Romans 14:1

Verse of the Day Devotion: Romans 14:1

“Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions.” – Romans 14:1 

One thing I have learned in my many years of being a Christian and sharing the word is that there are some who find it hard to give up old beliefs that they have followed for many, many years.  This is what Paul is referring to in this passage.  Let us look at verse 2 as an example.  “One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only.”.  Romans 14:2. What we see here is a difficulty in understanding that there are no such things as unclean foods within the Christian belief system that matches the Jewish Mosaic law.  This does not mean that the belief either way is wrong.  What it does show is that both are trying to do the right thing.

Paul addressed this well in verse 3.  “The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him.” Romans 14:3. As long as neither is sinful within the Christian framework, then there should be no arguing regarding doctrine.  If you choose only to eat vegetables, then that is ok.  If you choose to eat goat meat, then that is fine too.  Neither side is sinning by their choice.  The point Paul makes here is found a couple verses down.  “He who observes the day, observes it for the Lord, and he who eats, does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who eats not, for the Lord he does not eat, and gives thanks to God.” Romans 14:6. If you are thanking God for the food and giving Him the honor and glory, then that is what counts.  We are not to judge one another in these areas. But do not put a stumbling block in his way as well.  In other words, do not do what another deems sinful in their presence.

This is done so that the ‘weaker’ person, the one who is not as learned in this walk and has beliefs that they find difficult to give up, will not see you sinning, as he sees it, and condemn you either openly or in his mind.  As he says starting in verse 16, “Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil; for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” Romans 14:16-17.  For God approves and I believe delights in this behavior.

Therefore, when you come across someone who finds your actions as disobedience or sin, which in actuality is not in the Christian belief system, go ahead and abstain in his presence.  “So, we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.” Romans 14:19. Why have division and conflict when it can be easily averted?  Is an action or behavior more important than unity of the brethren?  I would say no.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries, Inc.

John 5:24

Verse of the Day Devotion:  John 5:24 

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.” – John 5:24

This verse addresses the fact that salvation is the result of hearing His words and believing them, and then ultimately acting upon it.  Salvation has nothing to do with any acts or deeds, as the Jews believed, but it was wholly the work of God.  To “hear” in this passage speaks not of just hearing physically, but it involves receiving the word in the heart, believing it to be truth and then obeying it.  Many people hear the gospel, but few see it as a truth they wish to obey.  They must see it as a truth they must obey, because they believing it is the only way to please God and receive salvation.

And the idea is that we believe God the Father who sent Him to fulfill His will.  The Father provided a way that we can receive eternal life with Him, and that is to provide a means by which the penalty of our sins have been paid.  “For the wages of sin is death,” Romans 6:23a.  Note He says “The wages of sin is death.”  When God created man He placed them in the garden declared one thing they were not to do.  “The woman said to the serpent, “From the fruit of the trees of the garden we may eat; but from the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, ‘You shall not eat from it or touch it, or you will die.” Genesis 3:2-3.  He told them what they would receive, denoted by Paul as wages, if they disobeyed Him.  Unfortunately, they did and received exactly what God told them they would.  Not necessarily instant death, but they would have a limited lifespan. 

And this was what Paul was referring to.  Because they sinned, they received the wages for their actions.  They no longer had life eternal, but a time where life would eventually end.  And He also declares there would come one who would be capable of addressing this problem.  “And I will put enmity Between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, and you shall bruise him on the heel.” Genesis 3:15.  This refers to the coming Messiah who would address this great fall of mankind.  “The next day he saw Jesus coming to him and said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!“  John 1:29.  So, as you can see, this was the plan of the Father and He sent Jesus, His only begotten Son to address the sins of all mankind.  And the only way He could pay the penalty for us is if He did not need to pay it for Himself.  “He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 1 Corinthians 5:21.

So, going back to our focus verse, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life,” if we hear the words of Jesus regarding our situation, that being we are dead due to sins, and we believe the Father that the death of His only begotten Son will redeem us if we accept this truth, then we shall no longer die but will live eternally with Him.  “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.  For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” John 3:16-17. 

We have all sinned and were thus under the penalty of death.  However, if we hear, accept and obey what Jesus said, and believe the Father that if we do this He will forgive us, then our penalty has been placed on Christ, who never sinned and thus can pay our penalty.  And when He does this, then we have eternal life.  Not that we will have eternal life, but we already have it.  It is life begun and expanded.  We, as Christians have already entered this inheritance which is everlasting.  What a glorious life we are assured of going forward.   

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

Romans 2:3

Verse of the Day Devotion:  Romans 2:3 

“But do you suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God?” – Romans 2:3

What Paul is addressing is the idea of hypocrisy.  The main thought here is that some people believe they can get away with, or in the language of the above verse, escape the judgement of God regarding things they believe are worthy of judgement in others.  Now, this is clarified from what is denoted in chapter one.  “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.” Romans 1:18-19.  This verse speaks of all humanity being given the knowledge of God, however not all are accepting and acting upon this knowledge.  Chapter two is referring to those who acknowledge acceptance and belief in God, be they Jew or Gentile. 

Paul starts chapter two showing their self-righteousness.  “Therefore you have no excuse, every one of you who passes judgment, for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” Romans 2:1.   He speaks of judging actions they do in a negative way that they themselves do.  The problem here is that they judge the actions of another as wrong, however, because they considered themselves ‘righteous’ they believe this addresses the issue and are not to be judged.  Paul is saying that what is considered righteous and unrighteous is not based on anything  but how God sees it and has nothing to do with how we see it.  This is made very clear by the last part of this verse, “for in that which you judge another, you condemn yourself; for you who judge practice the same things.” Romans 2:1b. 

Paul then continues with the following.  “And we know that the judgment of God rightly falls upon those who practice such things.” Romans 2:2.  Now, having accused the self-righteous person of doing the same things as another, Paul now affirms as a general principle the fact and fairness of God’s judgement of such practices.  We know that God’s judgement is according to truth.  He is affirming that God’s judgement against sin is completely just for it is based on what actually happened.  However, those who acted as such believed that their relationship with God should be a part of what is sin and what is not.  This was a huge issue with the Jews of this time period.  Paul here was not denying this relationship; however it does not shield them from the consequences of their sins.

Now we come to our focus verse.  “But do you suppose this, O man, when you pass judgment on those who practice such things and do the same yourself, that you will escape the judgment of God?” Romans 2:3  Paul is asking this very important question.  ‘Just because you have a special relationship with God, does that make it OK for you to do things you judge as wrong for someone else?’  Do they really believe they will not be judged by God for these wrongdoings?  Paul then answers this further down.  “There will be tribulation and distress for every soul of man who does evil, of the Jew first and also of the Greek, but glory and honor and peace to everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God.”  Romans 2:9-11.   Paul is simply saying that God will judge all people and their actions in the same way, whether they have a relationship with God or not, for He is not partial in any way.  As He judges one, He judges all.

We need to be careful we do not fall into this error ourselves.  If we judge something as sin in another, then we must see it as  sin in ourselves.  There is nothing that is OK for one to do but is acceptable for another. This is the idea of Paul’s message here.  We will all be judged according to how God judges based on how He sees each action, not according to who did it.  So be careful not to pass judgement on another.  In chapter 14 he says the following, “Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions. One person has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only.  The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who does not eat, and the one who does not eat is not to judge the one who eats, for God has accepted him. Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.” Romans 14:1-4. 

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

John 5:30

Verse of the Day Devotion: John 5:30  

“I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” – John 5:30

This verse says something that we do not think about regarding Jesus.  But it does not mean what we think it does.  “I can do nothing on my own initiative.” John 5:30a.  It is not because He cannot, but because He chooses not to.  Essentially, He will only do what the Father says or does.   “Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.” John 5:19.  Jesus would always seek the will of the Father before He did anything.  The reason was that He would only do what the Father wanted, not necessarily what He wanted.

Now, back to our focus verse, He says as I hear, I judge.  The reason is because He and the Father are one, and therefore He always listens for what the Father says.  This does not imply that His own judgement would be wrong, but that He had no reason to.  He did not come to promote His own views, but that of the Father, to do the will of God, to submit totally to the Father.  “because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.” John 5:30b.  Remember what He prayed in the Lord’s prayer, “Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.”  Matthew 6:10. 

Now Jesus, the Son of God, submitted Himself to do only what the Father told Him, not what He chose to do. This is complete and total submission to God.  And if Jesus does this, we should also.  Whatever we do, we should seek the will of the Father.  Jesus said as such when He taught them how to pray.  “Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven.” Matthew 6:9-10.  We should be like Jesus, not looking for our own will, but His.  We often react in ways that are contrary to what God desires, and when we do, it does not turn out well. 

An example of this is when we make a judgement without evidence that it is true.  Before we say anything, we should pray and ask God for wisdom.  We often make judgements based on how we feel, or purely on speculation.  Something we may assume happened may not be true, or our assumption as to their motive may have nothing to do with why they did it.  Another example is when we choose to do something, is it what God wants us to do?  Often when we make decisions, we do it based on our desires and not necessarily His. 

This may be difficult at times.  However, we should let God lead us where He wants us and what He wants us to do.  One of the best things we can do is spend time in concerted prayer, asking Him what His desire is for us.  If God wants us to do it, He will make it happen in His timing.  We must trust Him, listen, and be open to anything.  He is God, and He loves us and desires our best.  But it should be His will and not our own.  Things always turn out better that way.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries. 

1 Peter 4:7

Verse of the Day Devotion: 1 Peter 4:7 

“The end of all things is near; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.” – 1 Peter 4:7  

Peter is exhorting those he is writing to that they should realize the end of all things is near, that this world and its sinful ways will soon end.  Jesus spoke many times regarding this world as they know it coming to an end, that their suffering will be coming to an end.  The church during this time was under a two-fold attack.  First there was Rome.  If you did not worship Caesar as God, then you would be subject to punishment up to and including death.  Rome hated the early church and wanted it done away with.  A classic example of this is the death of the Apostle John’s disciple Polycarp.  He was arrested for his Christian faith, and because of this taken into the arena.  When they required him to denounce and reproach Christ, he said, “86 years have I served him, and he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?”  He refused to denounce Him, so they burned him alive.

The Jews also persecuted the Christians.  They would bring them in to be tried and if they did not renounce Christ, they would find themselves punished.  And as we see from several instances that happened to Paul, they worked with the Roman government, just as they did regarding the crucifixion of Christ.

This was the level of persecution the Christians endured during this time.  And it grew greater as time went by.  What Peter was telling the church was that these days would not last forever, that soon, this would end.  And he encouraged them to remain strong throughout all this.  He told them to remain sober, meaning serious and thoughtful.  Also to remain calm and collected.  Yes, these times will be difficult, but do not let it take away your serious expectations of what is coming.  Instead of losing control over what they are seeing, they were encouraged them to spend time in prayer, going before God and lifting up their concerns to Him.  They should abstain from anything of a sinful nature, so as to be ready for the time when all this is over. 

And this should be our answer to this as well.  Things today are getting very difficult.  We need to be encouraged as well that the end is coming soon, and we must remain calm, cool and collected.  We must not lose control of ourselves, but carefully remain in prayer with the one who will take care of us.  We are seeing the church ridiculed and looked at in negative terms, being called racist, sexist and the remover of people’s rights.  Just remain calm and do not give in to their desires, for God’s plan for us is right on time.  He is with you and in you.  No matter what they do, stand firm.  Your reward is coming soon, in fact, it is on the way. 

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries.