Today as we begin to explore the concept of weak and strong believers in the Christian faith and how each is to treat the other, we will focus our attention on verse one: “As for the one who is weak in faith, welcome him, but not to quarrel over opinions.” Many translations of the Bible begin this verse with NOW. For example, the New American Standard Bible says, “Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions.” The Apostle Paul had been building to this point since the beginning of Chapter 12 in order to lay the groundwork for addressing a significant problem that existed within the church at Rome.

Remember that in Chapters One through Eleven, Paul presented a great theological exposition of salvation and justification, etc. Then in Chapter Twelve he began to discuss applications that flow from these doctrines. Understanding that our justification is by grace, Paul says that we are to lay our entire being as a sacrifice on God’s altar, desiring that His will be done in all matters of our life. He points out that spiritual gifts are given to us to share and to be used in serving others.  Believers are called to be in submission to the authorities in our life. All that we do is to be underpinned by love. Paul says that to live in love is a fulfillment of the Law.

Paul is saying that, now that you understand all these things, love your neighbor. Then he begins to address the issue of quarreling over opinions or passing judgment on the opinions of others. Initially the church at Rome consisted primarily of Jews, but most Jews were expelled by Emperor Claudius. During the time of their expulsion, the church began to be led by Gentiles. When the Jews returned a few years later, there became a division in the church, not primarily over theology but over matters of conscience, issues that are disputable. Regarding matters of theology, Scripture is clear, so we easily find common ground. However, regarding matters of conscience, we often have major arguments. Here Paul is calling for the acceptance of one another based on the common bond of love we have in Jesus. We, too, need to welcome and embrace those who have different opinions over disputable issues.  

Paul addresses three specific disputable areas in Chapter 14: diet, holy days, and wine. He identifies two groups of people: those weak in the faith and those strong in the faith. It is normal for us to think of these two groups and have the exact wrong understanding of what Paul is teaching. For example, we might think the weak person will eat everything because he can’t resist anything, or the weak person might drink wine because he can’t resist it. However, Paul’s teaching is that the weak person will not eat certain things or drink wine because he is uncertain whether they offend God; however, the strong person knows what Scripture teaches and knows what he is free to do. These three specific issues are only representative of the issues that can be found in the church. Anything that is not a clear moral issue prohibited by God is a disputable matter. Love is the foundational principle for addressing all such issues.

Paul pivots from the idea of waking up, shedding our night clothes, and putting on the righteousness of Christ to the idea of matters of the conscience. He is bringing a balance because he understands the human heart. We tend to have pivots, or we live in extremes. At the end of Chapter Thirteen, he addressed the issue of living in the flesh. Now Paul moves from addressing the sin of excesses (sensuality, drunkenness, greed, etc.) to the sin of legalism. Martin Lloyd-Jones gives us two categories of extreme behavior: license and legalism. The Jews tended more toward law and the Gentiles more toward grace; both of these are ditches we can fall into today.

Paul has addressed submission to government, submission to evil people, submission to your neighbor, and now he wants us to submit to one another in matters of conscience. We will explore how we can love one another without judging and what it means to judge. Paul is telling the Gentiles not to give in to the flesh and he is telling the Jews to understand that they are saved by grace. The law of love is lived out when we don’t judge one another. We must work out all applications following biblical principles. The principles that Paul addresses in Chapter Fourteen are the principle of acceptance in verse one and the principle of honor in verses two through four, the latter to be covered next week.

1. Principle of Acceptance (v. 1)

Regarding the principle of acceptance, Paul has in mind some things he wants to say to the church at Rome. He begins by considering the composition of the people in this church.

• Consider the audience (v. 1a)

Paul divides the readers of his letter into two groups: the weak and the strong. In any church, there are strong Christians and weak Christians. There are other ways of characterizing Christians, and the Apostle John (1 John 2:12-13) divides his audience into three groups: little children (those with an immature faith), fathers (those with a mature faith), and young men (those who know doctrine and biblical principles but are not fully able to apply their knowledge). It is not wrong to categorize people, but we need to remember that all believers are equal regarding salvation and justification, but not equal in Christian growth.

In considering his audience, he first mentions the weak, but he is speaking to the strong, telling them to welcome the weak. Strong people are godly; they have a God-conscience; they seek guidance from the Bible when making any decision. Strong believers “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.” (1 Timothy 6:11) If we want to be strong in faith, to be godly, we must actively pursue these things. Becoming a godly person doesn’t just happen automatically, it is a work of the Holy Spirit, but it requires concerted effort on our part.

