Unity and diversity are two words that seem impossible to hold together in today's polarized world. We're told to choose sides, draw lines, and separate from those who don't share our convictions. But Scripture offers a radically different vision, a church where believers genuinely accept one another without prejudice.
So, how do we achieve this? Today, on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindahl tackles this challenge head-on as he teaches from Romans chapter 14. Along the way, he'll offer three principles that free us from the twin killers of judgment and control. Chuck titled his message, Putting Grace Into Action. Our Savior, in his last prayer, recorded.
Before he went to Gethsemane. Remembered us. He prayed for those who would believe in him that all of them, quote, may be one. Bring them into a unit, Lord, because there will always be. My followers in a minority.
But they must impact the majority of a world that doesn't know me.
So hold them together. That was his hope for us before he ever went to the cross and after he left this earth. Knowing that we together as a unit can accomplish so much more than we will ever be able to accomplish with divided ranks. and separate fellowships. The apostles and early Christians, as different as all of them were, were remarkable examples of people who dwell together in unity.
They got along. In spite of all of that, there have always been conflicts. in the church. You cannot find an era in which Some of the people of God are not at each other's throats. to put it bluntly.
Pastor Kent Hughes writes: Churches have been ripped apart. By disagreements over which factions have polarized. the more broad-minded becoming openly contemptuous. of their narrow brothers. And others becoming hardened in their criticisms.
of their loose brethren. Which is what Romans 14 is all about. The goal is that we learn to live together even though we disagree. That's the goal. We can disagree, but why do we have to become disagreeable?
Now, when we get to Romans chapter 14, we get into subjects that seem kind of screwy to us. What's this about eating meat and what's this about observing days? Sure. Why, if you lived in the first century, you'd understand. Give me just a few moments.
Those Romans who were converted out of paganism. had had a background in idolatry, many of them. And you worshiped an idol by bringing meat to the altar of the idol, and you sacrifice the meat on the fire of the altar, and you do it in honor of the God.
Well, not all of the meat burn up. Since there wasn't refrigeration in those days, the part that didn't burn up Some enterprising man would or woman who was who had a butcher business would take the rest of the meat and chop it up and turn it into great steaks and sell it at the meat market. And there were Christians who had been born again out of this background. They go, no, no, no, no, no, no, truth, children. That's terrible.
If you eat that meat, you'll contaminate yourself with idol worship. And there were other Christians who said, What are you talking about? An idol is nothing, it's wood or stone or clay. It's just an idol. There's nothing to it.
And so these were the meat eaters, and these were the non-meat eaters. And it got to where they were so different that Paul gave them labels: those who had the scruples. felt they couldn't eat the meat are called weak. And they needed to be taught and brought to maturity so they could know there's nothing wrong with the meat. And those who were strong.
Who had the tendency to kind of slap around those that were weak needed to be told: calm down, lighten up. You may see your freedom in doing this, but don't throw out the weak brother. And by the way, wheat brother, don't become a legalist. Trying to make the strong brother live with your convictions. And by the way, strong brother, don't try to make the weak brother as strong as you are, give him time to grow up.
So I think Paul is saying to the strong, lighten up. Do the weak grow up? The strong tend to put down those who can't press 400 pounds, spiritually speaking. And the weak tend to despise those who take liberties that they don't think is right. I mean, you've got alcohol in your refrigerator.
Don't invite me over. That offends me.
Well, what's in somebody's refrigerator is none of your business. You like a good cigar? You just, you know, preferably don't blow it on somebody in your adult fellowship.
Okay. People don't think. They come back from a hunting trip and they say, Yeah, that's me with the beer. That's me right there. Yeah.
And you don't have a problem with that, but the person you should, so be quiet. Uh quit flaunting it. Enjoy whatever you enjoy. Within reason, don't go against anything set forth in Scripture. and live your life.
Okay, lighten up. Grow up. Accept the one who is weak in faith. Strong folks. Please.
Stop putting down the weak ones. Accept them. I'll get to the word accept in a moment, but for right now, just let it stand. Accept the one who is weak in faith, not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions. Look, we've got a divided opinion here, verse 2.
One person has faith that he may eat all things.
Now, you know what that means. He's the strong one, called the strong one in this passage. He who is weak eats vegetables only. Feels like it's safer. My conscience says I ought to eat vegetables only.
That's fine. For you, that's great. Don't make me eat vegetables only. That's your diet. Keep it to yourself.
