Romans 14:23 - Faith and Acting Against Conscience

Romans 14:23 - But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.

Message: Faith and doubts and acting against conscience

Time: Written in AD 57 from Greece, to the Christians, both Gentile and Jewish in Rome

What the Lord is Saying:  

Verse 22 of Chapter 14 ends with a blessing for those that have their freedom in Christ, but this is not the last word. Paul, rather, ends with a word of warning for the Christian, reminding me once again, the meaning of sin in my life. I think it is so important that sin is at the head of the table throughout our life because self-righteous thinking is so easy to fall into. 

This chapter started with a word to the person who may be weak in faith ("accept the person weak in faith"). 

Doubts are often the result of internal thoughts. The opposite of doubt is faith. The Christian needs to walk by faith (and not sight). In verse 14 is the remark that "nothing is unclean in itself" and this could make the immature Christian believe that his choices or actions will not come under scrutiny. If the immature Christian is engaging in something in which he has doubts, then he is not operating by faith. And therefore it is sin. 

This is key. An act can be committed and yet be unclean for one person and sin for another person. The key is whether it is done by faith or with doubting. 

From TableTalk, "Paul is saying that the attitude of the heart can make an action that is not objectively evil into a sin for those who are convinced that it is wrong." My desire should be to please God in all things. So, my choices must mirror this, but more importantly my attitude, my thoughts, are to mirror this desire. The Christian's motivation at all times is to please God. 

RC Sproul states, "The sin not (inherent to the act)...the sin is doing something that we think is evil." 

As a Christian, I must be very careful about what I name sin, for those issues that fall outside of the Bible, because the issue is not the act, but the motivation of the heart. Either way, what is key, is the attitude of the heart. Am I acting by faith or do I have doubts?   

Spurgeon - Do nothing about which you have need to ask a question. Be quite sure about it, or leave it alone. Whatsoever you cannot do with the confidence that you are doing right is sin to you. Though the deed may be right to other people, if you have any doubt about it yourself, it is evil to you.

Promise: Through my choices, I am to trust God and be motivated by faith with a desire to please Him. I may find it to be sin to go to a certain movie while another person may not see it as sin. Let each of us walk in faith.