Well, good evening to you. Take your hymnal, if you will. Let's stand and sing together about the greatness of God, number 54, greatest I have faith in. Stand please, and we'll sing together. Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father, there is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not thy compassion's aid may not, as thou hast been now forever with me. Great is thy faithfulness, great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies to see.
All I have needed thy hand hath provided, great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Summer and winter and springtime and harvest, sun, moon and stars in their courses. Join with all nature in manifold witness, to thy great faithfulness, mercy and love. Great is thy faithfulness, great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed thy hand hath provided, great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me.
Pardon for sin and the peace that endureth, thine own dear presence to cheer and strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. Blessings all mine with ten thousand beside, great is thy faithfulness, great is thy faithfulness, morning by morning new mercies I see. All I have needed thy hand hath provided, great is thy faithfulness, Lord unto me. Be seated. And good evening to you on this first Sunday of March. And spring is in the air, isn't it?
I mean, if we think happy thoughts, maybe it'll be here sooner. I guess the tournaments have to get over with in Minnesota before spring actually comes, but we've got one out of the way now. And one snowstorm out of the way, too. I'm glad you're here tonight. Looks like our junior highers are back from retreat, and we're glad that you've arrived back safely, too. As we go to prayer, we want to be remembering in prayer the Reeves family.
Mark and Teresa got home from church today and received a phone call just as soon as they got there that Mark's father had apparently gone outside last night and stumbled and succumbed to the elements. And so they left this afternoon to be with the family that's involved, and so we want to remember them in prayer. Let's bow together right now and remember them.
Father, there are times in life when our hearts are so crushed by sorrow and grief that our only hope is found in you and the solace and the comfort that you give. And undoubtedly that is where the Reeves are tonight in this tragedy, and we pray for them that you will strengthen them. May they sense your everlasting arms of comfort and love around them, supporting them. We pray that you will lead them in the decisions that they'll be making and make them a good testimony to family members.
We uphold them before you tonight, and others in our church, too, are going through some valleys of a different sort, and you know each one. And so we pray for them, and we ask you to minister in a loving and definite way to show that you're with them in those valleys. We thank you for this special occasion today when we look back over eight years of ministry together as a church. You've done great things, and we say that your faithfulness has been proven. We've sung about that.
And as we look ahead to whatever lies before in your will until Jesus comes, we pray that we might also experience your faithfulness and that we might be faithful to you. There are very great opportunities, and we desire that you would make us sufficient for them, that you would glorify your name in this place. Lord, we pray your blessing on this service tonight, each part of it. May our hearts be warmed and drawn together and drawn to you. In Jesus' name, amen.
We want to spend a few minutes tonight as a part of this service recognizing the anniversary of our church. And we thought that it would be appropriate to include in this a word from Dave Clatterbuck, who is the chairman of our elders at the present time, and along with Dave, coming to the platform right now, which is a hint this is the time to come, Jim Danielson and Jeff Kraus, who I think is already up here, and Don Parker, each of these men will be having a part in this recognition.
Dave, to say a few words, then Jim and Jeff are going to share with us some personal reflection of the ministry of Grace Church to them and their families, and then Don is going to close us in a prayer for the task that's yet before us. I think tonight is one of the greatest challenges in eight years at Grace Church Roseville. I was asked to speak about the last eight years, where we've been, where we are, and where we're going in two minutes. I'm not sure that can be done. We'll try.
As many of you know, Grace Church Roseville began really about eight and a half years ago, almost nine years ago, even though we're celebrating our eighth anniversary, as a result of God bringing together three groups of people. One group was made up of several families that lived in the northern suburbs, who were meeting together regularly for prayer and Bible study, with the conviction that it was God's will that a new Bible teaching church be started in this part of Twin Cities.
The second group of people were faithful people of God who attended the Immanuel Community Church, and they were praying that their church, which was having some difficulties, would become what God wanted it to be in the community. The third group were the leadership of Grace Church of Edina, who had a vision to start branch churches within 15 minutes of every resident in the Twin Cities, and it was God that brought these three groups together.
And that time, Galen came as our pastor and Dave Sulak as our church administrator and doing everything imaginable at that time. And it started as a small group, but the church grew rapidly in those early days, as several hundred people began to attend. And they were frightening days to be in leadership at Grace Church, with large numbers growing weekly and very few people in leadership at that time.
In those days, the leaders met almost weekly in meetings to try to decide what to do to keep up with the lack of facilities and the lack of leaders in the growing congregation. The next few years have been a time of developing and maturing of the ministry. As we've seen, our children's ministry grow and develop, the youth ministry grow and develop, the adult ministry expand with the small churches and the flocks and other activities.
Missions in evangelism have been a vital part of the ministry from the beginning, growing in outreach and ministry, growing from several community outreaches, church-wide outreaches in the beginning, to the EE training program for evangelism, to the growing emphasis today of everyone being involved in evangelism with your friends, the people in your community, the people you work with.
And then, of course, beginning just this Saturday of the Saturday night program, a new method, a new attempt to reach more people for Christ in our community. For the past three years, the church or so, the church's attendance has floated around 1,000 to 1,200, 1,250. And historically, in our time and our society today, in churches across the country, that's a very hard barrier to cross in the growth and development of a church. Now, we could at this point become complacent.
We have full programs for all ages in our church. We've seen many people get involved in leadership and develop in their leadership ability, and many others are developing in leadership. And we're getting better at many of the things we're doing, and we're maturing as a church in many ways. But we just can't be complacent as a church. As we look at the future, we have to deal with the fact, I believe, that the Great Commission still stands today in our world.
In our community, in the last eight years, as the community has grown, the percentage of people who know Christ has gone down in this community. And the same thing in the last eight years, the population of the world has grown. And at the same time, the need for missions is there to expand and grow. And we're seeing the mission force of the world shrinking at this time, so there's greater needs than ever before.
We as leaders of Grace Church Roseville see the need to expand our ministry in this location, to reach more people, to develop this site to the fullest potential possible, to reach the most people here that we possibly can. At the same time, we feel the need to begin exploring the possibilities of starting other churches and other locations.
When we look at the future, probably our greatest danger as a church is complacency, becoming content to be what we are, to become self-serving and to forget the lost world around us. Probably the greatest barrier to the expansion of our ministry as a church and its outreach is a lack of commitment. We need more people who are willing to commit themselves to service in the church, to use their spiritual gifts in serving others.
We need more people who are willing to commit to evangelism, both here in the community and around the world. And we can't experience any expansion in either areas unless we see greater commitment to serve the cause of Christ through the sacrificial commitment of our finances, the resources that God has blessed us with as families and individuals. Our greatest challenge today is still to fulfill the great commission in our community and around the world.
In reflecting on the past eight years since the beginning of Grace Church Roosevelt, I can't help but think of the many changes we have had in our own personal lives. Since Lois and I started attending Grace, we have had three of our children get married, have had the great experience of eight grandchildren coming into our lives, and we have also experienced the loss of a loved one. We both have experienced changes in job responsibilities and church responsibilities.
I'm sure all of us can look back over the past several years and think of many changes that have taken place in our lives. We've experienced the people caring for each other and showing their caring in a concrete way, especially in the small church setting. Grace Church has experienced many changes as well and hopefully will continue to change to meet the needs of people. I am thankful for the unchanging nature of God whose love and comfort we can depend on through all of life's circumstances.
In Psalm 102 we read, Of old thou didst found the earth, and the heavens are the work of thy hands. Even they will perish, but thou dost endure. And all of them will wear out like a garment, like clothing. Thou wilt change them, and they will be changed. And all are the same, and thy years will not come to an end. Well, I guess as we talked about this morning, it's good to be here, worshiping in God's house together. I just thought I'd share some experiences that I've had.
Actually, I've been here most of the past eight years that we've been in existence as this kind of a body. I started attending in April of 81. Fresh out of college, pretty much, out of Iowa State, in Ames, Iowa, as a young engineer working for Honeywell, I was looking for a place to serve God. And I looked at a few places and was impressed with the devotion to God and to His Word and to the joy and anticipation of serving the Lord here.
