Romans Chapter 14 Vs. 1

Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another

Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. Rom 14:1

that is weak... Greek: astheneo, weak or strength less in faith. See, Phlp. 2:26.

Welcome such into your fellowship, but let all controversies concerning doubtful practices be avoided.

We can easily see from this, that just because someone is not a trained Bible scholar is no reason not to fellowship with them. We are warned not to get into arguments with them that might lead to their not believing. The new convert to Christianity should be fed milk and honey for a while, until they are able to understand the deeper things in the Word.

1Cor. 3:1 “And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, [even] as unto babes in Christ.”

1Cor. 3:2 “I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able [to bear it], neither yet now are ye able.”

The mature believer should not sit in judgment on the sincere but underdeveloped thoughts that govern the weak believer’s conduct.

The weaker brother may feel he must abstain from certain practices that are in fact not sinful in themselves.

In dealing with other Christians

Paul had discussed various aspects of a Christian’s responsibilities in interpersonal relationships (Rom. 12:9-21; 13:8-10), but relationships with other believers loom large and involve special problems that require discussion. Harmonious relationships within the family of God are important.

Without Judging

Christians are at different levels of spiritual maturity. They also have diverse backgrounds that color their attitudes and practices. The first lesson to learn in living harmoniously with other Christians, therefore, is to stop judging others.

The focus in these verses is on him whose faith is weak (lit., “the one being weak in faith”), which appears in the emphatic first position in the sentence. Paul commanded believers to accept (pres. middle imper., “keep on taking to yourselves”; cf. Rom. 15:7) such a person, without passing judgment on disputable matters (lit., “but not unto quarrels about opinions”). A believer with certain scruples is not to be welcomed into the fellowship with the intent of changing his views or opinions by quarreling with him about them.