-17-
Dealing with Differences
Chapter 14
Romans13:1 Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities …
We have just looked at a chapter in which the Apostle Paul gave us a clear message regarding how Christians are to relate to government and local authorities. When we take this chapter to heart, we are giving the world around us a powerful witness and example of what it means to truly follow Jesus.
But before Christians can present a whole new way of living to a hostile world, Christians need to be getting along with each other.
Paul knows that the church in Rome, meeting in a number of homes across the city, was comprised of Christians, some who used to practice Judaism and others who were non-Jews who had converted to Christianity. With a mix of 'backgrounds' like that, there was bound to be a lot of baggage … former beliefs and opinions, that did not necessarily line up with true biblical practices. This could present disunity and offenses between believers and between various house churches. In turn, this would not present a positive witness within the community.
So Paul sets about to deal with beliefs and opinions that people pick up along the pathway of life, and then after they become believers, try to either enforce those beliefs and opinions on others, or they judge others who do not agree with them.
Lets look at the first section of this chapter:
14:1-4 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 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. 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.
What stands out at first sight is the phrase, 'Whose faith is weak'. We will look at Paul's contrast of weak and strong in light of what a person feels free to practice and what another person's beliefs produce strong feelings of prohibition.
So we note that some matters in life are disputable, but we are not supposed to dispute them.
Essential vs Non-essential
What we as believers must be very clear on … knowing which beliefs and practices are indisputable and absolutely essential to our Christian faith and which beliefs and practices are non-essential.
Essential beliefs are those beliefs that affect a person's eternal life. One night Paul and Silas were in prison in Philippi and God caused an earthquake to release all the shackles from all the prisoners prompted a guard to call out to Paul. He said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
The answer to that question will determine what are essential doctrines or beliefs.
In order to be saved one must realize that there is a God. He is supreme and is control of eternity. He is Holy and we are not. So we accept the fact that sin came into the world and has affected every one of us. Sin in our lives and nature has separated us from God. Separation from God means an eternity in hell. To be saved from that, we look at Paul's answer to his prison guard. “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved”.
At this point the guard understood all of the above. That is why he cried out, “What must I do to be saved?”
Paul's answer was very short … Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. We can assume that Paul and Silas have said much throughout the afternoon and evening about Jesus Christ. And it is implied that all the other prisoners and the guard himself clearly heard what Paul and Silas were saying. By midnight we are told that the two of them were singing hymns, so they must have been 'talked out' regarding the gospel message.
Paul referred to the Savior with three words. The Lord Jesus Christ.
The name 'Jesus' identifies who Paul was talking about. The word Lord let the guard know that He was supreme and must be bowed down to. The word Christ referred to God's promised salvation. Promised right from the beginning, but Paul did not need to bring that out right here. But the word Christ would be known as the One for whom the Jews had been waiting. The gentile jailor might not know a lot about it, but he likely had dealings with enough Jews to know Who they were waiting for. That evening the jailor would have heard all about the coming of Jesus, who according to Paul's preaching, was this very Christ.
So that is essential doctrine. Paul laid it out that night. 'Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved' is more than just a simple sentence. It includes essential facts that we must bring into the salvation message. The jailor believed, by the way, and so did his whole household when they too heard the message.1
Paul talks about weak faith and strong faith.
In his words Paul points out that the person with weak faith has some strong beliefs. They believe most emphatically that it is wrong to eat meat. I don't imagine that they would appreciate being told by Paul that they were weak. I am quite certain that they thought of themselves as having greater insight in the matter of being a vegan and likely would resent being told that they are weak.
But in these verses Paul points out that God has accepted both the 'meat-eaters' and 'vegetarians'. They are both born again believers. They both had accepted the essential message of salvation that I just mentioned earlier.
When we trust Jesus as our savior that make us His. We are His servants. Jesus does not want His servants bickering and expressing pride over who is most right.
And then Paul goes on to point out that the bickering can be about other things than just food rules. It can have to do with what day of the week you think we should worship. Or it can have to do with those 'special' days that the 'used-to-be' Jews grew up observing. Passover would be a big one. All the feast days in the Jewish calendar seem to have some religious and biblical significance … and so the former Jews would have a tendency to go on observing them … in church.
