ACC ~ Romans 14 v9 - 18

OVERVIEW:

We are in no position to pass judgment on one another, because in the final analysis we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God. No food is unclean. But some people are not convinced of this, and if we offend their consciences we are guilty of causing them to stumble. Christians must be prepared to give way on these secondary matters in order that peace and harmony may be preserved in the church. Those who know better can keep their knowledge to themselves, and God will respect them for it. But to force someone to go against his or her conscience is to lead that person into sin. Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died.

14:9 | Lord of the Dead and the Living

CHRIST’S RULE OVER CREATION. ORIGEN: There are some people who think that Christ had to die in order to become the Lord of the dead and that he had to rise again in order to become the Lord of the living. But I think this assertion can be refuted as follows. Christ’s rule over all creation consists of two parts. First, by virtue of his majesty and power as the Creator of all things who rules the universe, he has everything in subjection, not only good and holy minds and spirits but also rebellious ones and those whom the Scriptures call “the wicked angels.” In this sense he is known as the Almighty, as John says in his Apocalypse: “Thus says the one who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”

Second, given that so good a Son of so good a Father does not want rational spirits to bend to the obedience of his law by force but waits for them to come voluntarily, so that they will seek what is good freely and not of necessity, he persuades them by teaching them rather than by commanding them and by inviting them rather than by forcing them. Thus he was pleased to go even to the point of death, in order to leave an example of new life and a way of dying for those who want to die to sin and evil. Christ is therefore Lord of both the living and the dead—of the living, because he is the head of those who by the example of his resurrection look for a new and heavenly life here on earth, and of the dead, because these same people bear the death of Christ about in their bodies and mortify their members which are on earth. COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS.

TO THIS END CHRIST DIED. AMBROSIASTER: The creation was made by Christ the Lord, but because of sin it has become separated from its maker and taken captive. But God the Father sent his Son from heaven to earth to teach his creation what to do in order to escape the hands of its captors, so that his work should not perish. For this reason he allowed himself to be killed by his enemies, so that by going down to hell he could condemn sin, because he was killed as an innocent man, and liberate those whom the devil held there. Therefore, since he showed the way of salvation to the living and offered himself for them and also delivered the dead from hell, he is Lord of both the living and the dead. For he has turned the lost into his servants. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

NOTHING ESCAPES HIS LORDSHIP. CHRYSOSTOM: Look how Christ takes care of the dead. If he is concerned about the departed, it is clear that he will be concerned about the living as well. For nothing escapes his lordship. … Christ put down his own life for our salvation. Having gone to so much trouble and expense, he is not likely to consider us as being of no value. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

THE RETURN OF CHRIST. PELAGIUS: The coming of Christ will find people alive and will bring the dead back to life. It does not matter whether he brings you back to life or finds you alive, as long as you appear righteous before him. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

14:10 | All Stand Before God’s Judgment

ON JUDGING AND DESPISING. ORIGEN: This reflects the behavior of those who have advanced a little way in knowledge but reject and refuse to instruct those who are less able to attain this higher understanding. Others show how un-skilled and rebellious they are by judging (by accusing and condemning) those who are trying to obtain a knowledge which is higher and deeper than what they are capable of understanding. The apostle wants to reprove the blame which attaches to both of these by ordering the first group not to reject or despise the less advanced and the others not to think of themselves as superior when in fact they have no ability to judge them. … The judgment seat of God is the same thing as the judgment seat of Christ, to which Paul refers when writing to the Corinthians. COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS.

CHRYSOSTOM: At first sight, Paul seems to be attacking the stronger here, but he is also laying into the legalists, by calling their attention to the great benefit which they have received in Christ and to the terror of the judgment to come. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

ALL WILL BE JUDGED. PELAGIUS: By what authority do you condemn your brother as a voracious glutton? For what reason do you despise him, as if he were weak or his fast were pointless? The Lord will judge our consciences to see with what sort of desire and intention we did what we did. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

WHY DESPISE YOUR BROTHER? THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: “Why do you pass judgment on your brother?” was said to the Jews. “Why do you despise your brother?” was said to the Gentiles. Neither of you should do either, says Paul, because you are under obligation to maintain Christ’s standards of behavior in your life. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

THEODORET OF CYR: Paul addresses these words to the Jews. INTERPRETATION OF THE LETTER TO THE ROMANS.

GENNADIUS OF CONSTANTINOPLE: Once again Paul takes up his earlier theme and by adding the word brother shows how inappropriate this kind of judging is. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

14:11 | Confessing God’s Name

ALL WILL KNEEL. AMBROSIASTER: For having been killed, the future Judge rose from the dead, and therefore he rightly said: “As I live.” … For not only do I live, but I will come to judge, and my enemies will confess my name and kneel before me, acknowledging that I am God from God. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

PELAGIUS: This shows that we must all account for our actions to the Lord alone. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

SO DO NOT CAUSE DIVISIONS. CHRYSOSTOM: Be careful when you see the Master sitting on his judgment seat, and do not make schisms or divisions in the church by breaking away from grace and running back to the law. For the law belongs to Christ as well. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

14:12 | Accountable to God

GIVING ACCOUNT BEFORE GOD. POLYCARP: If we ask the Lord to forgive us we should also forgive, for we stand before the eyes of the Lord God, and “we must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ,” and “each must give account of himself.” THE EPISTLE TO THE PHILIPPIANS 6.

