Romans 14:1–13

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.

1 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.

2 One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables.

3 The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.

4 Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

5 One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike. Each of them should be fully convinced in their own mind.

6 Whoever regards one day as special does so to the Lord. Whoever eats meat does so to the Lord, for they give thanks to God; and whoever abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.

7 For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone.

8 If we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.

9 For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.

10 You, then—why do you judge your brother or sister? Or why do you treat them with contempt? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.

11 As it is written: ‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’ 12 So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. 

13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in the way of a brother or sister.

14 I am convinced, being fully persuaded in the Lord Jesus, that nothing is unclean in itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for that person it is unclean.

Dear congregation,

Is it any comfort to know that Christians have been arguing since the earliest days of the church? Indeed, it is—because it reminds us that life without disagreement is not really possible. We, as people, naturally see things differently.

Paul speaks here of differing views on food. In Rome, Christians were divided over whether they should eat meat or not. At that time, the debate often revolved around the question of whether Jewish dietary laws applied to non-Jewish Christians. Today, we see new debates over food. Should a Christian, perhaps, be vegetarian? Today, our question goes beyond personal faith—it asks whether consuming less meat would better honor God’s creation and climate.

For Paul, the question of eating meat or abstaining from it is merely one example. For us today, it is just that: an example. It serves as a starting point to ask ourselves, “How should we live as Christians?”

Paul’s preceding thirteen chapters of his letter to the Romans focus on theology—how we understand the death and resurrection of Christ, what justification for sinners means, and the themes of grace, justification, resurrection, and baptism. But then, in chapter 14, Paul becomes practical. Here, he shows that what we believe, what we hold to be deeply true, must come to life in our daily actions. Faith and daily life are inseparable.

Most of us here would agree. In speaking with you, it is clear that each of us strives to make our faith practical and real. But does this mean we must all come to the same conclusions? Does it mean there is only one “Christian” lifestyle? Does it mean we should all see eye to eye on every ethical question?

In confirmation class, we are engaging with the question, “What would Jesus do?” We encourage young people to get to know Jesus—his life, death, and resurrection. And then, we consider: how would Jesus act?

Would Jesus eat meat or not? Once we envision a specific situation, we realize there may never be a single, definitive answer.

In Rome, there were Jewish Christians who believed that abstaining from meat was essential to being a true Christian. They held to the traditions passed down from their forebears. Meanwhile, there were Gentile Christians who felt Jewish dietary laws did not apply to them—they were followers of Christ but not of Jewish heritage.

And meat was just one example. Other arguments arose over whether to marry or remain single, whether to allow divorce, or even whether women should preach. Two thousand years on, these questions remain without clear-cut answers, despite countless discussions and writings.

Paul speaks of the freedom he describes in the earlier chapters of his letter. He teaches that, while we may each ask how to live out our faith, what one person finds fitting may not be the same for another.

“How can you judge your brother?” This is the essence of Paul’s message here. How can you measure others against yourself? How can you know what Jesus would do? While it is worthwhile to strive to reflect Christ in our lives, another person might still decide, think, or act differently.

Paul admonishes us: none of us is a judge. That role is God’s alone. None of us has the right to set ourselves up as the standard for everyone else. This principle stands at the heart of our evangelical faith. Martin Luther called it “the freedom of a Christian.” Our way of life—our good works, our ethics, our righteous actions—do not save us.

As much as we try to live rightly, we remain human, caught in our failings and challenges. Paul comforts the Romans: “You don’t have to earn your place in heaven through good deeds.”

But Paul reminds us of something even more vital: it isn’t essential that everyone acts or thinks identically. Let some eat meat, and let others abstain. What matters is that we remain one community, despite our differences. What matters is that we refrain from judging, understanding instead that we are all brothers and sisters.

For Paul, the essence of faith is not about personal lifestyle choices, but about how we live together as diverse individuals.

We will always hold different opinions on various issues. But what we can learn from Jesus is how to respect each other. None of us lives in isolation; none of us dies in isolation. We belong to Christ.

Paul’s words in the eighth chapter of Romans echo here: “Nothing can separate us from the love of God.” Nothing can divide us from God, and none of us can judge the other.

The Russians are not better than the Ukrainians, the Jews are not better than the Palestinians, the wealthy are not better than the poor, the healthy are not better than the sick. There is no reason to judge or look down on anyone for having a different perspective, background, or way of life.

We are not judges. We are fellow human beings—no more, no less.

It is good to remember that we will each one day stand before God’s judgment seat. How we live matters. Paul’s words are not a free pass for wrongdoing. He holds a high moral standard. And so should we. It is good if our lives reflect our faith, if we strive to follow Jesus and honor God’s commandments. But none of this should lead us to look down on others.

We will give an account—especially of how we have treated one another. Our faults will not separate us from God. Like Paul, I am confident in this. I do not fear the end.

But before that end, we live in a world full of others, and our calling as Christians is to demonstrate that we can love one another across our differences. We may argue, but we do not condemn. We may debate, but we do not divide. We hold firmly to our beliefs, yet we do not despise the beliefs of others.

This is our contribution to peace. This is Paul’s hope: unity that allows space for differences and diverse perspectives, unity where all find belonging in Christ.

Let us hold fast to this, so that the world may see God’s love at work among us—nothing can separate us from it.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen.