“…THE KINGDOM OF GOD is not a matter of eating and drinking but of RIGHTEOUSNESS and PEACE and JOY IN THE HOLY SPIRIT.” (Romans 14:17)
In Romans 14, the apostle Paul discusses the matter of Christian freedom, especially regarding “disputable matters,” such as whether believers should eat meat that has been sacrificed to idols. In the Old Testament, God’s people followed numerous laws about what was lawful to eat and drink. But under the New Covenant, a higher LAW OF LOVE reigns supreme in the kingdom of God “So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is LOVE (agapē: Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will, not about whether one is lovable or not).” (1 Corinthians 13:13). This law of love is revealed in our willingness to live in peace and unity with our brothers and sisters in Christ: because “LOVE (agapē:) NEVER FAILS. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” (1 Corinthians 13:8)
“…when the Pharisees heard that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees with His reply, they met together to test Him with a question. One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to TRAP HIM with this question: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?” Jesus replied, “‘You must love the LORD your God with all your HEART, SOUL, and MIND.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ The entire law and all the demands of the prophets ARE BASED ON THESE TWO COMMANDMENTS.” (Matthew 22:34-40) We practice this kind of love through grace by faith.
“…since we have been JUSTIFIED BY FAITH, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because GOD’S LOVE HAS BEEN POURED INTO OUR HEARTS through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.” (Romans 5:1-5)
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham