Wednesday, August 22, 2012

EPISTLE: Romans 14:17-19

Reading:
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.  For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God, and approved of men.  Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another.

Commentary:
Faith is an activity of the soul which believes and trusts in his gracious God.  When we live and think according to faith, we need not worry about meat or drink nor temporal affairs.  "For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost."  By way of Christ we live a righteous life, namely one which agrees with God's commandments, love being our highest law.  By faith we live and work and have our being, so that we may with joy edify our neighbor by the works we do, or the words we speak.  "Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and things wherewith one may edify another."  Christian liberty will always exercise itself in such a way, that we do all things here out of Christ-like love for our neighbor.  We do or don't do, we speak or keep silence, we comfort or rebuke, depending on the spiritual need of our neighbor.  Love knows no law, for "love is the fulfilling of the law."  Yet let us guard against our deceiving flesh which always desires to use use such liberty for evil.  Rather "I delight in the law of God after the inward man."  

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