Personally Right

Week 22 Day 6
Proverbs 22-24; Romans 14

Romans 14:16-19
Do not allow what you consider good to 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 approved by men.

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 man 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 to fall.

So whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin. 

Clear-cut.  Sometimes, we believe on something that's okay or we think is "alright to do" for us while to some it is not.  v. 16 is clear that these things that we consider "good" must not be allowed to be spoken of as "evil" in the eyes of other people.  Especially on the things that are perhaps, grey or where the Bible is silent about, we can keep our "belief" between us and God (v. 22) because it He who knows our hearts anyways.  As to what we must do, we need to MAKE EVERY EFFORT TO DO WHAT LEADS TO PEACE and TO MUTUAL EDIFICATION (in other words, what builds up one another.)

This is indeed a high call for us believers.  The temptation is to not care about what others think or feel for what we believe is right -- but that is not what it means to be in mutual edification.  If we are causing someone to stumble with what we believe is personally right, then we are not acting in love.  

In all things, remember that we are here to EDIFY one another by living IN PEACE with what another regardless of what we believe regarding the silent matters or the grey areas.  Some are indeed weaker or stronger in the faith - and we must be willing to cater to others for the sake of peace and mutual edification; as long as we are not sinning as well by doing so.

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Whatever it takes to be peaceful and what can build other people up regardless of what I feel is personally okay or right, that is what I ought to do.  Always ask the questions:  (1) Does this promote peace or dissension; (2) Am I promoting mutual edification with my spiritual relatives (or am I building other people up?)

Pursue PEACE and WHAT BUILDS UP ONE ANOTHER.  That's the highest call!

//  Lord, thank you for this great and awesome reminder of what I need to do at this point in my life.  Truly, life is about pursuing peace and thinking about what builds other people up.  Please help me to do this constantly and consistently Lord regardless of what is going on in my own personal life.  Help me to please not falter in this time of trouble.  Please gain me some more strength, which I know you
will provide.  Thank you Lord!  In Jesus' name, amen.  I love You Jesus, thank you for being with me always and through out this season in my life! :)