We were kind of a small group back then, so I kind of saw a lot of opportunity for service. About half the time I spend here has been in career class, and a lot of good experiences I've had there. I received challenges for service from a good friend of mine, Tom Paschke, who's now farming in Blue Earth. And I've also been involved with a lot of seasons of sports here with some of the teams at Grace in softball and basketball. I've been involved with ushering and taking some canoe trips.
I've been involved with growth groups, as we called them a couple years ago, and now they're flocks. I've also met many friends and have come to know a lot of good people, some of whom I've had as roommates in the past. And I've really received a lot of good encouragement, some laughs along the way. And also, there's been times of growth and learning as we dealt with problems with one another. So it's been a good experience.
Last but not least, I've also met my wife here, Shelley, and we enjoy meeting together with the folks in Small Church 28. I think, like I say, the thing I most appreciate about this church is the teaching of the Bible. And I think many of you know what I mean when you hear the teaching of God's Word. It tends to ring true in your life, and it tends to really speak to your heart. That's probably what I most appreciate here.
The thing that I most enjoy is what I'm doing now, singing in the Worship Choir. There's just something about singing, the praise and worship to God, that I know when I first came in, I noticed this the most, that you feel like you're right there in heaven singing with the angels and the choirs of the believers, especially when we have orchestra up here. So that's really a good experience for me.
I think although there's been some disappointments and regrets here with some of the things that I've experienced, I think on the whole, we're a people that are seeking to please God and to honor Him on His terms. And I think I've come to learn in my time here that we're actually serving Him in what we do, and not just the elders or the staff or each other.
But in light of the service we give to the Lord, I feel I have no fear of committing whatever I have and whatever I am to His service here in this ministry. Thanks, Jeff. There was a publicity picture taken probably back in about 1982, and that's proof positive that Jeff was one of the early ones here. There's a picture of Jeff with Pastor Carl shaking hands and grinning at each other. And Jeff hasn't changed that much in eight years.
Pastor Carl had jet black hair and sideburns that went down to his jawels. But God has done many things in the last eight years. We have a lot to be thankful for. What I'd like you to do is join me in a prayer of thanksgiving. Would you bow with me? I want you to think in your own hearts of some of the ways that God has ministered to you in this body. It might be through the teaching of the word that you're thankful for.
It might be for some individual who's been an encouragement to you or who's ministered to you in times when you've been hurting or suffering. You might be thankful for the fellowship that you have in a group that you're a part of. Just take a moment to thank the Lord for the things that he's done in your life through Grace Church. And I want you to thank the Lord for how he's used you in Grace Church. Have you been a faithful steward?
Can you look to the stewardship of your life and your ministry here at Grace and be thankful that God has been able to use you and find a place for you? So thank the Lord for that, for the precious privilege of being used of God to minister to others to bring glory to him.
Father, we do have so much to be thankful for, for the working of the Holy Spirit in our midst in these past eight years, for the touch of the supernatural that we've seen around us, for things that have taken place that we really can't account for in human terms, but we know that it's a hand of God upon us. We're so thankful for that.
We're thankful for the evidence of changed lives because it's the transforming power of the resurrection that brings joy to our hearts when we see that come to bear upon the lives of individuals. Lord, we're thankful for this composite group of people that you've brought together that make up the church. And we know that in your sovereignty, you've seen fit to bring the appropriate blend of gifts and sensitivities of heart together so that we make a church and that we're complete in Christ.
Father, thank you for the many opportunities you've given us to serve, to minister to one another, and to be part of your work during this temporal life that we are in right now. As we look back, there are so many things that we can be thankful for, for the unity that you've preserved in this body, for the commitment to the truth of your word. But Father, there is so much more that needs to be accomplished and that we desire to be part of as you enable us and as you empower us.
And as we look ahead, we pray that you would continue to preserve the unity in this body and that Grace Church would always be a place where the weaker brother or the babes in Christ are welcome and loved. Lord, might there be a forbearing and a supportive spirit of those who are new in the Lord and need to grow? Lord, I pray that you would protect the staff and the leadership of this church from the attacks of Satan.
Continue to strengthen them and reinforce in them their commitment to godliness in their walk and in their example. Lord, protect them in the moral integrity that they have, that your work would not be dishonored, and that the effectiveness of their ministry would not be hampered.
Father, we don't know when the time will come that Christ returns to receive us unto himself, but we pray collectively tonight and we recommit ourselves to being busy in the meantime, to exerting ourselves in the energies that you give us, to reaching out, to taking the gospel message to those who haven't heard, and to building up disciples, training them up and equipping them for the furtherance of your word in our community and abroad.
Lord, we know this can only be accomplished effectively in your spirit, and so we pray that you would remove from us any obstacles, anything that would prevent you from working freely in us and through us, and accomplishing as a body of believers that which would bring joy to your heart. Thank you, Father, for the privilege and joy of being your children, of ministering and worshiping together in this corporate body, in this local church that you saw fit to establish eight years ago.
Father, fill us with an excitement and an anticipation of what's yet to come, and might we see the touch of the supernatural in our midst in a new way, and fill us with the expectation of what can be accomplished through this body as we submit ourselves, as we get serious about allowing the Holy Spirit to work through our individual lives and through this corporate body.
Fill us with the hope and the anticipation of the reality, O God, that indeed the best is yet to come for your children here at Grace Church, Roseville. We pray these things in Jesus' name, Amen. As I hear the rolling current, I'm on the road, O Lord, how great the heart! O God, we glory with thee, see that light, so roundly the world that he gave us his Son,
in his life and atonement for sin, when all and the life in that home may go in. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, that the earth hear his voice. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, that the people rejoice. O come to the Father, through Jesus the Son, and give him the glory with things he hath done. It is thy faithfulness, O God, my Father, there is no shadow of turning with thee. Thou changest not like the passions they fail not, as thou hast been thou forever wilt be.
Great is thy faithfulness, great is thy faithfulness, all in thy body new mercies I see. All I have needed thy hand hath provided, great is thy faithfulness, for unto me, when Christ shall come, when shalt come at the creation, and take me home, what joy shall fill my heart. Then I shall bow with humble adoration, and then proclaim, my God, how great thou art. Then sings my soul, O my Savior God, to thee, how great thou art, how great thou art.
Then sings my soul, O my Savior God, to thee, how great thou art, how great thou art, how great thou art, how great thou art. Thank you, John, and Worship Choir for your ministry of music tonight. We appreciate it very much. Just a couple of words of announcement. But first let me say welcome to all of you, and especially to our visitors. We're glad you've come tonight. This Tuesday night is our elders' meeting, and we'll be having our bill study this week.
So those of you who are involved in that, please don't forget. And then at 8.30 we take up our ministry business. So be praying for the elders this week. And then I have a telephone number for you so that you can get information regarding the very special evening with Dr. Gary Bauer.
You may recall that that's on Thursday night, March the 16th, at Christ the Evangelical Free Church, a banquet at which Mr. Bauer will be speaking on behalf of a coalition of organizations here in Minnesota seeking to strengthen the hand of the family in our state. And we can get tickets to that through the Berean League, and that number is 633-0654. I know some of you are thinking, well, that's just what I need another night out.
But I recognize that all of us have busy schedules, but there are some nights that are worth investing in, and I believe that this is that kind of a night. I hope that you'll be able to make it on March the 16th. Let's bow together now in prayer as we receive the offering for this evening. Lord, it's been good to hear of how you've used the ministry of the church and of each one of us to one another over these years.
Thank you for that special entity that you have called into being, called the church, the living organism of your people, of which we are all members if we belong to Jesus Christ. And thank you for the local church, the geographical expression of that body, the spiritual body. And tonight as we bring ourselves and our gifts to you, we pray that the ministry of this body would continue to grow and be effective and be all that you want it to be.
For you are our head, and we want to be a healthy body and honor and glorify you. And we do that in bringing these gifts tonight we trust. In Jesus' name, amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Every day they pass me by. I can see it in their eyes, empty people filled with care, headed who knows where. On they go through private pain, living fear to fear. Laughter hides the silent cries. Only Jesus hears. People need the Lord. People need the Lord.
