Navigating Christian Liberty - Part 6

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Lord willing, next Sunday night, I hope to begin a new series on the book of Revelation, so I invite you to be reading ahead if you want, read through the book, prepare yourself. We will begin to study together what the Lord has revealed to John the Apostle there in the book of Revelation. Also, I know you don't believe this, I know some of you have been sort of taking bets on how old your great-great-grandchildren would be when I finished Romans, but believe it or not, we are approaching the end. In fact, I think it will be before summer that we’ll finish this letter. And I’ve been thinking ahead about where to go and I really am leaning toward a study of 1 John, such a key book in assurance for us who are in Christ, that we’re truly His. So, that's what I'm thinking about; you can pray with me to that end, but that's coming, believe it or not.

However, today it is our joy to return to Romans and to Romans, chapter 15.

When Sheila and I moved to California back in 1987, about two weeks after I arrived, I was hired by “Grace to You,” and I was hired to edit study guides. Some of you are old enough to remember that, when you were listening to the radio, if you wanted, you could order what was called a “Radio Study Guide” and it was a tiny little booklet that was sort of an edited version of the sermons with some questions to ponder, the principles, and think through. That was my first job, it was editing there at “Grace to You,” was editing study guides. I did that for a few months before other opportunities became available and I remember that, because the very first study guide I edited back of October of 1987 was called, “Pitfalls of Christian Liberty,” and it was a study of 1 Corinthians 10, where Paul deals with the very same topic. We’re not examining 1 Corinthians 10, but we are examining that same theme that Paul develops here in Romans 14 and 15.

Now, the foundation for understanding these chapters is the reality that every moral decision you will ever make falls into one of three categories. It is either something the Bible explicitly forbids, something the Bible explicitly commands, or it is an issue of conscience or of Christian liberty. Those, folks, are the only three categories when it comes to moral decisions or decisions with moral overtones.

Romans 14 is dealing specifically with issues of conscience that have to do with the differences between Jewish and Gentile believers. So, it's dealing with issues of conscience pertaining to the Old Testament Ceremonial Law, things like clean and unclean foods, and the celebration of Sabbaths and festivals. But understand that issues of conscience go way beyond the Old Testament Ceremonial Law. In fact, Christian liberty has to do with any issue not clearly addressed in Scripture, and this is clear in both Romans and 1 Corinthians.

For example, here in Romans, chapter 14, verse 21, Paul refers to anything by which your brother stumbles, and again he's talking about anything not specifically addressed in Scripture. Verse 23, “…whatever, (whatever actions or decisions) is not (of) faith, (those are) sin.” And so you see he broadens it much beyond the ceremonial issues of the law. In 1 Corinthians, chapter 10, verse 23, there Paul says that Christian liberty concerns “All things (that) are lawful.” In other words, all things that the Scripture doesn't explicitly address. And of course the famous verse, 1 Corinthians 10:31, “Whether (therefore) you eat or drink, (there the ceremonial laws) or whatever you do, do all the glory of God.”

So, we’re talking then about all those moral decisions not explicitly laid out in Scripture. And we’ve discovered that the problem comes when we hold our own convictions, our decisions about issues of conscience, with the same conviction that we hold the Scripture itself. That's a problem. It should be, “Thus saith the Lord.” That should be where our confidence lies and then we give leeway for differences on those things that are not explicitly spelled out in Scripture.

Parents, let me just say to you, make sure that you clearly distinguish with your kids between your own decisions about issues of conscience and those matters that are clearly forbidden or commanded in Scripture. When, my kids were growing up, I would say to them:

Okay, this is what the Bible says; this, there's no question about, close the door, the story is over, this is what we’re going to do. This, however, is an issue of conscience, and as long as you live in my house and eat my food, my conscience determines what we’re going to do there. Someday, you're going to be out on your own; and in this category, you'll have the opportunity before God to make those decisions. Not over here; these are settled, “Thus saith the Lord.” But in terms of exactly how those will be carried out, then that will be your decision to make, someday when you're responsible for yourself. As long as you're in my home, my conscience rules.

