Who will stop the selfishness and pride? Who will intervene so that ‘the strong’ believers with their freedom do not destroy ‘the weak’ who are not quite there yet? Who will bring true unity without one side bringing distress on the other because they are demanding change?
“Therefore do not let what you know is good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, because anyone who serves Christ in this way is pleasing to God and receives human approval. (Romans 14 v 16-18)
Even those who have found freedom that Christ has brought can turn their good into bad because of the way they conduct their lives.
Is their hope?
The Church needs to look like Christ. Our horizontal relationships need to align with our vertical connection. We need to be right with one another; we need to be peaceful with one another and the Church needs to be more joyful. Our hope is the Holy Spirit.
The evidence of the Holy Spirit is that members are not destroyed for the sake of food or whatever issue is also of non-importance.
The Church becomes a safe place to grow at the pace of the Spirit because the Spirit is present.
The Church becomes a non-judgmental place where members are not grieved because they are not free enough or meeting some standard.
This is the work of the Spirit. This is the hallmark of a Spirit-filled Church.
Missions Paul 