At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door. People need the Lord. People need the Lord. When will we realize people need the Lord? We are called to take His light to a world where wrong seems right. What could be to greater cost for sharing life with one who's lost? Through His love our hearts can feel all the grief they bear. They must hear the words of life only we can share. People need the Lord. People need the Lord. At the end of broken dreams, He's the open door.
People need the Lord. Oh, people need the Lord. When will we realize that we must give our lives for people need the Lord? People need the Lord. Thank you, Marcia. We were going to sing a hymn at this point, but we're going to delay that until later in the service. Maybe you'd like to stand and stretch. You've been seated for a long time. I think that would be good. As you're stretching, why don't you stretch out that right hand, or if you want, your left hand too, and welcome those near you.
Well, perhaps you need to stretch a little longer, but I can't stretch the hour too far, so let's go ahead and get started. I appreciate your being here tonight. As we come to the Lord's table, I want us to do just exactly what Paul did in the book of 1 Corinthians, as he began to teach us about the Lord's table, and that was to talk about issues.
As a parent, I look for those opportunities in our family when there are natural teaching occasions, those events or circumstances that allow you as a parent to communicate truth at a time when the kids are or should be willing to listen. Not always willing, but should be willing to listen. You can tell them things, but it's at the point when an issue arises that they often are willing to listen a little more intently.
I think that's true of all of us, that we hear teaching, we read books, and accumulate vast amounts of knowledge, but it's not until we get to a point of need that all that information condenses and is focused, and we begin to grab a hold of it. That's where we find ourselves tonight as a church family.
Last Sunday evening we had a presentation here of the Saturday evening ministry, which began last night, and which God blessed last night with a good attendance, and with some folks there who didn't know Christ, and who indicated enthusiasm and planned to be back. That's what it's all about. Saturday evening is not a worship service. Saturday evening is an outreach ministry of our church.
Occasions will inevitably arise in any church when there's a difference of opinion, as in the case of the style of music that is used to some degree in the Saturday evening ministry. We can expect that differences of opinions will occur throughout our lives with other people, because none of us are perfect, and therefore there will be differences. When Christians have differences with one another, they handle those differences in a variety of ways.
There are some who go to the person that they differ with and immediately try to work it out. There are others who just let it kind of simmer under the surface until it finally erupts and there's a kind of nasty explosion. There are others who decide that they're just going to leave and disassociate fellowship with the other person. How much better it is for all of us to recognize that differences are to be expected and that we can grow through them.
I would like to say regarding this matter of music styles that it did not begin last Sunday night. That is the difference of opinion in our church, because there's been a difference of opinion that's been ongoing for some time regarding styles of music, particularly those used in our morning worship service and our Sunday evening service. So it's nothing new, it's just now the opportunity arises when I think we can address it. As a matter of fact, music is often a difference within churches.
There are whole denominations that have split over styles of music or the approach to music. That's why someone said in jest that when the devil fell out of heaven, he fell into the choir loft. Now the point of that is not the choirs are filled with the devil, but the point of it is that so often music in a church becomes a point of controversy. What does the Bible say about music styles? Well the answer to that is surprisingly very little. The Bible hardly addresses that subject at all.
And as a matter of fact, I'm not even sure that that's the point that we want to address tonight. I don't think that ought to be the point of our concern. I want to use this occasion tonight not to talk about music styles, but to talk about how to handle differences. It's interesting as I look back through the sermons that we've preached here in the past, five years ago today we were talking about the very same theme as we worked our way through the book of Romans.
And if you would like a more full presentation of the subject, how to avoid church splits, there are three messages, Romans 14 and 15, that deal with that subject. But that's where I want us to turn tonight in just a brief survey of what these verses teach regarding how to handle differences in a local church. There are principles here that are very important.
I believe that there is a parallel to what is dealt with in Romans 14 and 15 to what some of us may be experiencing at the present time regarding styles of music. Music is not mentioned here, but other issues are, which are representative of issues that are non-moral issues. That is, where the Bible doesn't say this is right and this is wrong. They are issues that are disputed among people who are equally godly and equally sincere.
