Romans 14:7-8 For none of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. 8 For if 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.
The focus of all that we do is for the Lord Jesus. Everything we do must be put through the filter of Jesus. This verse is timeless and exhaustive, covering life and death. It also reveals Paul’s deep motivation and vision he hoped the early churches would embrace. To come to this point requires the totally submitted, consecrated, and sanctified life. It is something that happens in an instant of decision and something we grow in each day. The basic concept of the verse is not difficult to understand. What becomes more challenging is the context in which it is found. Beginning in v. 1, Paul is dealing with relationships of people who have disagreements about certain behaviors, such as keeping certain holidays or eating certain types of foods. This type of situation could easily occur if you have believers who come from different backgrounds. In the case of this letter, Paul is dealing with the relationships of Jews and Gentiles in the Roman church. He had much experience with this throughout his travels. As a Jew himself, he knew the propensities for Jews to be legalistic in certain things, such as food laws. As someone who intentionally reached out to Gentiles with effectiveness, he knew the challenges of bridging cultures for Christ. The basic point is that believers must give themselves totally to the way of love in their relationships with others. This same idea is echoed in 1 Corinthians 8-10. Paul gives his own life as an example in 1 Corinthians 9. Our personal convictions guided by our consciences must not break the law of love but conform to love. We must love unconditionally and even give up our own rights if this will keep from causing a brother or sister to sin. This is one way to show that we truly love others.
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