Arguing Definitions

The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in 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. (Romans 14:22-23)

Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. (1 John 3:4 NKJV)

Anyone who has a background similar to my own will immediately recognize the tension set up by putting these two verses in close proximity. I could not count the number of heated arguments that have been generated over the years between people taking rigid positions on one side or the other using one of these verses as the “true” definition of sin as opposed to the other verse.

But it doesn't take much reasoning by a sensible, open-minded person to realize shortly that it doesn't make much sense to try to pit one verse against another from the Bible while claiming to defend the true Word of God. The tension that arises from looking at these two verses together is completely artificial and arbitrary within the minds and heart of the people caught up in the argument, not at all in the Word of God itself. In fact, upon closer examination it can be quickly seen that the verses and their supporting contexts are actually saying nearly the very same thing but with different word descriptions and from different human writers.

The problem arises largely because people who end up in arguments do so because they have a strong personal agenda that they want to promote with far-reaching implications that need to be carefully shored up and protected from careful, objective analysis. Truth never suffers from close, positive critical examination, so if a person becomes defensive about their choice of how they string their proof-texts together then it is quite likely that their careful arrangements of verses (and even the required translation they insist on using) cannot hold up under more honest scrutiny.

I again sense that the real problem in most arguments is the condition of the spirits of the people involved far more than the congruency of the texts they are using to discount another text. These two definitions of sin are not in the least in conflict with each other but are highly complimentary. So if I find myself feeling defensive when one or the other is used then there is very likely a lie-based belief deeply rooted in my own heart that is unwilling to be exposed or examined. Defensiveness itself is one of the most obvious symptoms of a lie embedded in the heart trying to avoid detection.

Another problem with truly understanding the meaning of these verses is the often repeated problem of faulty definitions themselves. When words are used to define other words, it is necessary to have a working definition of at least a few words that are correct to start with or faulty thinking and assumptions will only produce more faulty assumptions. In this verse in Romans it is necessary to have a somewhat proper understanding of the word faith in order to arrive at a proper definition of the word sin. Otherwise nothing will be accomplished by trying to argue one opinion against another.

I have come more and more to realize that useful definitions require much more than simply achieving a high level of intellectual accuracy in the use of linguistics as helpful as that may be. Yes, it is important to go back and do some research many times to correct our faulty assumptions about the real, factual meaning of many words – that is extremely important and helpful many times. But unless the spirit of a person is also listening and open to the promptings of the Spirit of God who alone can provide us with the real significance of what we are studying, all of our attempts to “prove” what we think the text is saying will amount to nothing more than an exercise in futility.

As I have looked at these two verses that talk about the definition of what sin really is this morning in their respective contexts, I am surprised that so much controversy has occurred and so much bad blood has been generated in the arguments that have taken place. Those who typically argue that the “best” definition of sin is law-breaking usually argue with a spirit of animosity which is exactly the opposite of the context from which they lift their proof-text. Take a look at where this verse comes from.

See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know Him. Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when He is revealed, we will be like Him, for we will see Him as he is. And all who have this hope in Him purify themselves, just as He is pure. Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. (1 John 3:1-4 NRSV)

The whole surrounding passage is filled with the context of living in a spirit of genuine love. So is the verse in Romans in a different context? Is Romans emphasizing faith more than love as John does? Take a look at what Paul just said a few verses earlier.

For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. (Romans 14:15)

I can remember myself being caught up in these very heated arguments with my own Dad about which of these verses should be the more accurate description of what defines sin. And I also remember being convicted right during the argument that I needed to pay attention to the condition of my own spirit and the effect it was having on him far more than I needed to “win” the argument that I already knew he was unwilling to concede. For the real issue behind the heated debate was not really about who had the better definition of sin but was about the pain being generated at the spirit level that was far more significant in God's eyes. I was being brought to realize over a number of years that the real problem was not just my definitions of the words in the Bible but more importantly was the relationship between me and those I was supposed to love at the level of the spirit.

The more that I have learned about the true definition of real faith the easier it has become to see the full integration of these two verses with each other. I have come to realize that nearly all the definitions that I grew up with about all religious words and phrases had to be repeatedly challenged and updated as the Spirit was leading me deeper and deeper into a heart relationship with the Source of everything I was reading. But in the process I also had to remember the admonition given in the previous verse that I needed to apply to myself. The faith which you have, have as your own conviction before God. Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. (Romans 14:22)

I came to realize that it is not my responsibility to get everyone else to believe exactly the way I believe, as hard as that is to accept. What is far more important than having perfect theology is having a humble heart willing to accept and love those who do not view things in agreement with me. I do not want to end up in the group described by Jesus as those recounting their many achievements in His name as the reasons why they should be able to get into heaven. I want to learn to know Him intimately so that He will not have to say to me, “I never knew you.”

For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face; now I know in part, but then I will know fully just as I also have been fully known. But now faith, hope, love, abide these three; but the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:12-13)

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Clean and Unclean - 4

...nothing is unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. (Romans 14:14)

I continue to be fascinated by many implications that can be seen within this single verse and in conjunction with the surrounding context. What is this phrase implying, to him who thinks... it is unclean? And I find a similar kind of phrase in verse 20. All things indeed are clean, but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense. Is this telling me that religious uncleanness can be created in the imagination of each individual on earth? Is this another version of the references in the Old Testament where it says that every man did what was right in his own eyes?

I know it might seem easy to rush to conclusions to counter this and try to refute what seems to be explicitly stated here. But while I am not looking for quick and easy answers, this is baffling me to some extent. I don't want to take off on easy rabbit trails in either direction, whether liberal or authoritarian. But it is clear to me that Paul believed that whatever uncleanness means, it seems to have a lot to do with the condition of each person's beliefs and feelings. And not only that, but these beliefs and assumptions are not to be ignored or even offended unnecessarily by those who have different opinions about that particular thing or belief.

It would be easier to accept this easily if Paul would just have left it at the first part – that each person perceives religion in their own way and has their own fears and ignorant persuasions. But he had to go farther and insist that true Christians must be careful to protect the freedom of each person to cling to their misconceptions with a spirit of respect and even acceptance. This is acceptance for the person themselves, not endorsement of their narrow ideas about what causes their fears or discomfort.

This definitely runs against what comes naturally for me and for others that I know. It is so much easier to want to offer instructions and advice and corrections to challenge a person's “ignorant assumptions” so as to bring them more quickly into alignment with my own “more enlightened” beliefs. But in this chapter I am seeing that Paul is giving me a very different model to be careful to follow. Apparently it is not my job to set others straight about their misguided beliefs but it is my responsibility to accept them as my siblings in the family of God and protect their space and freedom even while they retain beliefs that may sharply differ from my own.

This is much more than an intellectual enlightenment for me. This is making me feel quite uncomfortable inside. Something inside of me is squirming around looking for an out from this instruction, looking for excuses to legitimize my tendency to want to correct others instead of embracing them with loving, respectful acceptance. But I strongly suspect that this part inside of me that is squirming is resisting true light and, like the termites that I uncovered yesterday while repairing a house infested with them, this false god is running for the cover of darkness to avoid exposure and detection.

But just like those termites that had secretly wreaked so much damage silently behind the facade of secure walls and glossy paint jobs, this false spirit inside of me has riddled me with paths and habits that run counter to the ways of God and weaken my character. I want the light of the spirit of God to invade my own heart, to expose my own corruption and to spray these false gods that cling so tenaciously to my mind with the poison of His grace and truth and love.

Satan's kingdom is founded upon deception, force, fear and independence. But these elements are like the work of termites that continually weaken the image of God within my soul, excavating and consuming all the goodness and grace and mercy and truth that is needed as proper building materials for a life after the order of God. But while I cannot repair myself or even expel the unwanted intruders that I inherited through many generations of sinful ancestors as well as my own bad choices and habits, I can call on my God and my Savior to continue to implement His plan of redemption within my own structure, my temple designed for His habitation.

This subject has been lurking in the back of my mind and has surfaced repeatedly over the past few days causing me to question many of my attitudes, reactions and assumptions about those around me. I feel very much unsettled about this and have to trust the Spirit of God to guide me into more accurate truth in this matter.

Now here is an enlightening thought that just came to me as I expressed that last statement. Just as other people have false beliefs about certain things but still need to be accepted without criticism or contempt, so I am finding myself even in this discovery as very vulnerable to misunderstanding and potential criticism and contempt by others who may find objectionable my emerging beliefs about what this chapter is saying to my heart. This chapter just as much applies to those around me as it does to me, though it is not my responsibility to impose it on their conscience. Just as these instructions are designed to protect the spirit of others from my contempt and criticism, so to it can also protect me from the same damaging effects from others.

The Need for Community and Joy

From my growing understanding of the true meaning of the word “joy”, I can see another aspect of this that is quite significant. In verse 17 the core description of the kingdom of God is spelled out as righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The neurological definition of the experience of joy for the brain is that sensation one gets when someone else is genuinely and intensely glad to be with them. Joy seems to be the preferred fuel for our lives that God designed us to run on and that causes us to thrive and grow in maturity. It has been observed that joy is the only thing that a young baby is motivated to seek on their own. They can be motivated to avoid other emotions, but the only thing that they will be motivated to seek on their own initiative is to find someone who will be glad to be with them and increase their sense of joy.

Scientists have learned recently that joy is the primary factor in the development and growth of one of the most important parts of the human brain, the right orbital pre-frontal cortex. Apparently this part of the brain is nearly non-existent at birth but within the span of a relatively short time can grow to become up to 35% of the adult brain. What is very fascinating is that the primary exercise or input for fueling growth of this part of the brain is shared experiences of joy with significant people in their life, at first primarily the mother figure.

This is one of the most important parts of the brain for preparing a person to interact with others on a deeply bonded level through love and shared joy. What is also very important is that this “joy center” in the brain is simultaneously the very same equipment needed to handle trauma throughout one's lifetime. If this part of the brain is not properly developed early in life, it leaves a person very vulnerable to being overwhelmed by stressful traumas that can leave them emotionally incapacitated in many respects until they have opportunity to increase this part of the brain later in life. Once they have had opportunity to increase their capacity for joy they can then have the capacity to go back and reprocess previously experienced traumas and successfully resolve them.

So should it come as any surprise that part of the main description of the kingdom of God includes the word joy? Joy is not just feeling happy and pleasurable. In fact, given this advanced definition of the real meaning of joy, it can sometimes feel quite different than those words might typically convey. I know this very acutely from person experience. But I can also vouch that true joy – someone willing and even happy to be close to me, to accept me unconditionally and who genuinely cares about me even in the midst of a most painful experience – is a most powerful stabilizing force and a source of bonding that has amazing capacity for healing and growth.

This is all starting to make more sense for me now in this context. What Paul seems to be saying to me here is that just as I need unconditional acceptance that can produce joy in my heart to help me endure trauma and trials, so too everyone around me needs someone to be genuinely glad to be with them in whatever they are experiencing without the element of judgment, condemnation, contempt or criticism in the areas in which my beliefs differ from theirs. I am being asked by God to be a potential source of joy in the Holy Spirit for others who are lacking in joy strength themselves.

If I want to really further the kingdom of God on this earth, it will not involve trying to coerce other people to adopt my set of doctrines or force others to attend my church or worship God in the style that I prefer. It will not be advanced wonderfully by massive preaching campaigns or getting many people to repeat some formula in words that supposedly cause them to be “saved”. According to this passage, the kingdom will be advanced when I begin to practice genuine acceptance of others with an open heart even while we may have different ideas about what is clean or unclean for our own souls.

Uncleanness has much more to do with the condition of the spirit of a person than with some contamination from incorrect beliefs or doctrines or external activities. And evidently, something that has a worse effect on the spirit than having faulty notions about what is clean or unclean is to be viewed with contempt by others claiming to by my brothers and sisters in Christ. That is the very opposite of joy and therefore should have no place in the fellowship of believers called the kingdom of God.

Father, my temple structure is far more compromised by the termites of deception and pride and selfishness than I can even imagine. The more facade You peel away the more damage is revealed and I observe the supernatural termites scurrying for cover. When I experience this I start to feel anxious and think that You should too. I expect You to rush in to condemn me for the false ideas that are uncovered and to insist that I correct them immediately. I am surprised rather often at the seemingly slow pace and the lack of excitement on Your part whenever my faults are exposed. But just like the exterminator yesterday had a patient, calm demeanor while he carefully resprayed the area for termites, You too always have a patient assurance that Your grace and truth will have their intended effects in my life in the long run.

Father, I am slowly learning to trust in Your ways, Your timing and Your methodical, meticulous and thorough work in my salvation. I'm sure glad You are in charge of this or it would simply never be possible in the slightest. Father, mentor me and teach me to treat others with the same, calm acceptance and respect that You continue to show me. Please cleanse me of all false notions and habits and assumptions about how I should treat others who believe differently than me and have unfounded fears that hamper their joy and freedom. Please help me to see them from Your perspective, to have Your sympathy, Your patience, Your compassion and to be willing to bring real joy to their hearts by my willingness to accept them just where they are without trying to change them myself. And I would certainly like it if You would send some people into my life that would be willing to do the same for me. Just a thought....

Keep reminding me that they are Your children, not mine and they are Your responsibility. You will show them the freedom You have for them when they are mature enough to be ready to receive and believe it. Please keep me from trying to force their flower petals open before they are ready. Remind me to rest in Your timing and Your work for them as well as for me. You are so gracious and patient and consistent with Your faithfulness and love. I trust You and rest in You and praise You for Your infinite power and grace.

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Service God's Way

For he who in this way serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men.

Do not tear down the work of God.... (Romans 14:18, 20)

There are times when I find it very helpful to discover meanings and definitions within the text that shed a lot of light on terms and concepts that are important for us to know. Because of the pervasive nature of deception in this world and particularly in religion, it is extremely important to keep watch for clues of the genuine where God is trying to reveal the real truth to us if we are willing to pay attention.

In these verses I see notice given that religion as many people tend to view it is likely practiced quite differently than the way God wants us to experience it. This whole passage, even this whole book, is addressing that very problem. Paul is trying to get people to see that God's desires for His children are radically different than the assumptions we have often had about what He wants for us. Much of what is labeled as “service” for Christ is, in His eyes, not really serving Him at all but is tearing down what He is working to build up.

The contractor that I work with likes to tell this little example to his customers on occasion. He tells them that sometimes people want to know if they can save any money by helping him as he works to repair their house and how much they might save. He tells them, “Well, I am certainly willing to let the homeowner help me work. Sometimes I offer to pay them ten dollars an hour and for others I charge them ten dollars an hour. That depends on how much real assistance you are, and right now I don't know which it will be until I see how you work.”

I think that God may feel that way about us many times. We have such grandiose plans of how we want to further God's work on earth and we spend much of our time, our lives and energy and creativity working to build up what we believe is the church of God while in actuality we are sometimes dismantling many of the things that from God's perspective are the elements of the true body He is knitting together. I have come to realize that quite likely God has to advance His work in spite of most of our efforts for Him much more than His work benefits because of our supposed work for Him.

But I also believe that God's work in the lives and hearts of people could advance much more quickly if we actually got closer to His heart ourselves and learned to see things from His perspective instead of what we are used to thinking. But this requires a much more radical paradigm shift in many areas of our thinking and the scrapping of most, if not all of our assumptions about God and about religion that most people are often unwilling to do. It is very difficult to let go of our deep-seated beliefs about religion and life and relationships. It is all we have ever known and we feel much safer clinging to the known than allowing our lives to be caught up in the swift current of God's passion for souls and be swept into the unknown to be used as He desires to use us.

I think about the previous verse here that explicitly describes what the kingdom of God really is and how different that is from how we perceive religion and God's kingdom. We are so addicted to force, to compulsion, to externals, so obsessed with appearances and so infiltrated with subtle pride and independence that it is nearly impossible for us to believe that God could ever operate outside our narrow parameters. But Paul tries to make it clearer here for us. The kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. (Romans 14:17)

The external nature of religion is so deeply ingrained in my own thinking from my upbringing that whenever I read this verse a voice inside instantly points out that the word righteousness must mean right behavior and that means focusing on being a good person and obeying and.... If you are familiar with this kind of thinking I believe you can get the drift toward performance. But this only betrays my own problem of fighting against false ideas about religion that still reside inside of my brain and tends to infiltrate everything that passes through it. While God has been very gracious in sharing with me many things that are opposite of what I previously believed and assumed, I am becoming more and more aware of many assumptions still very much entrenched within my heart that need to be exposed and replaced with God's perspective and God's ways.

Because of this I am coming much more into sympathy with the Psalmist who repeatedly wrote that he wanted to understand God's ways, His laws and His statutes. I used to cringe every time I read those sorts of things in the Psalms because for me laws meant arbitrary and repulsive rules and restrictions that were anything but life-giving or appealing. But in the past few years as my perception of God has changed so much in response to His on-going revelations to my heart, my definitions of religious words and phrases has been repeatedly revised and transformed. I am coming to be much more attracted to the true God of heaven, my Father who I am coming to actually believe loves me in ways that make a difference to my heart. I have been slowly accepting His view of true religion as the falseness of popular religion has been more and more exposed in the light of surprising and exciting revelations of His true character. Because of this I am becoming more intensely hungry to know more about Him and how He relates to us because it is so much more attractive and appealing than I ever dreamed in previous years.

