith grows dim, remember this word of encouragement to the strong: You are to be welcomed and encouraged. And when you feel you must puff yourself up a bit too much, and make certain you are being treated fairly, hear these words: each of us will give an account of himself to God. 

Thank God that those who cling to Jesus’ assessment of us as his brothers and sisters, and his redemption by his perfect, faithful, and obedient life and death and resurrection from the grave the judgment is Not Guilty – for those in Christ.