This is our older (by 45-seconds) grandson Elliott, showing off his brand new teeth after his Saturday night bath. He and his brother, Sam, aren’t even four-and-a-half months old yet! This seems early for teeth, right?

As always, you can click on the pic to get the full size. While you’re at it, look at those eyelashes. Man, that’s a good looking kid.

I’m way behind on posting pictures here of Elliott and Samuel, so I’m going to post at least one a day this week, no matter what.

~~~~~~~~~

My posts this week will mainly be excerpts from the sermon we preached here yesterday at Golf Course Road Church on Christian unity from Romans 14-15. As we make plans for our annual “4 Midland” pulpit swap and Thanksgiving service this next weekend, it occurs to me that we have no problem putting aside the doctrinal differences that divide our Christian denominations for the sake of our God-ordained unity in Christ. But we allow disputable matters or matters of opinion to divide us within our own congregation. Why is that? And what do we do about it? Romans 14-15, I believe, has the answer.

The apostle Paul distinguished the disciples in that church in Rome as strong Christians and weak Christians–those are his words, not mine. Romans 14 details the problems Paul is addressing in his letter. The weak believers are vegetarians; the strong believers enjoy a good steak. The weak brothers and sisters keep all the Jewish holy days; the strong brothers and sisters don’t. The weak Christians are developing elaborate worship and lifestyle theologies and drawing lines in the sand over what’s right and what’s wrong; the strong Christians don’t have very many lines and they’re not as concerned about which worship and lifestyle practices are good or bad. The weak are criticizing the strong for being spiritually insensitive; the strong are looking down on the weak for being spiritually immature. The strong proclaim freedom in Christ; the weak say, “Yeah, but that doesn’t mean anything goes.” The weak tell the strong, “You’re wrong;” the strong tell the weak, “Grow up.”

Over what? Over food. Over worship styles and religious traditions. And… keep going?

Over women’s roles and deacons and divorce and remarriage. Song selection and church budgets and Lord’s Supper prayers. Small groups and creeds and Bible translations and politics.

Over… you name it. There are all kinds of issues and beliefs and practices that Christians in the same church argue about.

The Bible makes the solution to this problem easy because it gives both strong Christians and weak Christians the exact same instructions: Accept all Christians and don’t judge any Christians.

“Accept the one whose faith is weak, without passing judgement on disputable matters. One person’s faith allows him to eat everything, but another person, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not look down on the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not condemn the one who does, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls.” ~Romans 14:1-4

Nobody look down on anybody. Nobody condemn anybody. For God has accepted him. Accepted who? Whom has God accepted? This brother or sister in Christ who disagrees with you about some church thing. This group of Christians who don’t see eye-to-eye with you on some disputable matter, some matter of opinion, that in no way should ever divide Christians. You are not that guy’s master. You’re not in charge of that Christian.

Whether he stands or falls is up to the Lord. Whether he’s right or wrong is up to the Lord. Paul says we can’t judge that. But then Paul goes ahead and makes the call. He judges it anyway.

“He will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” ~Romans 14:4

He’ll stand. He’s fine. Whether y’all agree or not, whether y’all are on the same page or not, he’s good because he’s in Christ. Jesus died for him, Paul says in verse 9. That’s the whole reason Jesus died, so he could be the Lord over these things and not you. So you accept him without judgment. Because God accepts him in Christ.

Peace,

Allan