That is the reason why each time this inner voice tries to convince me that righteousness means primarily outward performance that I have to remind myself that this definition comes from a lying spirit that still haunts me from my past. It is a religious spirit but still a lying spirit nonetheless. And this verse is one of the most effective flashlights that shines light on the false nature of this assumption about the word righteousness. This verse makes very clear that God's priorities are primarily about the condition of my heart and my spirit and not about external trappings and performances of religion. If I don't get that crucial truth firmly in place within my belief system nothing else will ever fit together correctly. This truth is absolutely fundamental to a proper relationship with God and a healthy perception of true religion.

I see this verse as a warning for me. It tells me that religion can easily become a distraction from experiencing the real kingdom of God. True kingdom thinking is not to be focused on the externals and working hard to maintain appearances but is all about the condition of my heart, my attitudes and my relationships. Anytime I find myself zeroing in on performance in any arena and forget that the condition of my spirit is more important, then it is very likely that I will find myself getting out of balance and becoming derailed from the truly important things that keep me in touch with my Creator.

The externals are the symptoms by which I can learn what is going on at the deeper levels of my being since I often cannot consciously access what is really in my heart most of the time. I believe that much of what God is working to repair and correct is at the sub-conscious level of our being and is therefore frustrating to those who want to measure and keep tabs on their Christian growth. But it is impossible to perceive much of the deeper things within us simply because they are outside the ability of our brain to access. But our conscious choices do have great influence on our subconscious processes and it is our spirit that lies at the center of the great battle between good and evil, between God and His archenemy and the great deceiver, Satan.

So while the externals are not to be ignored or marginalized, they need to always be put back repeatedly in their proper place in our priorities and God's Spirit must be sensed and followed more consistently. If I give more focus and attention to Sabbath-keeping than on the condition of my spirit for which the Sabbath was given, then I am getting derailed from true spirituality. If I get more obsessed about facts of Scripture than I am attracted to the heart of the One the Scriptures are trying to reveal to me, then I am becoming anesthetized by deception. If I get worked up and anxious in the slightest about diet, about dress, about religious activities and performances then I am being sucked into the false security of counterfeit righteousness and I need to repent and turn again to seek God's face and deepen my vital connection with His heart of passionate love.

God, You know the weakness and falseness of my heart far better than I can ever know. I throw myself on Your mercy and grace and trust in Your love, Your wisdom and Your kindness to keep bringing me back to focus my whole life on knowing Your heart. I give You permission again and ask You to reveal Yourself much more clearly to my heart and teach me Your ways. I want to see much more clearly Your eternal principles that for us have been called laws. Please cleanse me of all resistance to Your work in my heart. Take me today, bless me, transform me and mentor me. I want to see what You are doing and to be used by You to cooperate with Your true work in other people's lives instead of ignorantly tearing down the very things You are trying to build up in other hearts. Open my eyes, my ears, my heart and draw me to Yourself today for Your name's sake.

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Clean and Unclean - 3

Happy is he who does not condemn himself in what he approves. (Romans 14:22)

Guilt and condemnation is, at the brain level, a tension created by conflict between opposing beliefs held in the left and right brain – between intellectual beliefs and strongly held experiential or emotional beliefs. In the situation Paul is describing here, a person may try to accept intellectually the belief that there is nothing spiritually unclean about something he is encouraged to eat, or some activity. But if that belief is forced on him by others judging him, then at the emotional and heart level this belief has not taken hold and this other part of their brain does not really believe this truth. Then whenever that person might engage in those activities or partake of those things, conflict will take place within their own being and tension will ensue and grow as a feeling of guilt inside of their mind.

Just as this takes place within the mind of a person, so too in the body of Christ whenever one person views another with contempt, a feeling of guilt and condemnation is created which is very debilitating and discouraging. The heavy weight of feeling condemned is a burden we were not designed to carry around, it is the very opposite of the joyful lifestyle that Jesus desires for us in which our soul can thrive and grow and bond together with others and with Him.

It is not enough just to try to intellectually refrain from condemning one's self about something that they feel is wrong or unclean. This is why Paul keeps talking about a much deeper level of belief in this passage. This deeper level is called a conviction, being convinced, having a belief at the level of conscience that allows one the freedom to do things that formerly were unthinkable without having twinges of fear and guilt.

