Romans 14:20

For meat destroy not the work of God. All things indeed are pure; but it is evil for that man who eateth with offence. FOR ('FOR THE SAKE OF') MEAT DESTROY NOT THE WORK OF GOD - see the note at . The apostle sees in whatever tends to violate a brother's conscience the incipient destruction of God's work (for every converted man is such) - on the same principle as "he that hateth his brother is a murderer" (). ALL THINGS INDEED ARE PURE - `clean;' the ritual distinctions being at an end; BUT IT IS EVIL FOR THAT MAN (THERE IS CRIMINALITY IN THE MAN) WHO EATETH WITH OFFENCE - i:e., so as to stumble a weak brother....

20._All things are indeed pure, etc. _By saying, that all things are pure, he makes a general declaration; and by adding, that it is evil for man to eat with offense, he makes an exception; as though he had said, — “Meat is indeed good, but to give offense is bad.” Now meat has been given to us, that we may eat it, provided love be observed: he then pollutes the use of pure meat, who by it violates love. Hence he concludes, that it is good to abstain from all things which tend to give offense to our brethren. He mentions three things in order, _to fall, to stumble, to be weakened: _the meaning seems to be this, — “Let no cause of falling, no, nor of stumbling, no, nor of weakening, be given to the brethren.” For to be weakened is less than to stumble, and to stumble is less than to fall. He may be said to be weakened whose conscience wavers with doubt, — to stumble when the _conscience _...

19-23 Many wish for peace, and talk loudly for it, who do not follow the things that make for peace. Meekness, humility, self-denial, and love, make for peace. We cannot edify one another, while quarrelling and contending. Many, for meat and drink, destroy the work of God in themselves; nothing more destroys the soul than pampering and pleasing the flesh, and fulfilling the lusts of it; so others are hurt, by wilful offence given. Lawful things may be done unlawfully, by giving offence to brethren. This takes in all indifferent things, whereby a brother is drawn into sin or trouble; or has his graces, his comforts, or his resolutions weakened. Hast thou faith? It is meant of knowledge and clearness as to our Christian liberty. Enjoy the comfort of it, but do not trouble others by a wrong use of it. Nor may we act against a doubting conscience. How excellent are the blessings of Christ's...

Verse Romans 14:20. _FOR MEAT DESTROY NOT THE WORK OF GOD_] Do not hinder the _progress of the Gospel_ either in your own souls or in those of others, by contending about lawful or unlawful meats. And do not destroy the soul of thy Christian brother, Romans 14:15, by offending him so as to induce him to _apostatize_. _ALL THINGS INDEED_ ARE _PURE_] This is a repetition of the sentiment delivered, Romans 14:14, in different words. Nothing that is _proper_ for _aliment_ is _unlawful_ to be eaten; _but_ it is _evil for that man who eateth with offence_-the man who either eats contrary to his own conscience, or so as to grieve and stum

FOR MEAT - By your obstinate, pertinacious attachment to your own opinions about the distinctions of meat and drinks, do not pursue such a course as to lead a brother into sin, and ruin his soul. Here is a new argument presented why Christians should pursue a course of charity - that the opposite would tend to the ruin of the brother’s soul. DESTROY NOT - The word here is what properly is applied to pulling down an edifice; and the apostle continues the figure which he used in the previous verse. Do not pull down or destroy the “temple” which God is rearing. THE WORK OF GOD - The work of God is what God does, and here especially refers to his work in rearing “his church.” The “Christian” is regarded specially as the work of God, as God renews his heart and makes him what he is. Hence, he is called God’s “building”...

EXPOSITION ROMANS 14:1 F. _The duty of enlightened Christians towards weak brethren. _From moral duties in general of Christians towards each other and towards all the apostle now passes to such as they owe peculiarly to each other as members of a religious community, united by a common faith. He has already (Romans 12:16) admonished his readers to be "of the same mind one toward another;" but, as was remarked under that verse, this did not imply agreement of view on all subjects, such as is impossible where there are many minds. In this chapter he recognizes the impossibility, having immediately before him what was then patent, the inability of some, through prejudice or slowness of conception, to enter into views of the meaning of the gospel which to himself a

FOR MEAT DESTROY NOT THE WORK OF GOD,.... The Syriac reads it, "the works of God"; referring either to righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, of which the kingdom of God consists; or to the weak brother, who both as a creature, and as a new creature, is the workmanship of God; and to the good work of grace, the work of faith upon his soul, which is the work of God; or rather to his peace, and the peace of the church of Christ, which is both the will and work of God; peace is what he calls his people to, and what he himself is the author of; and may be destroyed, and sometimes is, by trifling things; whereas a true believer, though ever so weak, cannot be destroyed, nor the good work of God upon his soul be lost, nor any part of it; not the work of faith, which Christ prays for that it fail not, and is both the author and finisher of; but the work of peace and edification in par...

CHAPTER 14 _ 1. Strong and Weak Brethren are the Lord's Servants. (Romans 14:1 .)_ 2. The True Way of Love. (Romans 14:13 .) Romans 14:1 The question concerning brethren who were weak in faith, how they are to be treated by those who are strong is now taken up. Those weak in the faith had not the complete knowledge of their position in Christ, though they knew Christ and loved Him. They did not realize that certain observances of days, or abstinences from meats and drinks, could not affect their salvation in any way. There were scruples and conscientious difficulties, as there are still among God's people. One believeth he may eat all things, he knew his full Christian freedom--another who i

CONSIDERATENESS INSTEAD OF CENSORIOUSNESS. Romans 14:13. Let us stop judging one another (_cf._ Matthew 7:1); but come rather to this judgment, not to lay a stumbling-block in a brother's way, etc. Romans 14:14. For himself, Paul stands firmly on the side of liberty: I know, and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus as one obedient to Christ's authority and convinced by His teaching (see Mark 7:14; _cf._ Acts 10:9)that religious distinctions in food have no intrinsic ground....

RESPECT FOR SCRUPLES (Romans 14:1) _ 14:1 Welcome the man who is weak in the faith, but not with a view to passing judgment on his scruples._ In this chapter Paul is dealing with what may have been a temporary and local problem in the Roman Church, but is also one continually confronting the Church and always demanding solution. In the Church at Rome there were apparently two lines of thought. There were some who believed that in Christian liberty the old tabus were gone; they believed that the old food laws were now irrelevant; they believed that Christianity did not consist in the special observance of any one day or days. Paul makes it clear that this in fact is the standpoint of real Christian faith. On the other hand, there were those who were full of scruples; they believed that it was wrong to eat meat; they believed in the rigid observance of the Sabbath tyranny.