a14:1–15:7
b15:1
c14:1
d14:2
eDan 1:3-16
f14:3-4
g14:4
h15:7
i14:5
jCol 2:16
k14:7
l14:4
m14:8
n14:9
o2 Cor 5:15
p14:10
q2 Cor 5:10
r14:11
sIsa 49:18
t45:23
uIsa 45:23
vIsa 45:22
xRom 14:10

‏ Romans 14:1-12

Summary for Rom 14:1-15:7: 14:1–15:7  a Paul moves to a specific issue that was causing conflict in the church at Rome. The church in Rome was embroiled in a dispute between people who were weak in faith and people who were strong (see 15:1  b) regarding certain practices. Throughout this section, Paul instructs believers to be tolerant toward others and their practices; he is convinced that people on both sides of the issue are genuine believers, and he does not think the issues they are fighting over are essential to the faith. 14:1  c Being weak in faith means having scruples against doing certain things that Christian liberty would allow. In Rome, most of the weak in faith were Jewish Christians whose consciences did not give them liberty from certain requirements of Jewish law.
14:2  d The weak in faith apparently believed that they should eat only vegetables. Their conviction probably stemmed from a concern to maintain Jewish ritual purity in the midst of a pagan culture. These Jewish Christians were following the lead of Daniel and his friends, who refused to eat the rich food and wine that the king of Babylon offered them (Dan 1:3-16  e). Other Jewish sources reveal that pious Jews often restricted their diets in pagan cultures because they could never be sure that meat had been slaughtered according to Jewish requirements.
Summary for Rom 14:3-4: 14:3-4  f look down on ... condemn: The “strong,” those who prided themselves on their enlightened freedom in Christ, looked with disdain on those they considered to be “weak.” The weak, in turn—certain that they were following the true route to piety—condemned the strong for their laxness. These attitudes, over different issues, are mirrored throughout the history of the Christian church.

• God has accepted them: Both the weak and the strong are genuine believers, welcomed by God into his family. Therefore, they have no right to treat each other as if they do not belong (14:4  g; see also 15:7  h).
14:5  i some think one day is more holy than another day, while others think every day is alike: The reference is probably to Jewish festival days and to the Sabbath; cp. Col 2:16  j. With Christ’s provision of salvation, observance of the Sabbath in its original form is not required of Christians.
14:7  k As the Lord’s servants (14:4  l), Christians are to look to God for guidance and seek to honor him in all things (14:8  m). Because we are ultimately accountable to him, our desire should always be to please him, not to live for ourselves.
14:9  n Paul refers to standard early Christian teaching on the significance of Jesus’ death and resurrection (e.g., 2 Cor 5:15  o).

• of the living and of the dead (literally of the dead and of the living): The original word order matches the sequence of Jesus’ death and resurrection, the redemptive events that make Jesus our Lord.
14:10  p we will all stand before the judgment seat of God: Paul reminds the Roman Christians that it is the Lord, not other Christians, who will ultimately judge all of us (cp. 2 Cor 5:10  q).
14:11  r This quotation is from Isa 49:18  s; 45:23  t. In its original context, Isa 45:23  u is surrounded by assertions of God’s sovereignty (Isa 45:22  v, 24  w). Only the sovereign God has the right to stand in judgment (Rom 14:10  x, 12  y).
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