“As I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow to me, and every tongue will give praise to God.” So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God. (Romans 14:11-12)
The Roman Christians had disagreements if certain foods were improper to eat, and if certain holidays were important to celebrate. Based on their knowledge and experience, groups had strong convictions on why their particular choice was honoring to God. Paul reminded them to stop focusing on “who is right” and focus on the fact that Jesus died for them all! He saves us wherever we are in our knowledge of Him, and the information in our heads. If someone’s true desire is to bring glory to God, can we give a little grace and be patient with one another?
As Christians we should hold on to core truths (for example, Harbor’s Statement of Faith) while being careful with non-essential beliefs. Maybe in the end we might find out we were incorrect? What if we were “right” and the way we acted caused a brother or sister to struggle in their faith? In Mark 12, we are taught to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength” and secondly, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” In the previous chapter of Romans, we were reminded to love our neighbors. Our focus should be on honoring God and loving those around us because, in the end, each of us will stand before Him and have to explain if we spent our time serving, or if we wasted our time looking down on others. You be the judge if that’s a good use of the life that He gave us.