Romans 14 and 15 deals with the weaker brother and the stronger brother, to use Paul's language. In the definitions that Paul is using, the weaker one is the one who is more restricted, the one who is sensitive to a certain issue. That one is called the weaker brother. The one who is the stronger brother is the one who has broader boundaries about that. The one who is able to enjoy in that area his freedom in Christ.
Paul does not put down the weaker brother, nor does he exalt the stronger brother. As a matter of fact, he indicates that both the weaker brother and stronger brother have a responsibility to each other. He tells us that both of them are sincere, that they both have deeply held personal opinions. As a matter of fact, he affirms that that's great, that that's okay to have differences of opinions. He is not talking about issues where there is a moral right and a moral wrong.
He is talking about that area in between that is gray, where the Bible is not specific. He does not say that the weaker brother is right or wrong. He does not say that the stronger brother is right or wrong. He does not say that one is immature in this context, nor does he say the other one is mature. The state of maturity is not the issue. It's the sensitivity of conscience about certain things.
As a matter of fact, one who is a weaker brother in one issue may be the stronger brother in another issue and vice versa. I think that what Paul is telling us here is that we need to avoid being extreme. We need to avoid being a perpetual weaker brother in every issue and avoid being a presumptuous stronger brother. The perpetual weaker brother is one who is habitually legalistic and expects everyone else to limit their options to keep him happy.
He wears legalistic opinions on his shoulders and dares others to offend him, and sometimes even has a tantrum if he doesn't get his way. On the other hand, the presumptuous brother has no regard for the genuine sensitivity of others. He is often arrogant and can flaunt his liberty to try to make a point, and is even willing, if he is a presumptuous stronger brother, to initiate an offense or will try to intimidate others who are weaker. Why doesn't he grow up?
Those are the extremes in both cases, and those extremes are to be avoided. Let's turn to Romans chapter 14 and take a look at some of the principles that we are not just to know about, but which we are to practice in our church when it comes to differences of opinions about debatable things. The style of music is a legitimately debatable issue. Chapter 14 begins by saying, Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions.
In other words, accept him without passing judgment on him. One man has faith that he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats vegetables only. So he brings up an issue that was current in that day. There is a difference of opinion about these believers concerning who may eat meat and those who are vegetarians. Paul, in this particular instance, says the weaker brother is one who eats vegetables only. He has convictions about meat.
Then there are others who eat meat, and the assumption is that that meat might possibly have been offered to idols, as was the case in the meat market often. So he has no qualms about that. He is not afraid to eat the meat, even though it may have been offered to idols. He is free in that regard. So Paul says the one man has faith that he may eat all things. He who is weak eats vegetables only. He won't even touch the meat. But not him who eats, regard with contempt him who does not eat.
And let not him who does not eat judge him who eats, for God has accepted him. Now we can go on to read this whole paragraph, and we intend to work through it. But the basic point that Paul is making in the first 12 verses of chapter 14 is that we ought not to judge one another when it comes to debatable things. We are not to establish our opinions as the basis upon which to judge the spirituality or sincerity of other people, or even the legitimacy of their feelings.
We are talking about opinions that are deeply, sincerely held, and which are different. And Paul says don't judge one another. And we just read the first reason, and that is that God has already accepted both of them, the weaker and the stronger. God has accepted them for where they are, and we are to accept them for where they are too, without judging them. In verses 4 through 9 he gives a second reason as to why we ought not to judge one another.
And basically it's because both sides, the weaker and the stronger, belong to Jesus Christ. Notice the emphasis on the lordship of Christ in verses 4 through 9. The term lord is used at least eight times in these verses. Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls, and stand he will, for the Lord is able to make him stand. And now in verse 5 Paul brings up other potential issues. One man regards one day above another. Another regards every day alike.
Let each man be fully convinced in his own mind. And that's one of the things that Paul says strongly in this chapter. It's okay to have differences of opinions. Just be convinced in your own mind that what you are opinionated about is where God wants you to be. He who observes the day observes it for the Lord. He who eats does so for the Lord, for he gives thanks to God. He who does not for the Lord he does not eat and gives thanks to God.
For not one of us lives for himself and not one of us dies for himself. For if we live we live for the Lord, if we die we die for the Lord. Therefore whether we live or die we are the Lords. To this end Christ died and lived again that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living. So we are not to judge one another because we both belong to Jesus Christ. Not only has God already accepted us, but we belong to the same Lord, Jesus Christ.
And he concludes the paragraph by a third reason for not judging each other. That is that there is a coming judgment when all of us will be judged by Christ not by one another. He says, you, why do you judge your brother? Or you again, why do you regard your brother with contempt? You see on the one hand the weaker brother with the more limited conscience in the issue, the more restricted one was judging the one who had the freedom in that issue, in this case the music.
On the other hand the one who had the freedom looked upon the one who was more restricted with contempt and despised him. And Paul condemns both attitudes. He says, for we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, the weaker and the stronger. And he writes from the Old Testament where it says that, in verse 12 he says, so then each one of us shall give account of himself to God, not for his brother, but of himself.
So as we think about differences in the church in this particular case over the style of music, let's begin with this first principle that Paul points out in Romans chapter 14. That is, that we have no business judging one another in matters like this, or having contempt upon one another in matters like this. For God has accepted us in our differences.
We all are serving the Lord Jesus Christ, and to him alone each one of us shall stand to give account of the opinions that we've lived upon and our convictions that we've lived upon during our lifetime. Now in verses 13 through 23 there's a second principle. It's basically this, don't cause another to stumble. Very important principle. Elaborated upon in 1 Corinthians chapter 8.
But here he says, don't cause another to stumble, verses 14 and 15, by conducting yourself, or rather, don't cause another to stumble by conducting yourself under the law of love. If you love your brother, you will not put an offense in his way, a stumbling block, an obstacle. You will desire to help him. You will desire to help him to stand. Paul says in 14, I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself. Now he's not talking about definite rights and wrongs.
Understand that he's dealing with debatable things. But he says to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. That's an important principle. We differ about that. But he says conduct yourself under the law of love and consider each other. In verses 16 through 19 he says that we will not cause another to stumble if we are seeking the priorities of Christ's kingdom. Those priorities are not in eating and drinking and issues.
The priorities of Christ's kingdom are character qualities, such as those that are listed here. Righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit, verse 17. And finally he says don't cause another to stumble. How do you do that? By living without self-condemnation, verses 20 to 23. He says don't tear down the work of God for the sake of food. That is for the sake of an issue about which you feel strongly.
All things indeed are clean but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense, who causes another to stumble. He says it's good not to eat meat or to drink wine or to do anything by which your brother stumbles. The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself and what he approves, but he who doubts is condemned if he eats because his eating is not from faith and whatever is not from faith is sin.
So let's take what he's saying here and apply it to this situation. If a particular style of music is offensive to you or to your family, then teach that and have that opinion to yourself. Whichever side of the issue you may be on, that's what you're responsible for, for yourself and for your family. He who doubts is condemned if he eats. The point there is that if you feel strongly about a particular kind of music that is wrong, then abstain from it.
But going back to the previous point, don't judge others who may feel differently than you do about it. We each will give answer to the Lord for our own position. And then in verses 1 through 7 of chapter 15, and you can tell that I'm rushing this because our time is limited, the third principle is this, don't please yourself. Don't please yourself.
He says here to live as Jesus did, to lay aside personal rights for the good of others, to be willing to restrict an insistence on your own way for the sake of others. Don't please yourself. Obviously that has to be in a certain kind of balance. We're not to please another if that actually in the long run would do him harm. We're not to indulge another if he is wrong, if it's a moral wrong that he's involved in.
But in this area where Paul is dealing with disputable things, he says, don't please yourself, but seek to please others. Now those are negatively stated principles. I want to turn those around and state them positively. I think it's more helpful to do that. First of all, let's say it this way. Give others freedom to be different from yourself in these disputable things. We're not dealing here with doctrines of the Bible.
We're not dealing with the basics of the faith, the fundamentals of the faith. But in those areas where there's legitimate difference, give others freedom to be different from yourself. That doesn't mean that you have to change your opinion about anything. All of us one day will give answer to Christ. So give others freedom to be who God has created them to be. Principle number two, give others encouragement to be all God wants them to be. Encourage them. Seek to build them up.
That's what he's saying in the last part of verse 14. Give others encouragement to be all that God has created them to be and build them up to that end. And thirdly, give others acceptance that together you might glorify God. As he says in verse 5, the God who gives perseverance and encouragement grant you to be of the same mind with one another according to Christ Jesus. That with one accord you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Notice the emphasis on oneness, sameness of mind. So as Paul's saying here now after saying what he has, that everybody should think the same, not where there are differences, but where we think the same is that we're going to please one another. That we're not going to judge one another. That we're going to encourage one another. Think the same about those things. He says in verse 7, wherefore accept one another just as Christ also accepted us to the glory of God.
So the principles I think that apply to the differences in this case, music styles, are clear from the Word of God. We're not dealing here with something that is morally right or morally wrong. We're dealing here with a legitimate debatable issue. Sincere and godly people have difference of opinion. And that will always be the case. There will be differences. We are to give freedom to be different. We are to give encouragement to be all that God wants us to be.
And we are to give others acceptance that together as we embrace each other in our differences, we may give glory to God. Now tonight we come to the Lord's table. The Lord's table is a place of acceptance. That's what it's all about. It reminds us as we partake of these elements that God has accepted Christ's work on our behalf. His work at the cross was sufficient. The shedding of His blood, the sacrifice of His body, is all that is needed to satisfy God. He accepted the work of Christ.
This table also reminds us that Christ accepts us. At this table we sense His embrace because of the sacrifice that He made for us. This is His table. It is not the table merely of our church. It is the Lord's table. And we come here and we commune with Him as we partake of these elements, remembering the sacrifice. But it's also a table where we accept one another. That's what the table testifies. Where we are drinking of the same cup, we are eating of the same bread.
And when we do that, we are saying, all who partake of this cup and who eat of this bread with me are one with me. And I accept them and they accept me. I think that's why it's appropriate that we close the service tonight, even after this theme with the Lord's table. Because as we partake of these elements, I hope it will be sincerely with acceptance of one another in our differences. Let's pray together.
And as I'm praying, I'm going to ask that those who are serving the Lord's Supper come to the front. Lord, we've had to move very quickly through a lot of verses tonight. And sometimes that can even cloud the issues in some people's minds. I pray that enough has been said and can be used by your Spirit, which will help clarify the issues for all of us. I pray that you will help us not only to understand what you say, but to apply it to our lives, in our attitudes, our actions, and our words.
Thank you for the variety within the body. Thank you that we are not clones. Thank you that we don't have to conform to some external standard, so that the Holy Spirit is conforming us internally to the person of the Lord Jesus. I pray that as we apply these principles, in whatever differences there might be amongst us, that there will be that conformity to Jesus Christ that will cause the body to be in unity.
Thank you for this occasion, for this teaching opportunity, when all of us can grow together and learn and apply, and we all need to. Thank you for creating us with the capacity to be opinionated and sincere about things. But may we not be extreme in that, to the damaging of ourselves or of your work. May we be balanced. And whether we be on the weak side or the strong side in any given issue, may we accept one another and not judge each other.
May we build up each other and not cause another to fall. May we please each other in the best sense. Before I finish praying, before we serve the Lord's Supper, I wonder if you need to talk to the Lord. I do not want you to partake of the Lord's Supper tonight unless it is sincerely, and I know you don't want to. If there is some issue of non-acceptance where you are struggling, then I ask you to consider what the Lord would have you do.
It is a very serious thing as we come to the Lord's Table and there is some issue in our lives that we have not resolved and submitted to Christ's Lordship. So take just a few seconds to talk with him. Thank you. It symbolizes to us your body. Tonight, as a group of believers, we partake of this bread, reminding us of the price that Jesus paid for us, that we might be redeemed from our sinfulness, made whole and complete and one in Him.
And so as we partake tonight, we partake as one body of people from the same loaf, the same true bread, even Jesus Christ. And we partake with gratitude. Amen.