Romans 14:17 – Verse of the Day 6/23/14

One of the most common sources of conflict between Christians involves disagreements about Christian morality. Have you ever had a conflict with someone over how to apply the teaching of the Bible to a specific moral situation?

This verse is situated in the midst of Paul’s discussion of Christian freedom, an issue that arose because there was a controversy in the Roman church about whether or not it was acceptable to eat meat sacrificed to idols. In response Paul offered two reminders: first, we are free in Christ. Second, we must be careful about how we use our freedom so that we do not bring unnecessary controversy or harm to our reputation.

In other words, we are free to do anything that the Bible does not prohibit, but at the same time everything that is permissible is not necessarily beneficial. How should this shape the way that we make our decisions as Christians? How should we respond when we disagree with other Christians about what is beneficial? Pray that you would use your freedom to serve God and for wisdom about how to do this. Pray that God would use you to encourage others to do this as well.