Romans 14:13-16 -- On Stumblingblocks

"Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.
I know, and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus, that there is nothing unclean of itself: but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean.
But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably. Destroy not him with thy meat, for whom Christ died.
Let not then your good be evil spoken of:"
Romans 14:13-16


This is an interesting selection. The first verse gives us some excellent advice about not being impediments to other people's faith, and the rest of it explains that a little bit. The part about things being unclean is likely a reference to the Law of Moses and unclean beasts that they shouldn't eat, but could be applied more generally as well. Perhaps Paul is saying that, like the law of Moses, a lot of what we think of as good or bad comes from our personal experience or societal mores and God forbids things for health reasons sometimes even when they aren't inherently evil.

The third verse goes on to say that if we run into something where someone believes strongly that they shouldn't do something for a specific reason, even if we don't believe it, we should conform to their tradition out of respect for them, not rub our differences in their faces, daring them to call us evil and trying to change their minds. For instance, if we are going to dinner with a family that keeps kosher, we shouldn't bring along a cheeseburger. Or if someone avoids certain things because it helps them stay close to God, we shouldn't introduce those things as activities when we are hanging out with them.

Today, let's remember to respect the positions and opinions of others, even when we don't agree. Let's not put stumblingblocks in each other's way, or do things that other people think are evil around them. We won't always be able to avoid offense, but let's at least respect other people's beliefs and traditions and not let our good be called evil because we are trying to *intentionally* offend.