And so, you need to distinguish that with your kids; because if you don't, if everything is, “Thus saith the Lord,” even those things that aren't, it confuses your kids, it weakens your integrity, and it undermines Biblical authority. I mean, how do you expect them to trust you when you tell them what really is in the Bible if they know you're telling them a lot of things are in the Bible that aren’t. So, be very careful.

So, if a passage of Scripture doesn't clearly forbid or command a moral decision, it falls within the category of Christian liberty or conscience. However, the fact that we can make the decision to do those things doesn't mean that we should. Christian liberty is a liberty to be wisely used, not a license to be abused. We’re learning in Romans 14 and 15, several foundational principles concerning the wise and biblical use of Christian liberty.

Now, it's been a long time, so let me just remind you, we have already examined the first four principles of Christian liberty. First of all, Paul teaches us to expect legitimate differences on issues of conscience. They were there in the churches in Rome; he addresses them in chapter 14, they’re in our church, they’re in every church. So, don't be surprised when those things that are not explicit in Scripture pop up in your discussions with other believers in this church and you're not in agreement. Expect there to be differences on those issues because we’re not all the same, we don’t all think the same, we don’t all land in the same place.

Number two, accept those differences in a spirit of unity. That's the message of chapter 14, verses 1 to 12. The person who is strong in faith is not to look down on, in a condescending way, those who add to the Scripture and whose consciences who are weak; and those whose consciences are weak, are not supposed to judge the strong and think, “Well, that person must not be spiritual because he doesn't do this that I think ought to be done.” No! We’re to accept those differences in a spirit of unity.

Thirdly, never allow your liberty to cause others to sin. That's Romans 14, verses 13 to 21; don't make them stumble, don't cause a person who doesn't believe they can do that before the Lord, don't egg them on to do that by your example or your words, and then they do it, and they sin against the Lord because they think it's wrong to do; for them it's sin. Don't allow your liberty to cause others to sin.

Number four, never allow your liberty to cause you to sin. That's Romans 14, verses 22 and 23. That's the one we looked at the last time we studied this passage together. How exactly does our liberty cause us to sin? Well, there are two ways that that can happen. First of all, by violating your own conscience. In other words, you say, “Yeah this is my liberty, I can do it;” but really in your heart of hearts, you're not convinced of that, you’re convinced it might be wrong or you have serious questions about whether it's wrong or right to do, and you do it anyway. You’re violating your own conscience and that makes it sin.

A second way that Christian liberty can become a source of sin is by using your liberty as an excuse for sin. This is when you say, “This is my liberty,” when in reality the Bible explicitly forbids that or explicitly commands the opposite behavior. And people do this all the time. “It's my liberty to get this divorce,” when in fact, the Bible doesn’t allow it in their case, and so forth. There are many ways that we can use our liberty as an excuse for sin.

Today we come to a fifth principle of Christian liberty and that is, limit your liberty for the spiritual good of others, limit your liberty for the spiritual good of others. This is the message of Romans 15, verses 1 to 6, and also, we’ll look at 1 Corinthians 10, verses 23 to 31. But let’s start here in Romans; Romans 15, verses 1 to 6. You follow along as I read.

Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification. For even Christ did not please Himself; but as it is written, “THE REPROACHES OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU FELL ON ME.” For whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Now may the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus, so that with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is such an important admonition.

I have noticed through the years that it is easy for immature believers, especially those who grow up in more of a legalistic setting, to abuse their liberty. They start enjoying their liberty and they never want to restrict it again; and instead of living for God and others, they begin to live for themselves. You'll hear them say, or in their minds they think something like this, “It's my Christian liberty and I'm going to use it; it's my right, it's my freedom!” Paul wants us to understand in this paragraph that Christian liberty becomes sin when I begin to make it all about me and what I want. Instead, Paul says, we should choose to limit our Christian liberty.

First of all, we should limit it for the sake of believers and their edification, for the sake of believers and their edification. Paul begins by reminding us that when deciding to use our Christian liberty, our chief priority is our brothers and sisters. Verses 1 and 2, notice verse 1, “Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves.” There are a couple of changes that happen with chapter 15; not change in theme, but a couple of changes to point out to you. First of all, in chapter 14, Paul mostly uses the second person singular, ‘you,’ individuals, you and you and you and you. He’s talking to individuals. In chapter 15, he switches to the first person plural, ‘we.’ And notice these words are addressed to all the strong and Paul includes himself among them. So, if you are here this morning and you understand and you have the faith to believe that your conscience is solely bound by the clear statements of Scripture and nothing else, then these words are addressed to you.

Also, Paul is still talking here about the same two groups he was talking about back in chapter 14. In chapter 14, he calls them the ‘weak in faith,’ and the implication is the ‘strong in faith.’ He uses a similar description here, but he changes the language slightly. In verse 1 of chapter 15, he describes these two groups, literally, as in Greek, the ‘capable,’ that is those who are capable of believing that the Scripture is enough, and the ‘incapable,’ that is those who have not yet arrived at a place where they can embrace that and live strictly by the Scripture alone. So, he says those in the church who have the capacity to understand and believe that, ought, notice that word, it's a word of moral obligation. They ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength or the incapable. So, the capable ought to bear the weaknesses of the incapable.

What does it mean to bear? There are two nuances of this Greek word. One means ‘to bear in the sense of patiently putting up with or tolerating.’ The other means ‘to bear in the sense of carrying something that's a burden.’ Clearly in the context, that's what Paul is meaning here. It's like in Galatians 6:2, where he uses the same Greek word, and he says, “Bear one another's burdens…thereby fulfill the law of Christ.” Paul intends us here to understand that we are not to just put up with those who disagree with us, put up with our weak brothers who don't get that the Scripture is enough. Instead, we are to shoulder their load, we are to help carry their burden.

How do we do that? How do we bear the weaknesses of those with weak or overly sensitive consciences? Let me tell you what it doesn't mean. It doesn't mean that we are to let those with weak consciences control how the church operates entirely, all the decisions in the church, and we’re all bound by their scruples. That's not what Paul is saying; then the church can never express itself maturely and never has that confidence worked out that we believe in the Scripture and the Scripture alone.

Instead, what Paul is saying here when he says, “We ought to bear their weaknesses,” he means we ought to do the things he's already admonished us. We ought not to criticize them. We ought not to judge them. We ought not to look down on them. And, we ought not to choose to exercise our liberty if it's going to cause them to sin. That's what he means, “We ought to bear with their weaknesses.” We ought to carry their weaknesses with us. We’re to make sure that we consider them when we choose how to use our Christian liberty.

Notice how he ends verse 1, “Now we who are strong ought to bear the weaknesses of those who are without strength (We ought to carry them, shoulder them.) and not just please ourselves.” We’re not to act selfishly, we’re not to act solely for our own good and advantage. He goes on in verse 2, “Each of us (who is strong) is to please his neighbor (in context here, the weak) for his good, to his edification.”

Now, look at that word ‘please.’ The word means ‘to be concerned, to accommodate the needs of someone else.’ So, make sure you don't misunderstand Paul. You know, we talk about people pleasing people and that's a bad thing, right? We talk about pleasing people versus pleasing God; that's not the contrast Paul is making here. Of course, you please God more than you please people. Instead, he's making a contrast between pleasing others or pleasing yourself; that's the contrast. And he says please others, be concerned about others. By using this word ‘neighbor’ in verse 2, Paul intentionally is reminding us of the second great commandment to love our neighbor. You remember back in chapter 13, verses 8 to 10, he explained that, and exposited that second great command, and by using that word here, he's telling us look we need to love our neighbor, and one way to love our neighbor is by not pleasing ourselves but pleasing him or her.

Pleasing in what sense? Well, he goes on in verse 2 to define; each of us is to please his neighbor, that is, our goal is to act for his good. What kind of good? For his financial prosperity, for his feelings? No! “For his good to his edification,” literally to his upbuilding, to build up his faith, that's what ought to motivate us. In other word, we are to do what will be for his spiritual profit.