Paul says … that is weak. But if you feel like you want to observe the days … don't push that on anybody else.
5,6 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. 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.
So it is not a matter of right or wrong here. It is a matter of being convinced … in your own mind. Paul is not saying to forget the matter. He is clearly saying, study it out. Be convinced. Then keep it to yourself. Your actions will be to live out these actions before the Lord in a clear conscience. What Paul does NOT say here, is that there is only one right truth. There IS only one right truth, but Paul is not saying so at this time. By allowing others to study it carefully … they are going to be guided by God to the real truth. There no doubt would be a time where people on either side of the fence are going to finally come out and say … I studied it out. I was wrong.
In our previous chapter I discussed the believer's attitude and understanding regarding citizenship. Some of us would take it literally that we are not 'of this world' both spiritually and physically, and some of us would believe political involvement is not only OK, but it is our responsibility to get involved. This is an example of differing beliefs that are not essential to salvation. What do we do about it? We study it out and keep it to ourselves... that is, we do not make an issue of it.
7-9 For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 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. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.
Here is a very important reminder. We believers … no matter what our secondary idiosyncrasies may be, all agree on one thing … it is our main purpose to live for our Lord. We are going to still have that purpose after we die. We will all be together with Him for eternity … living only for Him. Paul points that out in verse 9 … Christianity is not just for the here and now. It is for eternity.
How easy it is for us to forget about the areas of agreement that we enjoy with all believers. How easy it is for pride to slip in and cause us to want to be 'right'. How easy it is to point out that others are wrong.
10-13 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. It is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’”
So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. 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.
Judgment is God's prerogative so Paul is reminding us that there is no place for any of us to pass judgment on a fellow or sister believer who holds to a doctrine that we think is wrong … that is, a non-foundational doctrine. If the wrong doctrine that we hear has to do with salvation … here is what Paul himself would say about it:
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. Ga 1:8,9
Paul, in Romans 14:12 has just said that every one of us will some day give an account to God. This is in connection to passing judgment upon fellow Christians. It is important to note that the judgment to which we will one day be called is a serious matter. There is a teaching that has been passed around throughout several evangelical circles that all judgment has already taken place and it was all paid for on the cross. In that teaching the coming judgment of believers is presented as more or less a rewards banquet. Such a teaching sort of makes verse 12 un-meaningful. So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Sounds like a caution or warning, right?
Non-essential Truth
At this point in the Chapter Paul is going to do some teaching regarding being a meat-eater or a vegan.
As I said earlier … there is an actual right understanding of truth. In this case Paul will be giving his view on non-essential differences of belief.
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.
The first part of the verse: Jesus has told Paul that eating meat is OK. Jews would consider certain meats as unclean or taboo, and some of them (even though they are now Christians) are making an issue out of it in church. In our present day every so often I will hear “Jesus told me that ...”. I am very cautious about that for two reasons. Number one is that Jesus told Paul this information for the express purpose that he would pass it on … as scripture. Remember, there was no new Testament yet. And the second reason … I fully believe that God speaks to people today at times, but I always need to consider the source. If the apostle Paul were here and told me, “Jesus just told me ….”, I would accept it. But when someone tells me “Jesus just told me ...”, but their Christian testimony is on shaky ground, or they have shown themselves to not put value on scripture … I do not take what they have just said as having come from God.
But Paul has just said that meat is not unclean. The Christian Jews in the church at Rome will have to chew on that one.
15-18 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
In these verses Paul has just addressed the gentile Christian meat-eaters. He has just said that meat-eating is OK. Now he is telling meat-eaters …. “Do NOT say, 'See there?! I told you it was OK!'”
He mentions, “Do not by your eating, destroy someone ...” What does he mean here? I think this; suppose that a meat-eater is very convincing and pushy. Now a former Jew who is 'almost' convinced takes a few bites. But because he is unsure, he suddenly feels terrible in his heart. His conscience smites him. Paul calls that destructive.
He reminds the meat-eaters, the kingdom of God is not about being a vegan or a meat-eater. Keep things in perspective!
19-21 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.
Two things that I will point out from the above verses: One, If you have differing beliefs you need to do more than just keep these things to yourselves. That is one step only. If you only take this step you might find yourself avoiding those with differing beliefs. Avoiding is not good. So Paul says take another step … make every effort to promote peace and build up … even those people in the church with whom you have disagreements.
And secondly, it may be necessary in some cases, for you to become a vegan, at least while in the company of vegans, so as not to do something in their presence that they see as repulsive and wrong. Notice the phrase, 'destroy the work of God' in the above verse. Earlier Paul had said, 'Do not destroy someone for whom Christ died …'. Now he adds, Do not destroy the work of God. 'God's work' is the work that God is wanting to have accomplished in the community where we live. A bickering, arguing church brings down derision and ridicule from the outside world. That is what Paul means by God's work being destroyed. We have an enemy outside the church that is called the destroyer. We don't want to be helping him out by destroying ourselves.
22-23 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
Here is a concept that may be brand new to you. How many of you believe that sin(s) are spelled out in scriptures? First of all we have the ten commandments. They name sin. Many other passages spell out sin. We believe that sin is a transgression of God's laws. And all of that is correct. But this verse adds something very important.
Everything that does not come from faith is sin. So, a vegan is encouraged to eat meat. He does it, but all the while he thinks it might be a sin. After he swallows it he feels guilty. Paul says, You just sinned. Wait a minute … Paul, you just said that eating meat was not a sin. He would answer, Yes, but if you think it might be a sin ...it is a sin. You need to be convinced that everything you do is not sin … or don't do it! If you go ahead anyway … God calls it a sin.
Dealing with Differences
Paul sums up his teaching about dealing with differences in the church with the instruction that we all need to have beliefs about things, but keep them to ourselves and God. And keep studying to find out what is really truth. God's work is too important for His church to be majoring on minors, flaunting our 'truth', and allowing the world to see disagreements in the church. So in matters non-essential to our faith … study to know that what you believe about it is really truth, then keep it to yourselves and wait for others to do the same.
To Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Eph 3:21
1 Acts 16:22-34
We have just looked at a chapter in which the Apostle Paul gave us a clear message regarding how Christians are to relate to government and local authorities. When we take this chapter to heart, we are giving the world around us a powerful witness and example of what it means to truly follow Jesus.
But before Christians can present a whole new way of living to a hostile world, Christians need to be getting along with each other.
Paul knows that the church in Rome, meeting in a number of homes across the city, was comprised of Christians, some who used to practice Judaism and others who were non-Jews who had converted to Christianity. With a mix of 'backgrounds' like that, there was bound to be a lot of baggage … former beliefs and opinions, that did not necessarily line up with true biblical practices. This could present disunity and offenses between believers and between various house churches. In turn, this would not present a positive witness within the community.
So Paul sets about to deal with beliefs and opinions that people pick up along the pathway of life, and then after they become believers, try to either enforce those beliefs and opinions on others, or they judge others who do not agree with them.
Lets look at the first section of this chapter:
14:1-4 Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 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. 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.
What stands out at first sight is the phrase, 'Whose faith is weak'. We will look at Paul's contrast of weak and strong in light of what a person feels free to practice and what another person's beliefs produce strong feelings of prohibition.
So we note that some matters in life are disputable, but we are not supposed to dispute them.
Essential vs Non-essential
What we as believers must be very clear on … knowing which beliefs and practices are indisputable and absolutely essential to our Christian faith and which beliefs and practices are non-essential.
Essential beliefs are those beliefs that affect a person's eternal life. One night Paul and Silas were in prison in Philippi and God caused an earthquake to release all the shackles from all the prisoners prompted a guard to call out to Paul. He said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”
The answer to that question will determine what are essential doctrines or beliefs.
In order to be saved one must realize that there is a God. He is supreme and is control of eternity. He is Holy and we are not. So we accept the fact that sin came into the world and has affected every one of us. Sin in our lives and nature has separated us from God. Separation from God means an eternity in hell. To be saved from that, we look at Paul's answer to his prison guard. “Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved”.
At this point the guard understood all of the above. That is why he cried out, “What must I do to be saved?”
Paul's answer was very short … Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. We can assume that Paul and Silas have said much throughout the afternoon and evening about Jesus Christ. And it is implied that all the other prisoners and the guard himself clearly heard what Paul and Silas were saying. By midnight we are told that the two of them were singing hymns, so they must have been 'talked out' regarding the gospel message.
Paul referred to the Savior with three words. The Lord Jesus Christ.
The name 'Jesus' identifies who Paul was talking about. The word Lord let the guard know that He was supreme and must be bowed down to. The word Christ referred to God's promised salvation. Promised right from the beginning, but Paul did not need to bring that out right here. But the word Christ would be known as the One for whom the Jews had been waiting. The gentile jailor might not know a lot about it, but he likely had dealings with enough Jews to know Who they were waiting for. That evening the jailor would have heard all about the coming of Jesus, who according to Paul's preaching, was this very Christ.
So that is essential doctrine. Paul laid it out that night. 'Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved' is more than just a simple sentence. It includes essential facts that we must bring into the salvation message. The jailor believed, by the way, and so did his whole household when they too heard the message.1
Paul talks about weak faith and strong faith.
In his words Paul points out that the person with weak faith has some strong beliefs. They believe most emphatically that it is wrong to eat meat. I don't imagine that they would appreciate being told by Paul that they were weak. I am quite certain that they thought of themselves as having greater insight in the matter of being a vegan and likely would resent being told that they are weak.
But in these verses Paul points out that God has accepted both the 'meat-eaters' and 'vegetarians'. They are both born again believers. They both had accepted the essential message of salvation that I just mentioned earlier.
When we trust Jesus as our savior that make us His. We are His servants. Jesus does not want His servants bickering and expressing pride over who is most right.
And then Paul goes on to point out that the bickering can be about other things than just food rules. It can have to do with what day of the week you think we should worship. Or it can have to do with those 'special' days that the 'used-to-be' Jews grew up observing. Passover would be a big one. All the feast days in the Jewish calendar seem to have some religious and biblical significance … and so the former Jews would have a tendency to go on observing them … in church.
Paul says … that is weak. But if you feel like you want to observe the days … don't push that on anybody else.
5,6 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. 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.
So it is not a matter of right or wrong here. It is a matter of being convinced … in your own mind. Paul is not saying to forget the matter. He is clearly saying, study it out. Be convinced. Then keep it to yourself. Your actions will be to live out these actions before the Lord in a clear conscience. What Paul does NOT say here, is that there is only one right truth. There IS only one right truth, but Paul is not saying so at this time. By allowing others to study it carefully … they are going to be guided by God to the real truth. There no doubt would be a time where people on either side of the fence are going to finally come out and say … I studied it out. I was wrong.
In our previous chapter I discussed the believer's attitude and understanding regarding citizenship. Some of us would take it literally that we are not 'of this world' both spiritually and physically, and some of us would believe political involvement is not only OK, but it is our responsibility to get involved. This is an example of differing beliefs that are not essential to salvation. What do we do about it? We study it out and keep it to ourselves... that is, we do not make an issue of it.
7-9 For none of us lives for ourselves alone, and none of us dies for ourselves alone. 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. For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.
Here is a very important reminder. We believers … no matter what our secondary idiosyncrasies may be, all agree on one thing … it is our main purpose to live for our Lord. We are going to still have that purpose after we die. We will all be together with Him for eternity … living only for Him. Paul points that out in verse 9 … Christianity is not just for the here and now. It is for eternity.
How easy it is for us to forget about the areas of agreement that we enjoy with all believers. How easy it is for pride to slip in and cause us to want to be 'right'. How easy it is to point out that others are wrong.
10-13 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. It is written:
“‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bow before me; every tongue will acknowledge God.’”
So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. 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.
Judgment is God's prerogative so Paul is reminding us that there is no place for any of us to pass judgment on a fellow or sister believer who holds to a doctrine that we think is wrong … that is, a non-foundational doctrine. If the wrong doctrine that we hear has to do with salvation … here is what Paul himself would say about it:
But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed. Ga 1:8,9
Paul, in Romans 14:12 has just said that every one of us will some day give an account to God. This is in connection to passing judgment upon fellow Christians. It is important to note that the judgment to which we will one day be called is a serious matter. There is a teaching that has been passed around throughout several evangelical circles that all judgment has already taken place and it was all paid for on the cross. In that teaching the coming judgment of believers is presented as more or less a rewards banquet. Such a teaching sort of makes verse 12 un-meaningful. So then, each of us will give an account of ourselves to God. Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Sounds like a caution or warning, right?
