Christian Liberty

Hopefully, you have now read Romans 14. And hopefully, in that passage, you have discovered why I believe that neither Nollie, Corrie or Betsie sinned in either lying or not lying, as they saw fit to do.

“Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. Who art thou that judgest another man’s servant? To his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eatheth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks, and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks.” (Romans 14:1-6 KJV)

“Hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemneth not himself in that thing which he alloweth. And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” (Romans 14: 22-23 KJV)

What I understand from Romans 14 is that Nollie believed that she was commanded by God not to lie, and so her faith was such that she had to stand firmly on that belief and act accordingly, even if it put another person’s (and her own) life in danger. God rewarded her because what she did, she did by faith. If Nollie, who had always believed this way, suddenly acted differently than what she had always believed, then she would have sinned. Perhaps, another person’s life had never been at stake before, so it took all the more courage to remain true to what she believed was true. Nevertheless, she acted properly according to her faith.

Corrie and Betsie, on the other hand, had faith that believed that God would allow them to lie in order to protect another person’s life. (An example of this is Rahab the prostitute in Jericho – Joshua 2:1-24 – who lied to protect two Israelites and yet she is listed in the book of Hebrews as having faith.) Corrie and Betsie acted according to their faith as well, and so God rewarded them by protecting all those for whom they lied, and delivering them safely.

The point is that we are to do nothing unless we do it by faith. “For without faith it is impossible to please God: for He that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6 KJV)

And we are to be true and consistent (not hypocrites) in our faith so that, once again, our actions match our words.

It helps me to remember what Romans 14 says regarding each of us believers being a servant of God and therefore God being our master, so why do we need to judge or worry about the actions of another brother or sister in the Lord, at least in matters that really don’t amount to that much according to God, it seems. Since God is your master, and you are His servant, I don’t need to involve myself much in your affairs of faith now, do I?

For me, this is a lesson about having the courage of my convictions….and also about having grace toward my fellow brother or sister in the Lord.

[This blog is an ongoing study of the lives and the faith of Christian women who have experienced and demonstrated victorious living through Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. The current study is about Corrie ten Boom which began on September 21, 2009.]