Dale Partridge - Romans 15_1-7 - How to Navigate Differences in Christian Liberty and Conviction： Part 3

00:00:00.000 Well, praise God. We are, you don't realize that you saw a miracle of the last two weeks

00:00:11.060 because we got through Romans 14 in two weeks. Okay. That was an incredible feat. I've been

00:00:17.920 in Romans for two and a half years now. It feels like I think, I think it's actually

00:00:21.580 about right, about right, maybe two, two and a half years. And so absolute blessing to

00:00:27.620 fly through a chapter of Romans. But we are in 15, 1 through 7 this morning. And today we finish

00:00:35.780 this three-part section that Paul is talking about how to navigate differences between liberty

00:00:43.220 and conscience. Liberty and conscience. Part 1 was chapter 14, verses 1 through 12. Part 2 was

00:00:54.040 14, 13 through 23. And today is going to be chapter 15, 1 through 7. That whole section

00:01:01.540 is on one topic, navigating differences within the church. And you think, wow, that's a lot of

00:01:09.920 content to dedicate to this particular topic. Paul does it again in 1 Corinthians. This is

00:01:15.500 obviously a very important topic. Now, the central call of this section of Romans is to eliminate 0.94

00:01:25.500 unnecessary division, to eliminate unnecessary division, and to preserve unity for Christ's sake

00:01:35.860 and the testimony of the church to the world. That is why we preserve unity. Jesus prays,

00:01:43.220 John chapter 17, the high priestly prayer, he says in verse 21, he says, Father, may they all be one

00:01:49.240 as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they all may be one in us, that the world may believe

00:01:56.740 that you sent me. Unnecessary division. And there's a time for division, division of truth

00:02:06.140 and error. That's a, that's a right division, but unnecessary division on secondary and

00:02:11.300 tertiary matters, causes the world to doubt that the Father sent Jesus to be the Savior of sinners.

00:02:20.460 Look at that group over there. They all hate each other. Yeah. Sounds like I want to go to church.

00:02:28.500 Division is wicked in the church. Now, division is not just harmful. It's actually a grave sin

00:02:35.240 against God. On Friday, I was meeting with a pastor in town, and this pastor had experienced

00:02:42.380 a sobering account that he had shared. A woman in their congregation had been extremely divisive

00:02:50.300 for a period of time. I don't know how long it was, months to years. Not long after she had been

00:02:58.220 corrected over and over again, she mysteriously and suddenly died. Now the pastor accounted and

00:03:08.640 believed that it was an act of divine judgment. That's what he associated that with. Now I know

00:03:14.740 we should always be cautious about interpreting providence, and who knows, the Lord knows about

00:03:19.860 the reality of that. But scripture does actually show that God kills people who divide the church.

00:03:28.860 I'm going to give you some scriptures. Okay. Numbers 16, Korah and his followers inside a

00:03:34.600 rebellion and division against Moses and Aaron. And what happens? Well, God opens up the earth

00:03:40.360 and they fall into their death. In 2 Samuel 15 through 18, Absalom, he stirs up division and

00:03:47.640 controversy and takes the hearts of the people away from David and to himself, dividing God's

00:03:53.800 people. And God takes Absalom's life through Joab in battle. 1 Corinthians chapter 11, Paul talks

00:04:02.280 about the Corinthian church having divisions for their selfishness during the Lord's Supper.

00:04:11.080 and paul says that is why many of you are weak and ill and some have died there's actually many

00:04:20.160 more instances in the scriptures that speak about this unity in the church is god's will

00:04:27.100 it's very serious and if unity is god's will it must be your will because we are to say

00:04:35.560 thy will be done. I will submit to your will, God. Your will for this church should be unity.

00:04:45.720 Now, I don't know about you, but when I hear calls of unity in the church, it can often feel

00:04:49.800 overwhelming. You go, oh, I don't even know if I can do this because I look at the church and the

00:04:56.080 controversies on the internet and the national divisions, the denominational lines, my own church

00:05:03.740 experience and my own wounds and hurt from divisive

00:05:07.560 conflict in the church.

00:05:11.600 And, you know, you see the Lutherans that are damning, you know,

00:05:15.880 the Baptists and the Baptists that are damning the Presbyterians 0.91

00:05:19.440 for baptizing babies. And then you got, you know, the Calvinists 0.66

00:05:23.420 bashing on the Arminians and the Dispensationalists

00:05:27.100 bashing on the Theonomists. And it's just this constant

00:05:30.600 dumpster fire of people fighting each other to the death

00:05:35.240 over secondary and tertiary doctrine dividing the body of Christ

00:05:39.280 that is tarnishing the ministry and witness of the church

00:05:43.080 and it's sinful doesn't mean that we don't have

00:05:47.120 cordial loving respectful conversations around doctrine again I always use John

00:05:54.100 MacArthur and R.C. Sproul not ever that I see them

00:05:57.740 disrespect one another, ever. And yet they had wildly different doctrine. It's amazing that

00:06:05.660 we have inherited a generation that cannot understand that reality. Now, this week,

00:06:12.840 in an effort to eliminate the kind of constant anathematizing that I've seen on the internet,

00:06:20.560 that I was led to write a post.

