Paul was asked a question – "Is eating meat offered to idols contaminating?" And no one in the Roman church seemed to agree. Paul acknowledged this was not a black and white question with a simple answer and, instead, took the opportunity to instruct the Roman Christians that as they sorted through the question they needed to remember that their unity was more important than their differences on a grey area.
How can this be done? In Romans 14-15, he gives a series of considerations. And on the Wednesday feature of this blog, we will study these 13 considerations. So far, we have looked at the following considerations:
- Remember the difference between opinion and absolutes (14:1-2).
- Remember to value those who differ from you (Rom 14:3).
- Remember that God is the ultimate judge (Rom 14:4).
- Remember your convictions are your convictions (Rom 14:5).
- Remember that God's glory is your aim (vs. 6-9).
- Remember your conclusions have consequences (vs. 10-12).
- Remember to be sensitive and sacrificial (Rom 14:13-15).
- Remember what is most important (Rom 14:16-19).
- Remember not to cause others to sin (Rom 14:20-21).
- Remember to follow your conscience (Rom 14:22-23).
- Remember to love your neighbor (Rom 15:1-3).
And now, we consider this: remember the importance of unity – "For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ" (Rom 15:4-6).
Unity comes for those who work for it and towards it. Unity doesn't happen by accident. Paul even appeals to the historical testimony of the Bible. He says, "Look at our past. Be warned about the means that led to our own divisions (e.g., love for idols) and the ways that created our unity (e.g., the Conquest).
In Psalm 133, the psalmist likens unity to oil running down the beard of Aaron (vs. 2). What does that mean? Well, in the O.T., after the priest was dressed in his garments, precious oil was poured on his turban which laid on his head. Enough oil would be poured so that it would drip and pour down inside all of his clothing and all the way down to his feet. As it was poured upon the priest's head, it would flow down the face, through his beard penetrating all his clothing and increasing the moisture over his entire person. By going all the way down his body, it would promote a fragrance all around.
Unity ought to be a fragrance that permeates the entire body of Christ, like oil might permeate a priest who was anointed with it. We must be committed to our unity.
Genuine unity is a pervasive fragrance that penetrates everywhere. In other words, you can't say, "I feel unity with these Christians in church but not these Christians in my church." Unity is not compartmentalized. You either are experiencing unity or you aren't experiencing unity.
As H.C. Leupold writes in his commentary, "This seems to suggest that a parallel blessing is unity, when head and body are of one mind. The blessing of unity seems to drip down from the leading spirits in the nation to the members of less importance in the official and the social scale. The blessing drops down on all and infuses itself into them."[1]
And when we are not unified, we do harm to the proclamation of the Gospel and to the glory of God.
[1] Exposition of Psalms, pg. 919
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