Now, I know Paul said this already, go back to Romans 14, verse 19, “So then (let us) pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.” In fact, Paul has used construction language in the rest of this text to talk about the opposite of building up. Back in chapter 14, verse 20, he talks about tearing down your brother; in verse 15 he talks about destroying or demolishing your brother. So, now in chapter 15, he says, “Listen, don't be engaged in the demolition of your brother's faith, rather be engaged in the edification, the building up of your brother’s faith.”

Now, let me ask you a question as I had to ask myself this week and just be honest with yourself. When you think about using your Christian liberty, do you seriously stop and consider the spiritual benefit of the weaker Christians in your circle? You should. Is that your chief priority? It should be, when you consider that, secondly, our chief example is the Lord. Our chief priority is our brothers and sisters, but our chief example is our Lord. Verse 3, “For (Because, here's why you should do this.) for even Christ did not please Himself.” There is an overarching statement about the life of Jesus Christ. I like the way one author puts it. Cranfield says, “This sums up, with eloquent reserve, both the meaning of the incarnation and the character of Christ’s earthly life, for even Messiah did not please himself.”

By the way, the way it's put in the Greek text, the tense of the verb that used implies that this was true for the entirety of Jesus’s earthly life. You can slice His life wherever you want, and you'll find that He was never pleasing Himself. He didn't live selfishly for his own benefit, for his own advantage; of course, that's the message of Philippians 2.

But Paul doesn't quote himself here; instead he quotes as proof Psalm 69:9; you'll notice in our text, you can see it stands out at the end of verse 3, it's in all caps. This is a quote from the Old Testament specifically from Psalm 69:9. It says much about Paul's view of the Bible that when he wants to prove something to us, he says, “Now I just made a comment, let me prove it to you,” and then he quotes the Bible; it shows you his view of the Bible; it shows what your view of the Bible should be as well. The end-all of what we believe should be what the Scripture says.

Now notice what he writes, verse 3, “For even (Messiah) did not please Himself; but (On the other hand, it's a strong adversative.), as it is written, “THE REPROACHES (The word is ‘insults;’ ‘reproaches’ is not a word we use very often. The insults) OF THOSE WHO (insulted) YOU FELL ON ME.” This passage that’s quoted here is referred to Christ several times in the New Testament. But what about its Old Testament context, what’s the context of Psalm 69? It is the cry of a righteous man to God. Here's a righteous man, the psalmist, who found people insulting God; and because of how he lived, imitating his God, he became the victim of those insults as well.

Here Paul puts these words in the mouth of Jesus, the only truly righteous man, in this quotation; look at it again in verse 3. “You” is God, and “me” is Christ. So, here's Christ now, saying, talking to God the Father, “THE (insults) OF THOSE WHO REPROACHED YOU (Father) FELL ON ME (Jesus Christ).”

As John Stott writes, “Christ so completely identified Himself with the name, will, cause, and glory of the Father that insults intended for God fell upon Him.” You see what Paul is saying? Jesus put others, ‘us,’ before Himself when He willingly took the reproaches directed against God.

Now, when you look at verse 3, if you're like me, there's a question that comes to your mind, and that is, “Why? Why that passage?” Of all of the passages that show Jesus’s sacrificial actions on behalf of others, why did Paul choose this one? It seems pretty obscure. There are a couple reasons, and I think they are important reasons why he uses this text to prove his point.

First of all, because it presents Christ as a pattern of self-sacrifice for the sake of others. He's a pattern. He is the righteous man who bears insults intended for God on behalf of others. And so, that's the point here, right? That's the main point.

I think there's a second reason and that's, why would the Gentile Christians, in the church in Rome, have to worry about insults? Who's insulting them? The weak brothers? No, the Gentiles and the Roman churches, think about this, who chose not to eat meat, chose not to drink wine, who chose to keep the Jewish holy days all for the sake of their Jewish brothers, how is the culture around them going to think about them? How are their friends and the society going to think about them when they're saying, “No thanks, I’m going to pass on that because here's my Jewish brother and that going to cause him to sin so I'm not going do that with you.”