This is not the same thing as hardening the heart against true convictions of the Spirit of God so that we can do wrong things without feeling guilty. That is the counterfeit of this kind of conviction. Also, this freedom from condemnation is not the same thing as convincing ourselves that our opinion is right or better than others and thus allowing pride to slowly extinguish the voice of God in our souls. That may appear very similar to what Paul is talking about here, and this passage may even be used to justify such activity. But that is not the point that Paul wants to make here.

What is needed, both in our own experience and in our relationships with others within the body of believers, is a humility of spirit but also a congruency of belief. This is what is sometimes called an integrated personality where our beliefs also correspond with our gut-level feelings and impulses. Apparently the importance of this congruency is very high in God's eyes, and a lack of consistency in our own heart and thinking is a very serious liability that needs to be addressed even more so than our lack of accurate information.

What Paul might be saying here is that instead of externals or misinformation being the cause of our becoming spiritually unclean, it is our relationships and the cherished attitudes of our spirit that is most likely to have that effect in our lives. The debilitating effect of “uncleanness” on our spirit can not only come from the guilt involved in eating certain things that we may believe can produce condemnation but also can come from receiving contempt and judgment from others who should be there to encourage and lift us up. Thus, fellow Christians can potentially become the source of uncleanness of the spirit for us in place of forbidden activities that were part of the Old Covenant restrictions.

Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died. Therefore do not let what is for you a good thing be spoken of as evil. (Romans 14:15-16)

Is this talking about physical destruction here? I don't believe so, at least not in the immediate sense. So it must be talking about the tearing down of the spirit. Do not tear down the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are clean, but they are evil for the man who eats and gives offense. (Romans 14:20) In verse 17 Paul explicitly clarifies what he is referring to here. The kingdom of God is not about externals as we continue to often suppose, but is about having our spirit properly aligned and synchronized and connected with the life of God Himself. This will produce real righteousness, unimaginable peace and true joy in the Holy Spirit.

What is being described here is a transition of maturity from childhood to adulthood in the spiritual life of God's people on earth. God is trying to take us past the simplistic rules needed for the protection of little children to more meaningful levels of relationship with Him through mature ways of living and thinking. That does not mean that what we were taught as children no longer applies – that is the logic of fools. It means that we shift our priorities and focus on the things that God now wants us to consider as of more importance appropriate for our more advanced level of maturity. Instead of throwing away the past instructions God gave, we should be building on their foundational principles and coming to understand them better in the increased light of advanced truth.

Present truth never discards past truth but will tend to enhance and expand on it more clearly. Some of the simplistic, childlike restrictions may be withdrawn or outgrown as one matures, but that does not mean that the underlying reasons for those restrictions no longer exist. It means that we are being trusted to act more responsibly and are being trusted to think and relate in more mature ways. If we fail to use our new freedoms responsibly we fail to enter into the proper place of advanced mature responsibility in God's family that He designs for us to enjoy.

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Clean and Unclean - 2

...nothing is unclean in itself; but to him who thinks anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. (Romans 14:14)

I am searching for the real meaning and nature of this concept of “unclean” here. I realize that it comes from many statements and prohibitions found in the laws of Moses and carefully observed by the Jews down through the centuries. It was also was part of the process of the externalization of spirituality that became what we call often call “religion” which largely has stripped away the inner core of what God intended for His people to experience with Him. Nearly all that is left in religion is the artificial external symptoms of what should emerge from a real relationship with God, outward evidence that is supposed to emerge from a genuine growth in knowledge and grace from true spiritual development.

It is all too easy to just brush aside all the Old Testament ceremonial restrictions as irrelevant to our lives today where we can now live “not under the law”. But this has far too often led to brushing aside things that God never intended to be lost sight of and that are still vital to our relationship with Him. While the Old Covenant arrangements in many respects are no longer in place because they have been superseded and fulfilled by Gospel realities, it is important for us even today to understand the true meaning of the Old Covenant concepts because the core principles that they reflected are eternal in nature and still hold very significant meaning for us for all time.

Paul is pointing out here an important aspect of this idea that needs to be noted. The uncleanness that he is referring to is something in the mind and heart, not an external, physical uncleanness which is another but seperate very real problem that has little to do with ceremonial issues. And while the two kinds of uncleanness often paralleled and overlapped each other, we must be careful not to summarily dismiss physical laws of health in our rush to ignore ceremonial restrictions that were fulfilled in the life and death of the Messiah.