EACH ONE ACCOUNTABLE. AMBROSIASTER: Since we are not going to give account of each other, says Paul, let us not condemn one another over the issues mentioned above. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

TO CHRIST. CHRYSOSTOM: It is not the law which will demand an account from us but Christ. You see from this how Paul has released us from the fear of the law. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

ADMONITION STILL REQUIRED. PELAGIUS: We shall account to God for those things about which the law is silent. But if we do not rebuke someone when we see him sinning, we shall also give an account to the Lord for that. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

14:13 | Do Not Be a Stumbling Block

NEVER BE A STUMBLING BLOCK. CHRYSOSTOM: Consider the great punishment we shall suffer if we give offense at all. If the thing concerned was against the law and some people rebuked others wrongly, Paul forbade them to do so, in order not to cause a brother to stumble and fall. If we give offense without having anything to put right, what treatment will we deserve? For if not saving others is a crime (as is demonstrated by the man who buried his one talent), what will be the result if we offend him as well? But you may say: What if he brings the offense on himself, by being weak? Well, this is precisely why you ought to be patient. For if he were strong, he would not require so much care. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

PELAGIUS: From here on, Paul subtly begins to recommend abstinence and says that even though those who eat are strong, they ought to abstain in case the weak are subjected to a stumbling block by their example. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

GENTILES MUST NOT DELIBERATELY UPSET THE JEWS. THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: Paul is saying this to the Gentiles, even if it appears that he is speaking to the Jews. … For the Gentiles at Rome were doing many things deliberately in order to upset the Jews, partly because they were the majority in the church and partly because they were of a higher social class. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

14:14 | Nothing Is Unclean

THE FAITHFUL ENJOY THE BLESSING OF FOOD OFFERED IN THEIR ORIGINAL CREATION. NOVATIAN: It is evident that all these foods enjoy again the blessings they received at their creation, now that the law has ended. We must not return to the legal prohibition of foods commanded for certain reasons and which evangelical liberty, setting us free from its bondage, has now discontinued. JEWISH FOODS 5.6.

WITH FAITH NOTHING IS UNCLEAN. DIODORE: This means that nothing is common or unclean when eaten with faith in Christ. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

CHRYSOSTOM: Nothing is unclean by nature, but it becomes so by the spirit in which a person uses it. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 25.

THE TENDER CONSCIENCE. PELAGIUS: Paul is not saying here that there is anything which is unclean but that for someone with a tender conscience things do become unclean, for even after coming to faith in Christ he is still judging according to Jewish custom. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

WHAT DEFILES. CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA: Christ had said: “Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man but what comes out of the mouth—this defiles a man.” This applies to food as well. EXPLANATION OF THE LETTER TO THE ROMANS.

14:15 | Causing a Brother’s Ruin

WALKING IN LOVE. ORIGEN: Although Paul establishes the principle that nothing is unclean in itself, and he gives complete freedom to believers to eat whatever they like, nevertheless he proceeds to restrict that freedom for the sake of building up the freedom of brotherly love. COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS.

BASIL: The Christian must serve everyone who is upset with him in every way, at least insofar as he can. THE MORALS 5.3.

AMBROSIASTER: In another epistle Paul says: Food is meant for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy both one and the other. Since God does not care one way or the other about food, Paul tells us to maintain a spirit of charity, by which God has seen fit to deliver us from sin. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

WHEN ANOTHER IS INJURED BY WHAT YOU EAT. CHRYSOSTOM: You see how far Paul bends in the name of charity, endeavoring to draw the erring brother by yielding to him so as not to hurt him. For even when he has freed him from his fears, he does not drag or force him but leaves him to his own decision. Abstaining from food is not in the same category as seriously injuring somebody by what you eat.

Do you not value your brother enough even to purchase his salvation at the price of abstaining from certain types of food? Christ did not refuse to become a servant and even to die for him, but you will not even give up your food in order to save him! HOMILIES ON ROMANS 26.

DO NOT LET WHAT YOU EAT CAUSE THE RUIN OF ONE FOR WHOM CHRIST DIED. CHRYSOSTOM: One who ruins his brother has subverted peace and harmed joy in a way which is more serious even than stealing money. What is worse is that although another has saved him, you have wronged him and ruined him. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 26.

