So… what’s this Christian life all about really? There have been times in my life when I found

myself asking that very question, and I doubt I’m alone in that. We can get caught up in the idea

that being a Christian means going to church and striving to be a good person; and while these

are certainly good things, they are not the essence of our purpose as believers.

In Romans 14:13-23 Paul discusses how Christians should interact with each other in the

context of disagreements about how we practice our faith. Paul firmly lands on the side that

Christian liberty is paramount over strict ritualistic pious living: I know and am convinced in

the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean in itself (Romans 14:14a).

With that said, in Romans 14 he lays a heavy burden on those who find themselves free to

practice their faith in ways that might offend more conservative believers. In this passage, we

not only learn a lot about relating to other believers in a godly way, but we also glean the secret

to the Christian life: it’s all in where we put our focus.

In verses 13-15 he urges is to point our focus outwardly always looking to defer to the weaker

brother “so as not to make them stumble”.

In verses16-21 we see that our focus should be upward where Paul says, For the kingdom of

God does not consist of food and drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy

Spirit. For the one who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by

people (Romans 14:17-18).

Finally in the last section Paul counsels us to focus inwardly on our faith. Verse 22 says, The

faith you have, keep to yourself before God. Blessed is the one who does not judge

himself by what he approves.

We should hold strong to our convictions as the Lord lays them on our hearts. With that said,

our first thought should be to live in deference to our fellow believers. In living this way, we can

put into practice what Jesus Himself said was our highest calling: to love others as we love

ourselves (Leviticus 19:18 and Mark 10:31).

By Paky Kramer

Paky leads APM Paving and has been at IBC since he was 9 years old. He and his wife, Traci,

have been married for 25 years and have two children, Caroline and Carver. He currently leads

a Sunday morning Bible study at Immanuel Tates Creek.