1 Give a welcome to anyone whose faith is not strong, but do not get into arguments about doubtful points.
2 One person may have faith enough to eat any kind of food; another, less strong, will eat only vegetables.
3 Those who feel free to eat freely are not to condemn those who are unwilling to eat freely; nor must the person who does not eat freely pass judgement on the one who does -- because God has welcomed him.
4 And who are you, to sit in judgement over somebody else's servant? Whether he deserves to be upheld or to fall is for his own master to decide; and he shall be upheld, for the Lord has power to uphold him.
5 One person thinks that some days are holier than others, and another thinks them all equal. Let each of them be fully convinced in his own mind.
6 The one who makes special observance of a particular day observes it in honour of the Lord. So the one who eats freely, eats in honour of the Lord, making his thanksgiving to God; and the one who does not, abstains from eating in honour of the Lord and makes his thanksgiving to God.
7 For none of us lives for himself and none of us dies for himself;
8 while we are alive, we are living for the Lord, and when we die, we die for the Lord: and so, alive or dead, we belong to the Lord.
9 It was for this purpose that Christ both died and came to life again: so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
10 Why, then, does one of you make himself judge over his brother, and why does another among you despise his brother? All of us will have to stand in front of the judgement-seat of God:
11 as scripture says: By my own life says the Lord, every knee shall bow before me, every tongue shall give glory to God.
12 It is to God, then, that each of us will have to give an account of himself.
13 Let us each stop passing judgement, therefore, on one another and decide instead that none of us will place obstacles in any brother's way, or anything that can bring him down.
14 I am sure, and quite convinced in the Lord Jesus, that no food is unclean in itself; it is only if someone classifies any kind of food as unclean, then for him it is unclean.
15 And indeed, if through any kind of food you are causing offence to a brother, then you are no longer being guided by love. You are not to let the food that you eat cause the ruin of anyone for whom Christ died.
16 A privilege of yours must not be allowed to give rise to harmful talk;
17 for it is not eating and drinking that make the kingdom of God, but the saving justice, the peace and the joy brought by the Holy Spirit.
18 It is the person who serves Christ in these things that will be approved by God and respected by everyone.
19 So then, let us be always seeking the ways which lead to peace and the ways in which we can support one another.
20 Do not wreck God's work for the sake of food. Certainly all foods are clean; but all the same, any kind can be evil for someone to whom it is an offence to eat it.
21 It is best to abstain from eating any meat, or drinking any wine, or from any other activity which might cause a brother to fall away, or to be scandalised, or to weaken.
22 Within yourself, before God, hold on to what you already believe. Blessed is the person whose principles do not condemn his practice.
23 But anyone who eats with qualms of conscience is condemned, because this eating does not spring from faith -- and every action which does not spring from faith is sin.
Versículos relacionados com Romans, 14:
Romans 14 deals with Christian freedom and the way Christians should deal with issues of conscience and divergences of opinion. Paul points out that although there is freedom in Christ, we must be careful not to hurt the conscience of our weaker brother. He emphasizes that we must strive to live in peace and in harmony with each other, avoiding hasty judgments and respecting differences of opinion. Based on this, here are five verses related to the topics addressed in Romans 14, in order of proximity to the chapter:
1 Corinthians 8:9: "But see that this freedom is not in any way scandal for the weak." This verse highlights the importance of considering the impact of our actions on our weaker brothers on faith. He emphasizes that our freedom in Christ must be exercised with responsibility and love for others.
Colossians 2:16: "Therefore, no one judges you for eating, or drinking, or because of feast days, or new moon, or Saturdays." This verse highlights the idea that whether or not observance of certain customs should not be a source of judgment among Christians. He emphasizes that our unity in Christ must be more important than differences of opinion in secondary issues.
1 Thessalonians 5:13: "And estimate them a lot in love, because of their work. Tend peace among you." This verse highlights the importance of valuing and respecting our spiritual leaders and seeking peace and harmony among the brothers. He emphasizes that we must strive to live in peace with each other and to honor those who work for our spiritual good.
Galatians 5:13: "For you, brothers, have been called to freedom. You do not use freedom to give the flesh occasion, but serve one another for love." This verse again highlights the idea that our freedom in Christ must be exercised with responsibility and love for others. He emphasizes that we must use our freedom to serve each other, not to satisfy our own selfish desires.
Philippians 2:3-4: "You do nothing by strife or by boasting, but by humility; each one considers the others superior to himself. Do not pay attention to what is properly his own, but each one also for what is others." This verse highlights the importance of humility and service among Christians. He emphasizes that we should put others above ourselves and serve each other with love, even when it involves abdicating our own preferences.
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