Non-essential Truth
At this point in the Chapter Paul is going to do some teaching regarding being a meat-eater or a vegan.
As I said earlier … there is an actual right understanding of truth. In this case Paul will be giving his view on non-essential differences of belief.
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.
The first part of the verse: Jesus has told Paul that eating meat is OK. Jews would consider certain meats as unclean or taboo, and some of them (even though they are now Christians) are making an issue out of it in church. In our present day every so often I will hear “Jesus told me that ...”. I am very cautious about that for two reasons. Number one is that Jesus told Paul this information for the express purpose that he would pass it on … as scripture. Remember, there was no new Testament yet. And the second reason … I fully believe that God speaks to people today at times, but I always need to consider the source. If the apostle Paul were here and told me, “Jesus just told me ….”, I would accept it. But when someone tells me “Jesus just told me ...”, but their Christian testimony is on shaky ground, or they have shown themselves to not put value on scripture … I do not take what they have just said as having come from God.
But Paul has just said that meat is not unclean. The Christian Jews in the church at Rome will have to chew on that one.
15-18 If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval.
In these verses Paul has just addressed the gentile Christian meat-eaters. He has just said that meat-eating is OK. Now he is telling meat-eaters …. “Do NOT say, 'See there?! I told you it was OK!'”
He mentions, “Do not by your eating, destroy someone ...” What does he mean here? I think this; suppose that a meat-eater is very convincing and pushy. Now a former Jew who is 'almost' convinced takes a few bites. But because he is unsure, he suddenly feels terrible in his heart. His conscience smites him. Paul calls that destructive.
He reminds the meat-eaters, the kingdom of God is not about being a vegan or a meat-eater. Keep things in perspective!
19-21 Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification. Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.
Two things that I will point out from the above verses: One, If you have differing beliefs you need to do more than just keep these things to yourselves. That is one step only. If you only take this step you might find yourself avoiding those with differing beliefs. Avoiding is not good. So Paul says take another step … make every effort to promote peace and build up … even those people in the church with whom you have disagreements.
And secondly, it may be necessary in some cases, for you to become a vegan, at least while in the company of vegans, so as not to do something in their presence that they see as repulsive and wrong. Notice the phrase, 'destroy the work of God' in the above verse. Earlier Paul had said, 'Do not destroy someone for whom Christ died …'. Now he adds, Do not destroy the work of God. 'God's work' is the work that God is wanting to have accomplished in the community where we live. A bickering, arguing church brings down derision and ridicule from the outside world. That is what Paul means by God's work being destroyed. We have an enemy outside the church that is called the destroyer. We don't want to be helping him out by destroying ourselves.
22-23 So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin.
Here is a concept that may be brand new to you. How many of you believe that sin(s) are spelled out in scriptures? First of all we have the ten commandments. They name sin. Many other passages spell out sin. We believe that sin is a transgression of God's laws. And all of that is correct. But this verse adds something very important.
Everything that does not come from faith is sin. So, a vegan is encouraged to eat meat. He does it, but all the while he thinks it might be a sin. After he swallows it he feels guilty. Paul says, You just sinned. Wait a minute … Paul, you just said that eating meat was not a sin. He would answer, Yes, but if you think it might be a sin ...it is a sin. You need to be convinced that everything you do is not sin … or don't do it! If you go ahead anyway … God calls it a sin.
Dealing with Differences
Paul sums up his teaching about dealing with differences in the church with the instruction that we all need to have beliefs about things, but keep them to ourselves and God. And keep studying to find out what is really truth. God's work is too important for His church to be majoring on minors, flaunting our 'truth', and allowing the world to see disagreements in the church. So in matters non-essential to our faith … study to know that what you believe about it is really truth, then keep it to yourselves and wait for others to do the same.
To Him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen. Eph 3:21
1 Acts 16:22-34