Buy what you want to buy, fix it, eat it, but don't force it on anybody else. The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who doesn't eat. Got it? It's just common sense. And the one who does not eat should not judge the one who eats, for God has accepted.
him. could very well say both of them. Both of them. Let's learn to live within the framework. Of this kind of grace.
Look closely. The one who eats is not to regard with contempt the one who doesn't eat, verse 3. The one who doesn't eat is not to judge the one who eats. Uh While he's asking questions, verse 4, he gets right to the heart of it. Verse 4, great question.
Who are you? To judge the servant of another. Who's the Lord if that's the servant? The Lord God. Since we're serving the Lord God, whatever we do, we ought to be doing for the Lord God.
Our God. We've all been saved out of a sinful past. We all come from varied backgrounds, different kinds, different convictions, but we still answer to the same Lord. Lord, make us one. Lord, hold us together.
Lord, give us an understanding. Lord, give us a breadth. Lord, give us grace. Free me from feeling the need to straighten everybody else out. or anybody else out.
didn't work on your children.
So you ought to know it's not going to work on other people in the family of God. That's God's job. He's the one that has to wring his hands over people. That's what he does. Why?
Verse 5. One person regards one day above another. Another regards every day Did you know that that was an issue in the first century?
Some came out of a deeply religious past. And they were converted to Christ. And now they're under grace and living in this church at Rome. Church that Paul writes, and they weren't observing the days. And some were saying, well, what about the festival?
What about Pentecost? Oh my goodness, what about Passover? I mean, but the And now that we're in the New Testament, now that we're in this era, what about Sunday? I mean, you're not going to desecrate Sunday and do that on Sunday, are you? And you'll find people that are like that.
They make something of the days. If we live near a beach. We would be able to go to the beach on a Sunday, unless we have convictions that you shouldn't go to the beach on Sunday. Never could figure that one out, but Sunday's not a day to go to the beach. Sunday's like Thursday.
Sunday is like Wednesday. It's like Saturday. It's like every day the same. You see the category I'm in.
Now, you may feel Sunday's special, so you need to then set the mark and put the boundaries. Just don't put them on me. They're for you. That's fine. You want to live within that close framework?
You know what? You have every right to. Be careful about jamming that down the throat of your kids. Because they may not buy it. Your convictions you formed from your parents, quite likely, or maybe through some experiences you've gone through.
And so your day is different. But look at verse 5, look at the end. Each person must be fully convinced in his own mind. I love that. That's grace.
You know what? You've got to think on your own. We had a person call us an insight for living and say, What does Chuck believe about so-and-so? And the guy answered for us at Insight. He said, actually, Chuck hasn't made a statement about it.
No, I've got to have an answer from Chuck. How are we going to know what to do if he doesn't tell us? Grow up. is the answer. Not my job to tell you.
You have the scriptures. You have Christ. You have your own life to live. Live it. Don't wait for me.
If you get all of my stuff, you'll be led astray. Because then your conscience will hurt you because you don't feel you should do that. Or vice versa. You see, we're to be convinced in his own mind. He who observes a day observes it for the Lord, I would hope.
Lord, this is your day. It may be Wednesday for you. You may work Sundays. You can't be a part of the fellowship.
So, Wednesday is your day of worship. And you do it for the Lord, and he who eats eats for the Lord. I believe in that. Or he who gives thanks. And he who eats not for the Lord, he doesn't eat.
That's great. If you don't want to eat, don't eat. Just don't make me not eat. You want to fast? Don't brag about it.
Just fast. Get sin. That's great. Don't try to make me thin. You see how it works?
I mean, some of you are already leaving. You think, how boring is this? I understand, it's so obvious. It's so obvious. But we have been so enamored of religion.
Then we can't think for ourselves. Yeah. Get a life. You are on your own, Christian. Glorify God.
Connect with Christ. Stop making other people your reason for living. They'll drive you nuts. They'll tell you how to make every move if they get a chance. Don't let them, by the way, control and compare, those are the killers.
You get around controllers, they'll drive you nuts. You get around comparing people, that's another killer. Because somebody will always be better looking or thinner.
Someone will always be brighter.
Someone will always make more money or less. Then depending on which, you'll fight pride. Or envy. Quit looking at people as your standard. We do it for the Lord.
Not one of us lives for himself. Not one of us dies for himself. I love that seventh verse. Before our first service started today, we gathered as a small enclave of people and. And uh We talked about one of our own here at Stonebriar who's dying, and someone said, How's she doing?
