Practicing Favor for Your Neighbor

March 8, 2015 A.D.

As we continue our studies in the entire letter to the Romans, our teacher Pastor Landis Fisher has arrived at the final verses in the 14th chapter and today delivers a message showing the grave importance of the manner in which we react to the differences of others within and without the Church. Listen in as our Pastor teaches another installment in this though provoking chapter of Paul’s letter to the Church in Rome which he has titled: “Practicing Favor for Your Neighbor”

Old Testament Scripture Reading: Dueteronomy22:1 – 5 (NASB)

Deu 22:1 “You shall not see your countryman’s ox or his sheep straying away, and pay no attention to them; you shall certainly bring them back to your countryman.
Deu 22:2 “If your countryman is not near you, or if you do not know him, then you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall remain with you until your countryman looks for it; then you shall restore it to him.
Deu 22:3 “Thus you shall do with his donkey, and you shall do the same with his garment, and you shall do likewise with anything lost by your countryman, which he has lost and you have found. You are not allowed to neglect them.
Deu 22:4 “You shall not see your countryman’s donkey or his ox fallen down on the way, and pay no attention to them; you shall certainly help him to raise them up.
Deu 22:5 “A woman shall not wear man’s clothing, nor shall a man put on a woman’s clothing; for whoever does these things is an abomination to the LORD your God.

New Testament Scripture Reading: Romans 14:16 – 23 (NASB)

Rom 14:16 Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil;
Rom 14:17 for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Rom 14:18 For he who in this way serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men.
Rom 14:19 So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another.
Rom 14:20 Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are clean, but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense.
Rom 14:21 It is good not to eat meat or to drink wine, or to do anything by which your brother stumbles.
Rom 14:22 The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves.
Rom 14:23 But he who doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and whatever is not from faith is sin.

Transforming Power Statements:

1) Learning to allow favor / grace to others must be taken up as a way of living , especially for those of the household of faith, and meditating on living for the purpose of generating peace must be our goal as we shoulder the differences of our convictions vs. the convictions of our neighbors; because we all hold differing convictions about many non-essential items and are all in the process of becoming more Christ-like day by day.

2) There has always been a need for instruction from God on such things that are non-essential, and about civil matters for which one might think that God really may not have a say about it, although God really does care about even the smallest details of our lives and therefore, the lives of our neighbors as well as the lives of fallen sinners as well.

3) Jesus said that the way we treat each other is the way that the whole world will know that we are His disciples and this has much to do with how we evangelize; so we should always pray how we can be practicing favor for our neighbors and especially for each other as we continue on our Christian journey.