Today’s Daily Lesson comes from Romans chapter 14 verses 1 through 11:
Welcome those who are weak in faith, but not for the purpose of quarrelling over opinions. 2Some believe in eating anything, while the weak eat only vegetables. 3Those who eat must not despise those who abstain, and those who abstain must not pass judgement on those who eat; for God has welcomed them. 4Who are you to pass judgement on servants of another? It is before their own lord that they stand or fall. And they will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make them stand.
5 Some judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to be alike. Let all be fully convinced in their own minds. 6Those who observe the day, observe it in honour of the Lord. Also those who eat, eat in honour of the Lord, since they give thanks to God; while those who abstain, abstain in honour of the Lord and give thanks to God.
7 We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. 8If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. 9For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
10 Why do you pass judgement on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgement seat of God. 11For it is written,
‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall give praise to God.’
There is a wonderful little Latin saying which at its core seems to well-summarize today’s Lesson:
“in necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas.”
It means, “in certain things unity; in doubtful things liberty; in all things charity.”
We can split hairs all day and argue about how many angels can dance on the head of a pin or fight over who can be a priest, pastor, deacon, or member of the church.
But in certain things unity; in doubtful things liberty; in all things charity.
Here are the certain things. God is love. We are to love God and neighbor with the same love with which we are loved. This love with which we love is the Spirit of God in Christ in us.
St Augustine said, “Love God and do as you please.”
There is freedom in Christ to do as we please. We make it so hard and controversial for one another. We argue and quarrel about tiny things. It’s a big, big cosmos out there (I’m reminded of that because today is the feast day of Copernicus); why argue over small things?
Why not live and love and let love and let God be the judge?
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