Day 33: Romans 14: 1-12: Stop Judging Each Other

Unity in Christ matters more than winning secondary arguments. 

Paul addresses disagreements between believers. Some argued over food laws and special holy days. Others believed those practices no longer mattered. Paul's focus is not on winning arguments- it's on unity. 

Believers may have different convictions on secondary issues, but they still belong to the same Lord. Instead of judging each other, Paul calls believers to humility and grace.

Reflect: Do you tend to approach disagreements with humility or with the need to be right?

Dig Deeper: How can Christians hold convictions without becoming judgemental?

Transcript

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Hello everyone. Welcome to day 33 in our Romans Daily Bible study devotional. Today our theme is Stop Judging Each Other. And we're reading from Romans chapter 14, verses 1 through 12. Before we read our text, here are some questions to think about. Do you tend to approach disagreements with humility or with the need to be right? Hilarious that my sister and cousin are on here again. Or anyone that's my friend, I guess. How can Christians hold convictions without becoming judgmental? I think that's a really hard balance. So today is going to be good. Let's start reading from verse one. Welcome anyone who is weak in faith, but don't argue about disputed matters. One person believes he may eat anything, while one who is weak eats only vegetables. One who eats must not look down on one who does not eat, and one who does not eat must not judge one who does, because God has accepted him. Who are you to judge another's household servant? Before his own Lord he stands or falls, and he will stand because the Lord is able to make him stand. One person judges one day to be more important than another day. Someone else judges every day to be the same. Let each one be fully convinced in his own mind. Whoever observes the day observes it for the honor of the Lord. Whoever eats eats for the Lord, since he gives thanks to God, and whoever does not eat, it is for the Lord that he does not eat it, and he gives thanks to God. For none of us lives for himself, and no one dies for himself. If we live we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. Christ died and returned to life for this, that he might be Lord over both the dead and the living. But you, why do you judge your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written, As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God. So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. Amen. That is the word of God. Romans fourteen deals with disagreements inside of the church. And the issues may sound unfamiliar at first, food laws, holy days, traditions, but underneath it is a very modern common issue. How do believers handle differences? In the early church, Jewish believers and Gentile believers came from very different backgrounds. Some still followed dietary laws and Jewish traditions. Others believed they were free from those practices through Christ. And that created tension. So Paul is stepping into this tension not to create uniformity in every opinion, but to protect unity. What it's saying here is he's not doing this and then determining a law or the yeses and no's to these little differences that everyone should follow the same way. Instead, what he's doing is focusing on them still having unity within themselves, even if they may differ on a few different topics. Here he's reminding believers that not every disagreement carries equal weight. Some issues are central to the gospel, others are areas of personal conviction. And Paul is saying, stop condemning each other over secondary matters. That's important because spiritual pride often shows up through judgment, and we can start treating our preferences like universal spiritual standards. Paul is reminding everyone that God is the judge, not us. And humility matters because every believer is still growing. Unity does not mean everyone is going to think identically. It means we love each other while we're pursuing Christ together. And we have grace and mercy for each other. It is so easy for the devil to use these preferences and rule following and trying to get everyone to follow the rules we think that they should follow against us to create division in the church, and that's his goal. And we really leave that door open when we do that. So I mean it's such a good reminder for all of us, especially, you know, I think dealing with people. Some people are, you know, more difficult for you to deal with than another. And maybe there are people that hurt you or wound you, um, or you don't like their communication style, and it triggers you, and just constantly reminding myself that I too have those moments and have that effect on people, and that God has given me so much grace and mercy, um, despite all of my shortcomings. And instead of looking at someone as my enemy because I don't like what they're doing or how they're saying it or whatever, um, instead looking at them through the eyes of Christ and looking at them as someone just like me who has been given grace and mercy. Um, and that maybe they're just going through something, you know, we've all had those moments, and I hope that the people that were around me then, you know, don't judge me for that now and not understand that sometimes I wasn't at my best. And I, you know, being a good friend to each other and being good spouses and being good sisters and cousins and uh mothers, I think comes with a lot of learning to extend grace and forgiveness and model that, and it's not always easy. Um, and also to see other people as people who are struggling through their life too. Um, so great devotion today. We'll talk tomorrow. Love you guys.