One person judges one day above another; another judges every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind.
Truth to Learn
Everything we do is in God’s presence and should be done as if He were the only one we are doing it for.
Behind the Words
“Fully convinced” is translated from plērophoreō, which is made up of plerēs, meaning “full” and phoreō, meaning “to fill.” So, literally, the word means “to fill full,” but it also means “to fully accomplish” or “to persuade completely.”
Meaning Explained
In the previous three verses Paul talked about the arguing that existed within the church at Rome regarding what food is permissible to eat. This arguing was based on the assumption by some that Christians have to keep the Law just as Jews have to. The current verse now takes on another of the arguments that the legalizers and the freedomizers had. This argument was over the Mosaic ordinances of the Sabbath.
According to Paul, some in the Christian church in Rome believed that a certain day was to be set aside “as unto the Lord”, that is, it was to be considered as sacred above the other six. Others in the church believed that all days were to be honored the same. Clearly, in the Jewish faith it was a requirement to “keep the Sabbath day” by not performing any work at all, rather observing it as a day of rest. However, since the resurrection of our Lord was on Sunday, others in the church argued that Sunday was to be treated like a Sabbath day and no work was to be performed on Sunday. Still others argued that all days were holy to the Lord, and since we are no longer under the demands of the Law, it was permissible to work on any day of the week.
In a church that we previously attended (not the one that argued over carpeting), I had a member severely chasten me for mowing my lawn on Sunday. He specifically pointed out that we were to refrain from work on Sunday. Whereas I’m sure that his admonition was intended to assist me in being more Christ-like in my behavior, it nonetheless bothered me that this same person would always take his family to a restaurant on Sunday, thus requiring someone else to work on Sunday in order to serve him and his family. This contradiction of word and action made his comments to me seem more hypocritical than helpful. After all, if it is wrong to work on Sunday, how can it be right to cause someone else to work for you on Sunday?
As Paul will point out in the following verses, whatever we do should be done “as unto the Lord.” We should be focused on Him and His grace no matter what we observe or don’t observe, and we should do everything as if it was done for God and God alone. Remember, we are no longer under the Law as Paul said earlier in this letter to the Christians in Rome:
Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law. (Romans 3:28)
Application
If we do everything “as unto the Lord,” we will neither be burdened with the requirements of the Law, nor will we have the freedom to sin as we please. Instead, we will behave as if He were right there with us at all times. Do you live each day as if Christ were beside you at all times? If you don’t, you should, because He is!
In God's service, for His glory,
Copyright © 2018 Will Krause. All rights reserved
