If a person wants to have a glass of wine privately in their home, then don’t they have the liberty to do so by Romans 14?<\/p>\n\t
“Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is weak eats only vegetables. Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat, and let not him who does not eat judge him who eats; for God has received him. Who are you to judge another’s servant? To his own master he stands or falls. Indeed, he will be made to stand, for God is able to make him stand<\/i>” (Romans 14:1-4).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
The flaw in this argument is the assumption that drinking alcoholic beverages recreationally or casually is permitted by God. Romans 14 is not a license to sin. In fact, earlier in Romans Paul said, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?<\/i>” (Romans 6:1-2).<\/p>\n
To see this, let us substitute a sin that we both agree is wrong. “If a person wants to commit adultery in the privacy of their home, they don’t they have the liberty to do so by Romans 14?” The answer is clearly “no!” We are not given the liberty to decide what is or is not a sin for ourselves.<\/p>\n
If you go through the examples Paul gives in Romans 14, you find that in all cases, both positions held are right. It is perfectly fine for a person to decide to be a vegetarian. It is also perfectly fine for a person to eat meat because God has given permission to both eat vegetables and to eat meat. Where things become messy is when people decide that everyone\u00a0must<\/b>\u00a0eat the type of food they have chosen. Romans 14 is about allowing brethren the liberty to do things differently so long as they are not wrong. Remember, Paul said, “God is able to make him stand<\/i>” (Romans 14:4).<\/p>\n
We both agree that if a person chooses to forego casual drinking of alcoholic beverages that this is an acceptable stance in the sight of God. What is then required is proof that the use of alcohol recreationally is also approved by God. Only then can Romans 14 be applied to the situation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: If a person wants to have a glass of wine privately in their home, then don’t they have the liberty to do so by Romans 14? Answer: “Receive one who is weak in the faith, but not to disputes over doubtful things. For one believes he may eat all things, but he who is…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[371],"class_list":["post-2684","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-alcohol"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1718,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/did-paul-sometimes-drink-wine\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":0},"title":"Did Paul sometimes drink wine?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2004","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Paul said in Romans that he would eat no meat if it causes his brother to stumble or be offended. In the same context, he mentions wine a few verses later. I have concluded that he would neither eat meat or drink wine if it caused his brother to\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2588,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/are-you-saying-god-condemns-vegetarians\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":1},"title":"Are you saying God condemns vegetarians?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 21, 2005","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Please clarify\u00a0the latter part of your response. I just want to make sure I understood you correctly. Are you suggesting that I will be punished on Judgment Day by God for my choice not to eat red meat and poultry? Answer: Not at all. There is nothing wrong with\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17595,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/your-article-sounds-as-if-being-a-vegetarian-is-a-sign-of-not-being-a-true-believer\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":2},"title":"Your article sounds as if being a vegetarian is a sign of not being a true believer","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"January 26, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Although I agree with much of what was written in \"Was Jesus a Vegetarian?,\" I have a problem with the last statement:\u00a0\"...the forbidding of eating certain foods is an indication of people departing from the Christian faith.\" Although this indeed could be true, you make it sound as if\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":13370,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/should-the-church-building-be-used-for-weddings-or-funerals\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":3},"title":"Should the church building be used for weddings or funerals?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"December 13, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: A good friend of mine told me about your web site and that your material has been a wonderful resource for him. You have a wonderful article answering the question: \u201cIs it scriptural to have recorded music (not vocal) in a wedding ceremony that is held in the church\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":24555,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/can-romans-1421-be-used-to-justify-the-use-of-alcoholic-beverages\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":4},"title":"Can Romans 14:21 be used to justify the use of alcoholic beverages?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 17, 2010","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: May His grace continually flourish in the good work He has started in our life. About Romans 14:21, many brothers in our congregation are having a field day with this verse. The worse are the defenses they use to justify drinking. I will not say am the weak type,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":40986,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/romans-14-follow-after-things-which-make-peace\/","url_meta":{"origin":2684,"position":5},"title":"Romans 14: “Follow After Things Which Make Peace”","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 20, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"by Melvin Curry Truth Magazine, January 4, 1979 When Paul affirmed that \"there is no distinction between Jew and Greek: for the same Lord is Lord of all\" (Romans 10:12), he was fully aware of the problems posed by the fellowship of Christians with such different religious backgrounds. 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