In the “Are You ‘More Noble’?” series, we are following the noble Bereans so that we might also be “more noble” before God and man. To do this we must receive God’s “word with all readiness of mind” and search “the scriptures daily, whether those things” are so (Acts 17:11). In “Myth #10-‘Rom. 14 is about any and all “Matters of Conscience”.’”, we underlined and boldened each time the passage dealt with eating of meats, observance of days, and properly judging and handling a fellow believer concerning those specific issues. The result: we learned that the entire passage deals with just those issues.

Despite this obvious evidence, however, the broad road (Mt. 7:13-14) has turned Rom. 14 into an excuse to not deal with sin and to allow each believer to believe and practice whatever they want without consequence and independent of scriptural basis. Please notice some more points about Rom. 14, this time dealing specifically with those who claim Rom. 14 addresses “gray areas”, “non-essentials”, and “when the Bible is silent”.

• -We have already searched the scriptures in “Gray Areas”, “Where The Bible Is Silent”, and “In Essentials Unity, In Non-essentials Liberty”, and found that none of those statements nor their concepts are found in Scripture.
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• – In the previous article, “Myth #10”, we let the Bible speak for itself and found that Rom. 14 only addresses eating of meats, observance of days, and properly handling and judging a fellow believer concerning these matters.
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• – It is wrong to insert any given topic we want to into any given Scripture to make it say what we want. It is wrong to insert works salvation into John 3:16 when it clearly emphasizes faith in Jesus Christ. It is wrong to insert the Big Bang theory into Gen. 1:1 when the passage clearly says God created the universe. And it is equally wrong to insert any topic you want into Rom. 14 to weakly support whatever subject you want.
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• – Contrary to popular belief, even the subjects dealt with in Rom. 14 (eating of meats, etc…) have laws and rules. Rom. 14 lays down some rules. The other passages that deal with these same subjects reveal even more requirements concerning the Rom. 14 topics: Acts 15:20, 29; 21:25, I Cor. 8, I Cor. 10:27-33, Gal. 4:8-11, Col. 2:16, I Tim. 4:1-5 , Rev. 2:14, 20. (Make sure to study the passages and notice the various regulations laid down by God. For instance, I Cor. 10:27-33 reveals that God does indeed have concrete rules on what to do about meat offered to idols which was repeated throughout Acts in 15:20, 29; 21:25. And Gal. 4:8-11 corrects the backslidden Galatian believers about their observance of days again revealing that God did indeed have rules about meats and days.)
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• – The other passages reveal that the issues dealt with are not ‘gray areas’ or ‘matters of conscience’ that the Bible is silent on. Of course, by even mentioning each issue, the Bible is not silent on them. The other passages reveal commands, not silence nor gray areas, that God has concerning eating of meats and regarding of days. I Tim. 4:1-5 give command concerning eating of meats as being acceptable to the Lord as long as it is received and eaten with thanksgiving. I Cor. 10:27-33 give command with eating and drinking that which is offered to idols. And Gal. 4:8-11 corrects the backslidden Galatian believers about their observance of days again revealing that God did indeed have rules about meats and days.
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• – As pointed out previously in “Myth #10”, if God intended Rom. 14 to be a springboard of allowance for believers to do whatever they deem okay in any and all areas of life, Rom. 14 and the other parallel passages we mentioned would eventually give different examples other than the eating of meats and observance of days. And yet, at absolutely no time in any of these parallel passages does God mention a single additional example like media, clothing, modesty, music, etc…. God’s Word is promised to prosper, to not return void, and to accomplish whatever God pleases only when it is applied “whereto” God “sent it.” (Is. 55:11)
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• – “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.” (II Cor. 5:10) Believers will be judged for everything done in our body, good or bad. The eating of meats, the observance of days, and the handling and judging of a fellow believer concerning these issues are all things done in one’s body. (Rom. 14:12-13) Make no mistake: these issues and the other “controversies” others try to insert into Rom. 14 are things done in our body (words, thoughts, actions, feelings, etc…), and they will be judged good or bad. Therefore, Rom. 14 is not about “gray areas”, “where the Bible is silent”, or “non-essentials”.