Father, it’s been a fairly busy day on different fronts, but now I would ask that You quiet my heart as we come together. May I be attentive to Your words. Amen.
Romans 14:1-23 (<<click here to read the passage)
One of the most disturbing things about today’s Church, at least in these United States, is that many seem to walk around with a proverbial chip on their shoulder. Reading today’s passage got my thoughts going in that direction and then I looked to see exactly where that old idiom came from.
Wikipedia states that the chip-on-shoulder idiom traces its roots back to a custom that was known in North America since the early 19th century. The New York newspaper Long Island Telegraph reported on 20 May 1830 “when two churlish [surely] boys were determined to fight, a chip [of wood] would be placed on the shoulder of one, and the other demanded to knock it off at his peril”.
It just seems that our dander is up and that we’re just itching to have someone cross us. Our theological concepts are cast in stone and, boy, you better not say anything different! That chip on our shoulder is there for all to see and you betcha we are going to defend it! It’s (whatever “it” is, is our hill to die on!)
I wonder, do we truly read God’s word, or do we just pick and choose what we think is important?
Verse 1 of today’s passage reads,
Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don’t argue with them about what they think is right or wrong. v1 NLT
Good grief, people, we should be all about cutting people some slack! Love has to factor into our lives as followers of Christ, or all we do is in vain. Everything said or done outside of the parameters of love is worthless…
The statement “In essentials, unity; in nonessentials, liberty; in everything love.” is fairly well known in Christian circles. But who said it is a bit ambiguous. Some attribute it to St. Augustine of Hippo (354-430). Others attribute it to Rupertus Meldenius (1582-1651) or to John Wesley (1703-1791). Regardless, it is an important state of mind. Yes, I realize that it is difficult to differentiate between what is essential and what is nonessential, but unity is called for, as well as, liberty…but what needs driven home is the overriding concept of love!
What it all boils down to is this. We are sinners – every single one of us. Jesus Christ is Savior – of every single one of us. Of course, it is up to us to accept that salvation, but it does not change the fact that He is our Savior.
Right now, if I were able to ask for a show of hands, how many of us would acknowledge that we have been forgiven? For one sin? Two? Two hundred? Two hundred and fifty million? I lost count a long time ago… (though I hope and pray I’ve not reached being forgiven a googol number of times – that’s the number 1 followed by 100 zeroes!) The thing is over and over and over again, Jesus continues to forgive us – to cast our sins into the depths (Micah 7:19) of the sea. Why? Because He loves us! Enough to die for us!
No chips on shoulders…just love for one another! Amen and amen!
Aug 30th, 2023, Wed, 7:53 pm
