Rm14:1Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters. 2One man's faith allows him to eat everything, but another man, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. 3The man who eats everything must not look down on him who does not, and the man who does not eat everything must not condemn the man who does, for God has accepted him. 4Who are you to judge someone else's servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand. 5One man considers one day more sacred than another; another man considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God. 7For none of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. 8If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord. 9For this very reason, Christ died and returned to life so that he might be the Lord of both the dead and the living. - NIV
Rm14:10You, then, why do you judge
your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all
stand before God's judgment seat. 11It is
written:
" 'As surely as I live,' says the
Lord,
'every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.'
" (Isa45:23)
12So then, each of us will give
an account of himself to God. 13Therefore let
us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put
any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. 14As
one who is in the Lord Jesus, I am fully convinced that no food is unclean in
itself. But if anyone regards something as unclean, then for him it is unclean. 15If
your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in
love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother for whom Christ died. 16Do
not allow what you consider good to be spoken of as evil. 17For
the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness,
peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, 18because
anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men. 19Let
us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual
edification. 20Do not destroy the work of God
for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to eat
anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21It
is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause
your brother to fall. 22So
whatever you believe about these things keep between yourself and God.
Blessed is the man who does not condemn himself by what he approves. 23But
the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from
faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin. - NIV
Rm8:28And we know that in all things God works for the good of those
who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29For
those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his
Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30And
those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those
he justified, he also glorified. 31What, then, shall we say in response to this?
If God is for us,
who can be against us? 32He who did not spare
his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him,
graciously give us all things? 33Who
will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who
justifies. 34Who is he
that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died � more than that, who was raised
to life � is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35Who
shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or
persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36As
it is written:
"For your sake we face death all day long;
we are considered as sheep to be
slaughtered." (Psa44:22)
37No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who
loved us. 38For I am convinced that neither
death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future,
nor any powers, 39neither height nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God
that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. - NIV
1Pet2:11Beloved, I urge you as sojourners [aliens] and exiles [strangers
in the world] to abstain from the
passions of the flesh [sinful desires], which wage war against your soul. 12Keep your
conduct among the Gentiles [pagans] honorable, so that when [though] they speak against you as
evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation
[he visits us]. - ESV
1Pet2:13Be subject [submit] for the Lord's sake to every human institution,
whether it be to the emperor
as supreme [authority], 14or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do
evil and to praise those who do good. 15For this is the will of God,
that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance
[ignorant talk] of foolish people.
16Live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for
evil, but living as servants
of God. 17Honor everyone. Love the
brotherhood [of believers]. Fear God. Honor the
emperor. - ESV
Challenge: True Life