Paul tells us that the things that were previously considered unclean in a ceremonial sense were unclean because of how they were to be viewed from the standpoint of the mind of the person so instructed. Something that was ceremonially unclean was not inherently so because of some intrinsic quality within it. So the real uncleanness was something that was going on internally in the mind, not just something that might infect the body with disease or poison, though again that was also often a very real possibility as well. And because this kind of contamination was in the mind it would have strong effect on the person's relationships both with God and with others around them.

What does it mean for us today to know the truth about something being unclean under the Old Covenant arrangement? How does it help us to understand God's ways better to learn that things are not intrinsically ceremonially unclean in and of themselves as this verse seems to indicate? I believe that there are some things that are very important in this area that can be helpful for enhancing and deepening my own relationship with God once I begin to understand it better.

Uncleanness is not fictional, it is real but maybe different than what we often think. The uncleanness that is referred to here seems to have strong implications that are of a spiritual nature and are not always referring to physical uncleanliness. But the problem often arises when we fail to distinguish between the two and jump to an assumption that nothing we eat will hurt us because the spiritual uncleanness no longer carries religious condemnation.

In the Old Testament, God very often merged the physical and religious laws together to make life more simple for very simple minds. As we usually do for very immature children, the rules had to be very plain and simple for His immature people to be safe and protected and to be able to thrive until they were old enough in terms of maturity to absorb more of the complexities and differences between what is physically dangerous and what is spiritually contaminating. Just as He gave directions for not touching dead things, personal hygiene and other laws related to clean and unclean, I believe the main reason God created classes of clean and unclean meats was in part to simplify the directions for their life and to keep them from destroying themselves by unhealthy habits that would negatively affect their ability to relate to God with their physical minds.

Science today has discovered that the flesh foods that God declared unclean in the Old Testament are far less conducive to healthful living than other foods. But that makes one wonder why many Christians today are so eager to indulge in “foods” that were once prohibited as unclean by God in the Old Testament? I suspect it is not really a sign of maturity and freedom as they want to suppose but is more of a sign of ignorance and pride and self-dependence. Insisting that the freedoms enjoyed by those who are supposed to be mature gives license to ignore the deeper principles of health and lifestyles is not a liberating truth of a new dispensation but is an insult to the wisdom and guidance and care of God for His people in the past. Instead of trying to see how much we can get away with in our supposed “freedoms” from “clean” and “unclean” laws, it would make better sense that we should try to understand more clearly the deeper reasons those were given in the first place and incorporate those principles into our own lives so as to better enable us to draw closer to the life that measures with the life of God.

In the New Testament, God is trying to relate hopefully to a little higher level of maturity in His people and begins to differentiate between what is spiritually healthy and unhealthy and no longer puts so much emphasis on the externals and the physical. Does that mean that suddenly certain items that are eaten are no longer unhealthy that were previously? Or does it mean that God is trying to move us beyond simplistic thinking to view life in more complex and mature ways of thinking? Do the principles behind the simplistic rules we make for our young children suddenly disappear when they get older? Or do we count on those principles being so absorbed into their thinking and lifestyle that we no longer have to insist on those restrictions so much and can move on to more complex and satisfying understandings which are needed to be learned in order for them to live responsibly as adults?

Is it no longer necessary for a person to wash their hands after working or dealing with contamination simply because they have grown older and their parents are no longer in charge? That is patently absurd. But we hope to be able to assume that a person will learn about the reasons behind the need to wash their hands before they handle food or eat and this habit will be so ingrained into their thinking that we will not need to continue to dwell on it long after the age of childhood has passed.

Paul does not say here in this verse (Romans 14:14) that he believes that nothing is unclean, he only says that the uncleanness is not inherent in the thing considered unclean but is rather in the mind or heart of the person viewing it as unclean. To him who thinks it is unclean could include Paul as well, but not necessarily.

What is becoming clear is that condemnation and judging about what is clean or unclean is far more destructive than any potential negative effects of violating “clean” laws. The harmful effects of being judged and condemned are destructive both when received from others or when imposed on ourselves internally.

What are the eternal principles underlying the clean laws and restrictions? That is important to know.

How do those still-true principles apply to our lives today and affect our relationship with God?

Just because the spirit with which we approach these issues is more important the the external details does not mean that the externals can be ignored altogether. We still must retain balance while keeping our priorities always in the right order.

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