The Law of Liberty (Matthew 7:1–6; Luke 6:37–42)
2 UDB Some people believe that they may eat all kinds of food. Others believe that God does not want them to eat certain things, so they believe that they may eat only vegetables. BSB BSB: For one person has faith to eat all things, while another, who is weak, eats only vegetables.
3 UDB Anyone who thinks that it is all right to eat all kinds of food must not despise those who do not think that. Anyone who thinks it is not all right to eat all kinds of food must not condemn those who think differently, because God himself has accepted those people. BSB BSB: The one who eats everything must not belittle the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted him.
4 UDB You are wrong when you evaluate someone else's servant. We are all God's servants, so God is the master of us all. He is the one who will decide whether those people have done wrong. No one should judge another in this regard, because God is able to keep them faithful to him. BSB BSB: Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. And he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
6 UDB As for those who believe that they should worship on a certain day of the week, it is to honor the Lord that they worship on that day. And as for those who think that it is all right to eat all kinds of food, it is to honor the Lord that they eat those foods because they thank God for their food. As for those who abstain from eating certain kinds of food, it is to honor the Lord that they do not eat those foods, and they also thank God for the food that they do eat. So these people are not wrong, even though they think differently. BSB BSB: He who observes a special day does so to the Lord; he who eats does so to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.
7 UDB None of us should live merely to please ourselves, and none of us should think that when we die it affects only us. BSB BSB: For none of us lives to himself alone, and none of us dies to himself alone.
8 UDB While we live, it is the Lord whom we belong to and should be trying to please, and not just ourselves. And when we die, it is the Lord whom we should be trying to please. So, while we live and also when we die, we should try to please the Lord, for we belong to him. BSB BSB: If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord. So whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.
9 UDB For Christ died and became alive again so that he might be the Lord whom all people should obey, both those who are alive and those who are dead. BSB BSB: For this reason Christ died and returned to life, that He might be the Lord of both the dead and the living.
10 UDB It is disgraceful that you who obey certain rules say that God will punish your fellow believers who do not obey them. For God will judge each one of us. BSB BSB: Why, then, do you judge your brother? Or why do you belittle your brother? For we will all stand before God’s judgment seat.
11 UDB We know this because God's words are written in the scriptures: "I myself promise you that everyone will bow down before me, and everyone will praise me." BSB BSB: It is written: “As surely as I live, says the Lord, every knee will bow before Me; every tongue will confess to God.”
12 UDB So we will each have to tell God what we have done and let him decide whether or not he approves of it. BSB BSB: So then, each of us will give an account of himself to God.
The Law of Love (Ezekiel 14:1–11; 1 Corinthians 8:1–13)
13 UDB Since it is God who will judge everyone, we must stop saying that God should punish some of our fellow believers. Instead, you must be determined never to cause another brother or sister to sin or to stop trusting Christ. BSB BSB: Therefore let us stop judging one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother’s way.
15 UDB If you eat food that a fellow believer thinks is wrong to eat, you might cause him to stop obeying God. You would no longer be loving him. Do not cause any fellow believer to stop trusting in Christ. After all, Christ died for him also. BSB BSB: If your brother is distressed by what you eat, you are no longer acting in love. Do not by your eating destroy your brother, for whom Christ died.
16 UDB Similarly, do not do something that fellow believers would call bad, even if you think it is good. BSB BSB: Do not allow what you consider good, then, to be spoken of as evil.
17 UDB When God rules how we live, we do not worry about what we eat and drink. Instead, we think about the right way to obey him, have peace with each other, and rejoice because of the Holy Spirit. BSB BSB: For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
18 UDB Those who serve Christ by acting in such ways please God, and others will also respect them. BSB BSB: For whoever serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and approved by men.
19 UDB So we should always eagerly try to live in a way that will cause peace among fellow Christians, and we should try to do what will help each other to trust and obey Christ. BSB BSB: So then, let us pursue what leads to peace and to mutual edification.
20 UDB Do not destroy what God has done to help any believer, just because you want to eat a certain kind of food. It is true that God allows us to eat every kind of food. But if you eat something that another believer thinks is wrong, then you are encouraging him to do what he thinks is wrong. BSB BSB: Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a man to let his eating be a stumbling block.
21 UDB It is good not to eat meat, drink wine, or do anything else at any time if it will cause one of your fellow believers to stop trusting in God. BSB BSB: It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything to cause your brother to stumble.
22 UDB Let God tell you what things are right for you to do, but do not try to force others to accept what you believe. And you will please God if you have no doubts about your convictions about what is right and wrong to do. BSB BSB: Keep your belief about such matters between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who does not condemn himself by what he approves.
23 UDB But some believers fear that God will not be pleased if they eat certain kinds of food. And indeed, he will say that they have done wrong, if they do not do what they believe to be right. If we do anything without being certain that God approves of it, we are sinning. BSB BSB: But the one who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that is not from faith is sin.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.