Well, they are going to be insulted, they are going to be ridiculed in their culture. In fact, one author puts it this way, “The issue of the weak and the strong probably included elements of shame in Roman society. Romans are known to have looked down upon those with Jewish scruples about food. The faithful Christian should be willing to suffer the scorn that some people might heap on him if he has close fellowship with the socially unworthy.” That's why he chooses this passage because he knew these Gentile Christians, who for the sake of their brothers, didn't do some of these things; they were going to be insulted by their friends.

But there's a third reason I think Paul chooses this text in Psalm 69, and that's because Paul intends here to present Christ not only as the pattern of self-sacrifice for others, but as the motive for our self-sacrifice for others because Paul intentionally chooses a passage that goes to one scene. So, you tell me, when did Christ most heavily endure the insults of others on our behalf? Where? On the cross! If you read the story again and again, He is ridiculed, He is insulted, He is shamed publicly on our behalf. It happened at the cross, and Paul chooses this scene from the cross in order to create a stark contrast. There is a stark contrast between the great sacrifice that Christ was willing to make for our brothers versus the small sacrifice that we are called to make for our brothers. Christ sacrificed His life, Christian, for your brothers and sisters in Christ. Will you really not sacrifice that small Christian liberty? We ought to limit our liberty for the spiritual good of others, especially for the sake of believers and their edification because they are our chief priority in this, and we see that pattern in our chief example, Jesus Christ!

Now, Paul continues to develop this point and reminds us, thirdly, that our chief authority is Scripture, our chief authority of Scripture, verse 4. Now, verse 4 is really a detour from Paul's main argument; and even as we read it, you might have felt that. Well, it is. It’s a detour in order to justify his use of Psalm 69:9 in the previous verse. He defends his use of that text as legitimate and appropriate. It’s the way Scripture should be used he says, verse 4. “For (Because, in other words, here's the reason it was legitimate for me to use Psalm 69 and apply it to you.) whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”

Now, let’s take that apart; this is a huge text. Notice first of all, “whatever.” The Greek word implies everything, everything that was written in earlier times. Now clearly, he's not talking about every ancient document; he's talking about everything that was written in the Scriptures, the entire Old Testament, whatever was written in earlier times was written, ‘for,’ the idea is with this in mind, our instruction.

Think about that, Christian. When the Holy Spirit moved the Old Testament authors to write, He did so not only with them in mind, but with you in mind. It was for our instruction; it was with this in mind. I mean, Paul makes this point everywhere, but go back even here in Romans to chapter 4. You remember in chapter 4, he gives biblical evidence for justification by faith as being, this is what's always been God's way of salvation. And he uses the example of Abraham and the example of David in chapter 4. Go down to the end of chapter 4, verse 23, and he says, go back to 22:

Therefore, (And he quotes Genesis 15 here.) Therefore IT WAS ALSO CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS. Now not for his sake only (That is Abraham's sake only.) was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, (It was written.) to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.

Do you hear what Paul is saying? He’s saying, “Listen, you go back to Genesis 15, how a man's made right with God, that wasn't just written for Abraham; that was written for us, it was for our instruction,” and the Holy Spirit had us in view is what he says in our text when he inspired that.

This is true in other places. In 1 Corinthians, in fact, look at 1 Corinthians, chapter 10, keep your finger in 1 Corinthians 10, because I’m going to come back here in a minute. 1 Corinthian's 10, verse 11, he's talking about the wilderness wanderings and the sins of the Israelites, he says in verse 11, “Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written (Here it is again.) for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.”

So, God, when He inspired the Scripture, not only intended the benefit of those who immediately received it, but He had us in mind too, it’s for us. And of course the greatest text on this, 2 Timothy 3, verses 16 and 17, “All Scripture is inspired by God (That is, it’s breathed out by God, it's the product of His breath.) and (is) profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

You know, as we begin this new year, a lot of people looking to turn over new leaves, make resolutions, make some changes, and it's amazing how many even Christians look for their help and hope outside the Bible; they’re going to read some self-help book written by somebody as hopelessly confused as they are. Instead, God says this is written for your instruction, this is here to help you, God had you in mind when He gave us this book.