Pursuing righteousness means that we confess our sins (1 John 1:9) and crucify our fleshly desires and passions (Galatians 5:24). Pursuing righteousness means getting rid of pride and serving others with a humble attitude. Jesus said to His disciples, “But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all.” (Mark 10:43-44) Then He modeled humility by washing His disciple’s feet (John 13:5). As we pursue righteousness, we will love our family, the church, our neighbors, and even the evil person. We will love these people and so fulfill the law of God (Romans 13:10). We will live in sexual purity because we want to honor God with our body. We will desire to be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18); we will pray and study Scripture and pursue God’s will. As we pursue holiness, kingdom fruit will naturally follow (John 15:5).

A strong person isn’t a perfect person. This is the person who strongly embraces his/her identity in Christ, and daily strives to live the life modeled by Christ – no longer I, but Christ in me (Galatians 2:20). The strong person realizes that any advancement is by the Holy Spirit through the application of the Word of God. Paul is speaking to the strong in these ways because of the manner in which they have walked since their conversion. We know these things about the strong because of Paul’s comparison with the weak. He began this verse with “As for the one who is weak in faith…” The weak person that Paul is discussing is those weak in faith. But in faith properly translated is in the faith. i.e., the Scriptures. The weak person is a person with shallow faith, the person who is not studying and applying Scripture in their life.

Paul addressed the issue of diet in 1 Corinthians 8. In verse one, speaking of food offered to idols, he said all (both the weak and the strong) possess knowledge, but knowledge without love puffs up. Love for God brings balance to knowledge. In verse eight he says, “Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do.” The conscience of persons weak in faith would prevent them from eating meat sacrificed to idols, whereas the strong in faith would eat the food, with the knowledge that idols are nothing and there is only one God (verse 4). The weak are those with less understanding of Scripture. Maybe they are not well taught, or they have not put the effort into their Christian walk.

The weak in Paul’s mind are believers; they have been born again, they have put their faith in Christ, they have repented of sins, they have been regenerated, they can give a clear personal testimony, they can give a concise explanation of the gospel and doctrine, etc. We know such people are believers because Paul is telling us to accept them. Their weakness is in not properly applying their knowledge to the gray areas of life. Also, their weakness doesn’t have to be permanent; it can be overcome through a commitment to pursue righteousness.

• Understand the Problem (v. 1b)

The problem that Paul is addressing is unnecessary criticism. Neither the weak nor the strong were welcoming the other. He dwelt with the same issue in Romans 15:7, “Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.” God accepts His children unconditionally and welcomes them into His kingdom. However, God does not necessarily embrace their lifestyle - in fact the purpose of salvation is to conform us into the image of Jesus. So consider: If Jesus should come to live with you for a month, are there some things you would change? Certainly there are but Jesus already dwells with us despite these flaws, immaturity, and sins. God accepts us and He expects us to accept our fellow believers. Paul is telling us to never shun the weak and especially never lead them astray. In Matthew 18:6, Jesus gave a strong warning against this: “…but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

Paul commands the strong to welcome the weak for the purpose of helping them become strong, not to manipulate them. The strong are to accept the weak without passing judgment, i.e., unnecessary criticism. The temptation is for the strong, in arrogance, to assume that they can make the weak strong. This is the same idea that James discussed in James 4:11-12,

“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. 12 There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?” By judge James means to give unnecessary criticism. To do so is to slander the person in your mind and in your heart; unity is destroyed, and it is not loving.

Welcoming the weak believer does not mean tolerating matters that need to be addressed, and it does not mean that you are apathetic to what is happening in their life. A misapplication of this passage is the idea that you can believe what you want, and I’ll believe what I want, and everything is good. The strong are called to welcome the weak, but not under false pretense. The strong are to be patient with the weak and openly welcome them into warm Christian fellowship. In discussing the principle of acceptance, Paul had considered the audience, and identified the problem, now he identifies the issue behind the problem.

• Understand the Issue (v. 1c)

The strong believer needs to understand that the weak believer is unsettled in their mind, and the root issue is a matter of opinion. The weaker believer lacks a proper application of the truth of Scripture, perhaps because of a lack of diligent study, or because they are a new believer, or because of exposure to bad teaching. Paul wants the strong to understand that the weak brother is engaged in a dialog within his head, a mental wrestling match. He has doubts about what is permissible and what is not permissible. This mental dialog points to a lack of settled conviction. They are struggling, trying to align their actions with their faith. They are unstable in their mind regarding certain practices in the church; there is insecurity and hesitation.