And another had said, Well, I talked with her husband this week. Every day she just moves closer. to the end. And we all kind of sigh. You know why?
Because we felt the hot breath of death on the back of our neck.
Something of us dies. Because one of ours is dying. Last week, one of the guys here threw his arms around me and whispered in my ear: Remember a year ago today? Yeah. Hey, that's when Lance died.
Yeah. And we just kind of hung on to each other. as we remembered him. And someone rejoices in how great it is when the body rejoices, how great it is. How wonderful that good news comes and we all go.
This is terrific. Rather than, well. Wonder what he pulled off to get that to happen. Just If we live, we live for the Lord. If we die, we die for the Lord.
Whether we live or die, we're the Lord's. How good is that? How great is that? If we all believe that and We're like a room full of pianos, all tuned to the same sounding. Same tuner.
The same note. You don't tune them with each other, you tune them with the same tuner. And that's Christ. They're all in tune. You can play a hundred pianos in a room and there won't be a Uh one of them off key if they're all tuned to the same tuning fork.
Now I have to tell you good people will disagree.
Okay. I studied at Dallas Seminary. One of my eye-opening experiences was that not all the prophets agree at every point.
Now I remember in my young immaturity, I would go, oh. I just heard Doctor Fing fang say so and so about that and Doctor Ding Dong says this about that and uh How come Ding Dong doesn't agree with Fing Fang? And so I go back to Fing Fang. He'd say, I just don't agree with Ding Dong. And Ding Dong would say, well, you know.
That's the way it is. I'd go. And I found myself saying, how am I going to know what to believe if you don't tell me? You know what they said? Grow up.
What does the book say? You got a mind? Dig it out. Two men who lived in the Victorian era of great old England were Charles Haddon Spurgeon, 1834 to 1892. Didn't even live to be 60.
Joseph Parker, born four years earlier and died ten years later. Older and Stayed on after Spurgeon was gone. They were fast friends. They exchanged pulpits, both great preachers. Hearing one was as great as hearing the other.
What a great era, the Victorian era. Until Spurgeon learned that Parker went to the theater.
So he criticized him because Joseph Parker on occasion was seen at a live theater. Speaking of that sidebar, ding. Uh When uh Abraham Lincoln died. He died in Ford's Theater. You remember that?
The following Sunday, you don't know how many preachers said that he got what he deserved, he was in a theater. What a treacherous comment. What a terrible remark. That's how vicious we can become in our judgmentalism.
Well, Spurgeon looked down on Parker.
So Parker found out that Spurgeon smoked cigars.
So he put him down for smoking cigars. We got two brothers who used to change pulpits.
Now they're at odds with each other because of theater and stogies.
Someone asked Spurgeon about his cigar smoking. He justified it, saying, He didn't smoke to an excess. When asked what he meant by excess, he said with a twinkle in his eye, No more than two at a time.
Now, you who laugh probably like a good cigar, okay? Maybe not. I don't care. I don't care what you smoke when you're out hunting or when you're out fishing or when you're in your home. I'd rather you not light up in here.
But you smoke, you smoke. It's your business. I'm not out on a crusade against whether you ought to smoke or not. And Joseph Parker, it's none of your business that's spurging smoke. Parker was never convinced.
that going to the theater was sinful. Spurgeon was not persuaded in his heart that puffing on a cigar was wrong. And it broke the fellowship. Come on. Come on.
It bothered Spurgeon later on when he saw his face in an advertisement. This is the cigar Charles Haddon Spurgeon smokes. And then that broke him from it. That made a little difference because he saw how it impacted the world without Christ. It's another subject.
But in the family of God, you tell me the two great men could not get along? They could not. Why? because they weren't big enough to overlook each other's scruples. Are you?
Have you stopped fellowshipping with somebody because they don't fit your convictions? I'm not saying you've got to marry him. I'm not saying you've got to live next door. And by the way, when you enjoy your liberty, Just enjoy it and keep your mouth shut.
Now, before we get too pious. That's it. You you it starts to land pretty hard on us, doesn't it? Do I have convictions? I have convictions you know nothing about.
They're none of your business. And I will not foist them on you because I can't find a book, chapter, and verse with that conviction, but I have that conviction in my life.
So I sustain it. But that's mine. But you have the freedom to find out what yours are because you're going to grow and you're going to discover and you're going to learn, you're going to become stable.
