The sorrow of stumbling over each other
Romans 14:13-23; 7/27/2025; BCBC/IOUC; Rev. Paul Wang
Introduction
The purpose of church life is to preach the gospel, bear witness, imitate Christ, walk with God, glorify God and benefit others, be humble and pious, and must bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit! For this reason, Paul exhorts us not to stumble upon each other, lest we find it difficult to give an account to the Lord, or even gnash our teeth in pain and sorrow in the darkness. Let’s look at the first point:
Do not put a stumbling block in your brother’s way
If the children of God knew who they believed in, they would probably have a fear of God, right? Unfortunately, this is not the case in reality. It is common to see brothers stumbling everywhere. First of all, judgment is a killer of the church. The essence of judgment is a lack of faith in God, or even no faith. When judgment becomes a person’s cage and bondage, mutual judgment becomes active, like a piece of fermented dough. The Pharisees were the people whom Jesus often rebuked, and he exhorted his disciples not to imitate the hypocrisy of the Pharisees. The heart is more deceitful than all things. Once a judgmental word enters the ear, it is possible to squeeze out the faith that is heard. The church’s exhortation to brothers and sisters is that when you hear words of gossip and judgment, you should be quiet first, then read the Bible, pray, and then share with the church pastors, so as not to participate in judgment with the judges and hurt the church.
Secondly, the Yin and Yang hellfires. The verse “not putting a stumbling block or cause of fall for your brother” has two meanings: one is stumbling, and the other is falling. Stumbling refers to open attacks on the church, especially humiliating, slandering, and spreading rumors against pastors. Falling refers to actions done behind the scenes, including talking behind the back, spreading rumors through text, video, and other channels, and launching rockets to attack the church through various means. People who belong to God will not attack the church. Only people who belong to Satan will have hatred for the church and speak malicious words.
Finally, Christ determines life and death. The situation that Paul faced in the Roman church at that time was about whether or not to eat so-called unclean things. Some people in the church wave a chicken feather as a token of authority, and really thought that they had obtained some kind of “imperial sword” and could slaughter the church and massacre the city as they pleased. Who are you? How dare you judge the servants of Christ? Whatever you eat and drink, everything that is by faith is clean before God. When will it be your turn to stand above Christ and make rash conclusions and accusations? The person you are judging is the one for whom Christ died! I am also very curious, how could there be such people without reverence in the Roman church two thousand years ago? Do they really think that God can be despised? Of course, later history tells us that the curse on the city of Rome has also explained the problem! Let’s look at the second point:
Do not let your good be spoken of as evil by fools
Christ set an example for us in facing the evil of the Romans. On the cross, the Lord Jesus Christ prayed for those who crucified him, asking God the Father to forgive them. First, everyone should be alert and self-disciplined. When spiritual attacks come, many people often cannot stand up. One year when I went to Guangzhou to visit my family, I heard my childhood friend tell me: “Open the car door and look inside, everyone is a corrupt official. Shoot them first, then file a case, and guarantee that there will be no false or wrongful convictions!” I asked, is there no exception? Once I preached in a business fellowship that spanned provinces, and I said, you are all Christian businessmen, right? Excuse me, is there anyone among you who got his first pot of gold cleanly? Did you not accept bribes? Did he not make false reports to pay taxes? As a result, no one dared to stand up! I asked them: How can you serve God in such a spiritual state?
Second, the church has the authority to bind and loose. Paul said, “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17)” The Kingdom of God is where God rules. Christ is the head and the church is His body. God exercises authority on earth through His body. When the church is bound on earth, Christ is bound in heaven. The Antichrist regime and all of Satan’s followers are blind and cannot see this spiritual mystery. They think the church is weak and easy to bully, so they wantonly destroy churches, tear down crosses, arrest God’s servants, torture, spread rumors, spit out slander, fan the flames, light ghost lights, post online news, and show viciousness. Little do they know that the hand of God’s judgment is approaching!
Finally, discipline with the heart to restore people. Of course, as a church, the purpose is not to have authority, but God’s righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. God’s righteousness is the glory of God revealed in the Bible and the standard of what should be done in human life, that is, what is right in God’s eyes. Peace is Christ’s mission, which only brings about the renewal of the relationship between God and man, that is, the reconstruction and reconciliation of the relationship between God and man. The joy in the Holy Spirit refers to the Holy Spirit’s help to us at all times and the satisfaction when we bear the fruit of the Holy Spirit. The purpose of the church’s discipline is also to help brothers and sisters eventually practice justice, love mercy, walk humbly with God, and return to God’s arms. Let’s look at the third point:
Do Not Destroy God’s Work Because of Food
In this world, what is the meaning of other things besides Jesus Christ? If people eat and drink because of Jesus, there will be eternal meaning. Otherwise, people are just eating and drinking their own sins. First of all, a heart that pleases God and man. What is the purpose of life? Is eating and drinking important? In other words, is it worth it to launch a spiritual attack because of eating and drinking those worldly things? Can’t you tell which is more important and which is lighter? Whether it is eating meat, drinking wine, or eating beef or roasted lamb, how can it become a dispute within the Roman Church? Do you want to destroy God’s work because of food? If you do too many evil things, the rebuke of the Holy Spirit will surely come! If you belong to the Holy Spirit, you will also feel the rebuke of the Holy Spirit and your heart! What a person does in his life depends entirely on his heart, and this is what God cares about.
Secondly, in Christ, we do not blame ourselves. If a person is honest and sincere and treats God with openness, he will inevitably face God’s judgment. If you know that something is displeasing to God, you must not do it! Do not say that it will cause your brother to fall, even if it will cause your brother to suffer damage, do not do anything. Paul exhorts us: ”So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.” If you have good morals, you should not offend others with food. You should not refuse the church’s discipline because of your sins, and fail the great love of Christ who died for you on the cross! If you do this, how can you not blame yourself?
Finally, whatever is not out of faith is sin. The Bible says that without faith it is impossible to please God. Since we can trust in God, why can’t we say yes if it is yes and no if it is no in Christ? There is complete peace and grace in the body of Christ. What can’t be put on the table and made clear? Do we have to do things other than yes or no? Don’t you know that if we leave the body of Christ, we will lose our way, go astray like sheep, and go our own way, which will become a high probability. Perhaps, while Christ may still be able to redeem you, quickly turn around by faith, confess your sins and repent, return to the body of Christ, accept the discipline of the church, and receive the grace of the Lord! Don’t forget that God will discipline those whom He loves!
Conclusion
Dear brothers and sisters, the end is near, and Christ is already standing at the door. He said that at the last days, nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes, famine, plague, and death. The war between Russia and Ukraine has not stopped, and Thailand and Cambodia are at war again! The war crises in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea are just around the corner. The footsteps of World War III, nuclear war, and the Doomsday War are approaching us. Do we still need to fight among ourselves? If you are a brother, please stop the rockets in your hands! Of course, if you are not a brother in the Lord, God’s judgment is on the way and is not far from you!
Let us pray……
13 Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother.
14 I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean.
15 For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.
16 So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil.
17 For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
18 Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men.
19 So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.
20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats.
21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves.
23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.