The idea of being stable-minded is to what John refers in 1 John 2:28, in that we are not to shrink back when Christ returns but to be confident in our relationship with God, convinced of the truth of Scripture. When Christ returns, great terror will strike the heart of unbelievers, but believers will welcome Him with open arms. Paul says this confidence is not found in the mind of the weak person. In comparison, the strong believer has considered various opinions, has evaluated circumstances, has analyzed the truth, and has developed biblical convictions. An opinion is a non-essential truth that can evolve as a person begins to understand and apply the truth of Scripture, whereas a conviction is a firmly held belief based on a thorough understanding and acceptance of the truth of Scripture and has led to consistent actions in life. 

A person is strong because of their convictions and because they can identify issues that are not central to the core of faith. Earlier in the life of the strong believer, they also wrestled with some of these issues but, rather than just letting them remain in their mind, they worked through them to the point of them becoming settled issues. Paul wants the strong to remember that they were at one point weak and thus to accept the weaker believer without criticizing them. Since the strong person understands the problem and has identified the issues, he needs to determine the appropriate course of action.

• Discern what Action to Take

The final stage in applying the principle of acceptance is to discern the action to take. In determining what to do, they must remember why they are stronger than the other person, then consider their strengths and lean into them. Perhaps you are convinced that you have the gift of teaching, then you need to explore the use of this gift. Elders are required to be able to teach, but many in a congregation also have this gift. In fact, everyone is called to teach on some level, as all are called to make disciples (Matthew 28:19). Next consider that you have a developed temperament and an informed mind. You are mature because you have taken the time to work through various issues.

Paul helped the weak by giving them milk (1 Corinthians 3:2) to begin their Christian growth; he knew that they were not ready for solid food at that point. We should give milk to the weak person while considering how long it took us to move to a diet of solid food. Also consider the reality of how long you have been diligently applying Scripture in your life. Remember that we all began our spiritual journey on milk. Some people make major sacrifices in order to become a strong believer, whereas others do not. Some weak believers are content to live on milk. Maybe they don’t study Scripture, maybe they don’t expose themselves to solid biblical teaching, maybe they neglect Christian fellowship, maybe they have allowed sin to sear their consciences, or maybe they are just lazy.

The author of Hebrews accepted the weak brother, but he also rebuked him. The writer said that there were deep truths regarding Melchizedek that they were not able to comprehend. He said that by this time they should have been teachers, but they needed someone to teach them the basic principles of the oracles of God. They were accustomed only to milk, not the word of righteousness. The author wanted to teach his readers some things, but he couldn’t because they had been lazy. Here we have an example of a strong person rebuking a weak person while still embracing them.

The last area to consider is your background (i.e., your childhood, your family, your education, your work, etc.) and your testimony. Think about everything that culminates in your identity in Christ and understand that the other person has a similar yet different background. Maybe you have or have not had to overcome great difficulties in your background. However it happens, the strong have learned how to deal with matters of opinion and the weak have not.

The last thing for the strong is to make a plan of action. Pray, pray, pray and pray some more. Pray and fast. Read Scriptures while you pray, then read the Scriptures while you fast and pray. Once you have done that, maybe you just let disputable issues go. On the other hand, maybe you need to address some issue of opinion with the weak person. Maybe you need to approach them in a loving attitude of sharing that you once struggled with the issue and you wish to share a Scripture with them as you dialogue with the person. The strong are responsible for establishing an environment in which all believers are accepted and encouraged to grow. 

For the person who is weak in faith, or who may be weak in only a specific area, consider Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 11:1, “Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.” As the strong are striving through life, trying to bring you along to maturity, follow them. Embrace them as they embrace Christ. If they depart from Christ’s teaching, depart from them. The principle of acceptance goes both ways; we are to accept fellow believers who are following Jesus, whether weak or strong.

Selah:

1. How do you determine what is a matter of opinion?

2. Pastor Ben identified three areas of dispute: diet, holy days, and wine. What can you add to this list?

3. Is there some opinion regarding the Christian life that you hold while others do not? If so, what is it? How are you going to deal with the issue?

4. If you are strong in the faith, what will you do to help the weak grow strong?