So when I'm gone, dead and gone, out of your life, you'll have your own convictions. You won't need mine. You need yours. I don't care where you go in the scriptures, you have the freedom to guide your life as God guides you. and I'll stand behind you.
I'm not saying it'll do you good. I'm not saying it won't harm you. I'm saying you have the freedom to make that decision. You'll never get the rules from this pulpit. unless the rules are set forth in the Bible.
Then you'll hear them. And I'll drive them home, and they'll convict me just like they'll convict you.
So there will be those who will disagree, and when they disagree, there are going to be weaknesses on each side. Look how he develops it. I love Paul's approach. Verse 8. If we live, we live for the Lord.
If we die, we die for the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we're the Lord's. Point being, we answer to Him. Our desire is to please him. What a great thing to remember in your life.
Keep your eyes focused on Christ. When you try to please someone else, you'll fail. Or you'll fall under their thumb and they'll control you, they'll dominate you. Focus your life on Christ. Let him guide your decisions, guide your thinking.
See what it says, let everyone be convinced in his own mind. Verse 9. For to this end, Christ died and lived again. that he might be Lord both of the dead and Of the living. But you, you who are weak, why do you judge your brother?
And you who are strong, why do you regard your brother with contempt? In case you wondered where Paul was, look at 15:1. Just for a moment. Glance at 15 and 1 of Romans.
Now we who are strong Ought to bear the weaknesses of those without strength and not just please ourselves. See the pronouns? Paul was among the strong. He had no. Problem with eating meat.
T-bone straight, serve it up. Came off an altar? Medium rare. Not a problem. Unless at that table was a weak brother who said, That's meat offered to an idol.
And Paul goes, You know what? I suddenly would prefer the vegetables. Why? Because he loved his brother. Rather than When are you gonna grow up?
You know we can put them down? We who are independent freedom fighters. That's what this is about. We're a church, my friends. We're a church.
So let me give you three principles that'll work. This will help you. Find a place in your Bible where You can write this, okay, because you're going to need them. Three principles. that I think you will find workable and I hope you will find wise.
And I hope they are timeless. We who talk about modeling grace and encouraging grace and living grace and developing a church of grace, let's get the principles down. Three of them. Number one, A life of grace begins with mutual acceptance. A life of grace begins with mutual acceptance.
Please let that sink in. Don't rationalize your way around it. Don't think you're older and better, and you don't need that. You're king of the mountain. No, you're not.
You're one among many. Lighten up on your severity if you tend to be severe toward those who disagree with you. A lady I don't know named Gladys Hunt wrote this on acceptance, and I quote. Acceptance means you're valuable just as you are. It allows you to be the real you.
You aren't forced into someone else's idea of who you really are. It means your ideas are taken seriously since they reflect you. You could talk about how you feel inside and why you feel that way, and someone really cares. Acceptance means you can try out your ideas without being shot down. You can express heretical thoughts.
And discuss them with intelligent questioning. You feel safe. No one will pronounce judgment on you, even though... They don't agree with you. It does not mean you will never be corrected or shown to be wrong.
It simply means it's safe to be you, and no one will destroy you out of prejudice. Mutual acceptance. In today's study, Romans chapter 14 teaches how grace creates the space where both unity and diversity can flourish in God's family. And there's much more that Chuck's window wants to show us. Keep listening as Insight for Living will feature the rest of this message called Putting Grace into Action.
Did you know you don't have to wait to hear the remainder of this sermon from Chuck? By downloading the Insight mobile app, you'll find the entire presentation from start to finish, and of course, it's free.
Well, November is well underway, and we're beginning to turn our attention to Christmas. and we're excited to offer a brand new resource designed for your family, hoping the next few weeks will become rich with spiritual meaning. I'm referring to a book published exclusively by Insight for Living called Everlasting Light: A Journey from Promise to Presence. Everlasting Light is a 25-day Advent devotional that invites you to step out of December's rush into a prayerful rhythm of waiting, reflection, and preparation. It includes scripture to anchor your heart, a quote from Chuck Swindahl to shape your thinking, and pastoral reflections from our own Carlos Sasueta to carry into your day.
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Post Office Box 5000. Frisco, Texas 75034. You can also give online at insight.org/slash donate. I'm Bill Meyer. Join us when Schucksmundahl concludes his powerful message called Putting Grace into Action.
Tuesday on Insight for Living. The preceding message, Putting Grace into Action, was copyrighted in 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2025, and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2025 by Charles R. Swindahl, Incorporated. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited.