Go back to Romans 15, keep your finger here in 1 Corinthians 10, go back to Romans 15, verse 4, “…whatever was written in earlier times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.” Let me translate that for you literally. “In order that, through perseverance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures, we might be continually having hope.” Let's start with the word ‘hope.’ As you have heard me say many times if you have been a part of our church at all, forget the English word hope, it has no relationship to the biblical word ‘hope.’ You know, when we use the English word, it's a lot of desire mixed with a great deal of uncertainty, you know, “I hope the Cowboys will have a good team next year; I hope they'll make the Super Bowl.” Well, I do hope that and in an English sense that's a desire, but there's a whole lot of uncertainty; it doesn’t look that way right now! That's not the Greek word for ‘hope.’

The Greek word for ‘hope,’ the New Testament word for ‘hope’ is great desire combined with a reasonable confidence that it's actually going to happen. That’s hope. Hope is looking forward to something with good reason for confidence it's going to occur. So, follow Paul's logic here in verse 4. He says the Old Testament was written for our teaching. What it teaches encourages us, and when the encouragement that Scripture provides is mixed with, is combined with our endurance in believing what Scripture says, we have hope, it produces hope.

Scripture serves many purposes, but here Scripture encourages us to persevere in believing so that we might have hope. Have you lost your hope? Are you in despair about what's going on around us? Listen, get into the Scripture. The Scripture provides encouragement, and when you take that encouragement that Scripture provides, you put it in the pot, you combine it with your endurance, that is continuing to believe, oh by the way, the next verse says that's a gift of God, we’ll get there next week, then the result is hope. Have you lost your hope? Well, one of two things is probably true. Either you're not in the Scripture, getting the encouragement it provides, or you're not mixing that encouragement with endurance and believing what God has revealed. The two together produce hope.

Douglas Moo writes, “Reading the Old Testament and seeing its fulfillment in Christ and the church fosters the believer’s hope, a hope that is accompanied by the ability to bear up under the pressure of a spiritually hostile and irritating set of circumstances.”

So, verses 3 and 4, are proof of the point made in verses 1 and 2. We are obligated to limit our liberty for the sake of our Christian brothers and sisters. Paul makes exactly the same point over in 1 Corinthians, chapter 10. Go over there with me; I want to show it to you here as well, 1 Corinthians 10.

Last time, a long time ago, I pointed out to you that the Corinthians had apparently sent three questions to Paul. We examined Paul's answer to the first question last time. The question was, “May we attend the feast held in idol temples and the meat offered to idols, can we eat it there in the idol temples at their feast?” Paul's answer is, “Never, never! That’s participation in idolatry,”

In 1 Corinthians 10, verses 23 to 26, he answers a second question, “May we buy and eat meat sold in the marketplace, knowing that it's been sacrificed to idols?” And Paul's answer is, “Yes.” Look at verse 25, 1 Corinthians 10:25, “Eat anything that is sold in the meat market without asking questions for conscience sake; FOR THE EARTH IS THE LORD’S AND ALL IT CONTAINS.” So, listen, “That cow is God's cow; go-ahead and eat it and enjoy it, have some brisket.” But even that decision can't be made based solely on me and my preferences. It has to be influenced by my concern for others. Go to the previous two verses, verse 23, “All things are lawful, but not all things (that are lawful) are profitable. All things are lawful, but not all things (that are lawful) edify. Let no one seek his own good, but that of his neighbor.” So, we have to consider that. This goes beyond not just causing others to sin; he insists that we have to act for their edification. Christian liberty is sinful when it's all about me, so I must limit my liberty for the sake of believers and their edification.

Secondly, and to see this, we’ll stay here in 1 Corinthians 10; we must also limit our Christian liberty for the sake of unbelievers and their salvation. Here we encounter the third question the believers in Corinth sent Paul. It was this, “May we eat meat sacrificed to idols and sold in the market if it is served to us in the home of unbelievers?” Now remember, these were first-generation Christians, and it was still common for their unsafe friends to invite them to come over for dinner. After the appetizers came the main course, a delicious looking cut of meat from the local meat market. Their question was, “Paul, is it okay to eat meat served to us in the homes of unbelievers knowing that it had probably been sacrificed to idols?” And Paul's answer is, “Maybe! Yes, most of the time.” Verse 27, “If one of the unbelievers invites you and you want to go, eat anything that is set before you without asking questions for conscience’ sake.” Enjoy!

But the answer is “No,” if the unbeliever tells you that the meat was offered to idols. Verse 28, “But if anyone says to you, “This is meat sacrificed to idols,” do not eat it, for the sake of the one who informed you, and for conscience’ sake. I (do)…not…mean your own conscience, but the other man's; for why is my freedom judged by another's conscience?”

What's the problem here in verses 28 and 29? There are a couple of possibilities. Possibly a weak believer is also attending this meal, so you have two believers, a Jewish believer and a Gentile believer, you’re there in an unbelievers home, and the unbeliever says, “Oh, by the way, this meat was offered to an idol.” And that weak believer could be caused to sin. That's possibly what Paul means.

More likely, and this is where many commentators go, the unbeliever makes this a test of the genuineness of the believer's faith. So, he shoves the meat out there in front of him and says, “Okay, let's see how serious your commitment is to this new kurios? I know you love brisket; we’ve always enjoyed it together. So, there it is; it was offered to an idol, are you willing to eat it with me?” Paul's point here is the gospel and our concern for an unbeliever should cause us voluntarily to limit our liberty in hopes that that person will come to faith in Christ.

My favorite example of this comes from the life and ministry of Charles Haddon Spurgeon. For many years, Spurgeon enjoyed smoking cigars; he saw it as his liberty in Christ. He was once asked what would make him stop, and he said, “Well, if I started smoking to excess.” And the guy said, “Well, how would you know if you're smoking the excess?” And he said, “If I’m smoking two at the same time.”

But one day Spurgeon passed a cigar shop in London and there emblazoned on the window was this large painting, an advertisement that read, “Smoke this brand; it's the brand Spurgeon smokes!” Spurgeon immediately stopped smoking and never did so again. When asked why? He said, he didn't want his smoking to become a distraction from the gospel he preached. That's what Paul is saying here. Don't be selfish! Think first about your brothers and sisters in Christ, but also think about the unbelievers in your life. Will your doing that thing get in the way of the gospel? By the way, Paul didn't just teach this, he lived it. Go to the end of chapter 10, verse 32, he says:

Give no offense either to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God; just as I also please all men in all things, not seeking my own profit but the profit of the many, so that they may be saved.

Let me tell you, the unbelievers around you, they have definite opinions about what Christians should and shouldn't do. I remember those many years I worked in the shipyards through high school and college and seminary. Those unbelievers were some of the worst of unbelieving men, but they had real opinions about what I should and shouldn't do as a Christian. Sometimes their expectations went beyond the Scripture. Paul says he willingly gave up some of his liberty to make sure that it didn't get in the way of the gospel.

Listen, brothers and sisters, don't let your liberty be all about you and what you want rather than the gospel. Limit your Christian liberty for the sake of believers and their edification and for the sake of unbelievers and their salvation. You see, don't miss the big point here. Loving and following Jesus Christ means loving people, “For even Christ did not please Himself.” He didn't live His life to please Himself, but He lived it for others and so should we.

There's one more reason to limit our liberty back in Romans 15, and, Lord willing, we’ll consider together next Sunday.

Let's pray together. Father, thank you for the clarity of your Word. Thank you for its help. Lord, help us as we sort through the issues of Christian liberty in our lives and in our church family; Lord, help us to follow these principles. While you haven't told us the decisions to make, you've given us this grid to help us decide. Lord, may we evaluate our use of liberty against these wonderful and helpful principles.

Father, I pray for us who are in Christ; help us to live like Jesus, who didn't live for Himself, He didn't please Himself. Lord, may that be the motto of our life as it was of His.

And, Father, I pray for those who may be here who are not in Christ. Lord, this is not a gospel message and yet the truth of the gospel of what Jesus came to do, the reproaches He endured, the suffering He endured to purchase salvation has been here, and I pray that you would draw them to yourself even today. We pray in Jesus’s name, Amen.