THINKING OF ANOTHER’S GOOD. PELAGIUS: Paul did not say that a brother is distressed because of fasting but because of food; therefore you should not incite or constrain anyone by the example of what you eat. If your neighbor eats something which is not good for him against his will, you are no longer loving him as yourself if you are not thinking of his good as much as of your own. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

THE SEQUENCE OF PAUL’S ARGUMENT. GENNADIUS OF CONSTANTINOPLE: Look at how wonderfully Paul develops his argument. He starts off at the bottom, by referring to food. Then he goes on to call the person who is sinned against a “brother.” Then he calls what has been done to him “destruction.” Fourth, he says that this outrage has been committed against someone “for whom Christ died.” Fifth, he says that someone who does this causes godliness to be blasphemed, and sixth, that we have not come to faith in Christ in order to be able to enjoy this or that but in order to be able to share in righteousness, which means in sinlessness, peace and joy. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

14:16 | Causing Good to Be Spoken of as Evil

A SPIRITUAL INTERPRETATION OF “GOOD IS SPOKEN OF AS EVIL.” ORIGEN: How is it possible for what is good to us to be spoken of as evil? “What is good to us” refers here to the spiritual interpretation of the law, avoiding the ungodly and foolish teachings of the heretics and of those engaged in false philosophy concerning unclean and polluted food. This is what is enjoined by the spiritual law. But a Jew, for example, or one of the so-called Encratites might think that in order to believe in Christ it is necessary to practice celibacy or abstinence from certain types of food and might quote Scripture in support of this. If you then insist that in order for such a person to be saved or to come to Christ he must eat everything, including the food from which he abstains, the good element in the spiritual law is blasphemed, because he will think that eating such food is an essential part of our faith, when in fact it is a matter of indifference. COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS.

BLASPHEMING GOD’S TEACHING. AMBROSIASTER: Since God’s teaching is good and salutary, it should not be blasphemed, because of something trivial. Yet it is blasphemed when doubts are cast on the goodness of God’s creation. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

OECUMENIUS: Even if you are teaching correctly, your argument may become the cause of blasphemy. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

DO NOT CAUSE GOOD DOCTRINE TO BE SPOKEN EVIL OF. CHRYSOSTOM: By “what is good to you” Paul means either their faith, or the hope of reward in the hereafter, or the perfection of their religious state. For it is not just that you fail to do anything to help your brother, Paul says, but you even cause the doctrine itself, the grace of God and his gift, to be spoken evil of. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 26.

DO NOT FLAUNT CHRISTIAN FREEDOM. PELAGIUS: What is good is our freedom, which we have in the Lord, so that everything is clean to us. We should not use our freedom in such a way that we appear to be living for the stomach and for feasts. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

AVOID CAUSING ANOTHER’S DESTRUCTION. THEODORET OF CYR: Paul is saying that he praises their faith but does not want it to become the cause of cursing and damnation. INTERPRETATION OF THE LETTER TO THE ROMANS.

14:17 | Righteousness, Not Food and Drink

FINALLY RIGHTEOUSNESS WILL BE OUR FOOD AND DRINK. ORIGEN: Just as there is no marriage in heaven, so there is no eating and drinking there either. All that will be over and done with and will have no place there. Rather there will be “righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Therefore, Paul urges us to concentrate on those things and to realize that we already have their substance here below, which we shall take with us when we go to the heavenly kingdom. Peace and righteousness and whatever else we acquire from the Holy Spirit will be our food and drink in the kingdom of heaven. COMMENTARY ON THE EPISTLE TO THE ROMANS.

CLEMENT OF ALEXANDRIA: He who eats of this meal, the best of all, will possess the kingdom of God, fixing his gaze on the holy assembly of love, the heavenly church. CHRIST THE EDUCATOR 2.1.

AUGUSTINE: By “the kingdom of God” Paul means the church, in which God reigns. LETTER 36.

[PSEUDO-]CONSTANTIUS: Here Paul shows clearly that the kingdom of heaven does not have corporeal food and drink but that everyone lives in a spiritual way there. THE HOLY LETTER OF ST. PAUL TO THE ROMANS.

WE ARE NOT JUSTIFIED BY FOOD. PELAGIUS: We are not justified by food. But one should also note that Paul did not say that “fasting and temperance” are not the kingdom of God but rather food and drink.The gifts of the Holy Spirit are more easily maintained through abstinence, for where there is righteousness (by loving one’s neighbor as oneself) there is also peace, and where there is peace there is also spiritual joy, because distress and trouble always arise out of discord. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.

THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: We ought to laugh at those who think that after the resurrection we shall eat and drink, when Paul’s words so clearly say the opposite. PAULINE COMMENTARY FROM THE GREEK CHURCH.

14:18 | Approved by God and Men

ACCEPTABLE TO GOD. AMBROSIASTER: The man who is acceptable to God is approved by men. Why? Because he has accepted the gift through which he appears worthy in the sight of God. COMMENTARY ON PAUL’S EPISTLES.

APPROVED BY MEN. CHRYSOSTOM: Men will approve of such a person, not so much because of his perfect state but because of his devotion to peace and good relations. HOMILIES ON ROMANS 26.

PELAGIUS: No one can doubt that a person like this is holy. PELAGIUS’S COMMENTARY ON ROMANS.