00:06:23.780 I wrote, quote,

00:06:24.540 Any believer, any believer in a denomination or a tradition

00:06:29.840 who can affirm the Trinity,

00:06:34.920 affirm the Apostles' Creed,

00:06:39.920 say Christ is Lord,

00:06:43.160 has been baptized and professes faith in Christ,

00:06:47.180 that person, all we can say is saved.

00:06:50.080 I don't care if that's a Roman Catholic, an Eastern Orthodox, a Lutheran, a Baptist, an Arminian.

00:06:55.040 I don't care. 0.92

00:06:55.820 If they will say all of those things, we know the Mormons can't do that. 0.68

00:07:01.120 We know the Jehovah's Witnesses can't do that. 0.75

00:07:03.880 But any believer in any denomination or tradition who can affirm the Trinity, the Apostles' Creed,

00:07:08.420 say Christ as Lord has been baptized, professes faith in Jesus, I can say that person's a believer.

00:07:14.980 We might have vital differences on doctrine.

00:07:17.600 doctrine that i would maybe even die for

00:07:21.500 but i'm not going to be able to say you're going to hell

00:07:26.780 if all those things are true we need to get back to that place

00:07:32.240 to have cordial discussions on these matters now look i have strong opinions on doctrine

00:07:39.800 but we need to have stronger opinions on unity okay we have strong opinions on doctrine

00:07:47.360 What's your pet doctrine?

00:07:48.620 Calvinism?

00:07:50.180 Dispensationalism?

00:07:51.700 Premillennialism?

00:07:53.100 Biblical patriarchy?

00:07:54.520 What is it?

00:07:56.260 Okay, you should have stronger opinions on unity.

00:08:02.180 So while this sermon speaks of God's universal principle of unity,

00:08:08.600 the application is local.

00:08:11.840 So again, you go, oh man, I'm overwhelmed.

00:08:13.880 Unity?

00:08:14.980 Look at the mess out there.

00:08:17.600 Unity?

00:08:19.160 Okay.

00:08:21.100 Don't get distracted about what's happening out there.

00:08:25.880 When we hear about unity, I'm talking about this.

00:08:32.880 Take the text and apply it to this.

00:08:36.480 First to your own household, then to these people.

00:08:39.860 And if you have anything left in you, sure, go out and try to start fighting for unity in the greater church.

00:08:49.020 Now, if you recall, Paul is dealing with cultivating unity between weak and strong Christians.

00:08:59.220 I found one illustration from a pastor pretty helpful.

00:09:02.100 He said, quote, Christians can be compared to porcupines.

00:09:06.000 On a cold winter night, porcupines huddle together in order to keep warm. 0.83

00:09:11.220 But as they draw together, their spines actually dig into each other and cause them to pull back apart.

00:09:17.640 So all night long is a process of huddling together and pulling apart.

00:09:22.900 Many churches fit that description, he says.

00:09:26.560 This is the essential problem that Paul is addressing.

00:09:29.980 How do Christians in the local church remain close without poking each other?

00:09:36.360 I thought that was helpful.

00:09:38.640 You see, some people in the church may be poked by the freedoms that you have.

00:09:47.780 Others might be poked by the sensitive consciences that you might have

00:09:53.380 and the convictions that you might have.

00:09:55.760 As we saw last week, this principle has a wide range of modern applications from modesty and head coverings to drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco, holiday celebrations, Christmas, Sabbath.

00:10:16.980 There are a variety of applications for this concept and universal principle.

00:10:22.580 so so far the central takeaway has been a four-part takeaway and i'm going to just

00:10:29.180 give that to you before we get rolling here number one don't condemn your strong brothers

00:10:34.140 and sisters for their freedoms and liberties if your brother can drink a glass of wine before the

00:10:41.260 lord don't condemn him for it because it is extremely i mean again if i'm talking to an

00:10:50.080 SBC church in Alabama, they're going to go, well, alcohol is sinful. Well, the reality is

00:10:56.180 there is a freedom. All things are lawful, but not all things are helpful, Paul says.

00:11:03.400 All things are lawful, but not all things build up, but all things are lawful.

00:11:10.620 Number two, don't condemn your weak brothers and sisters for their sensitive consciences

00:11:17.760 or personal convictions around these matters so if the guy is frustrated with you for

00:11:24.800 your freedom to drink don't condemn him for his weak conscience instead point three

00:11:30.780 the strong are responsible to limit their liberty for the sake of the weaker brother or sister

00:11:40.940 And number four, if the strong have liberties which might stumble a believer that is weaker, keep those freedoms between you and the Lord.

00:11:59.640 Go smoke a cigar on your back deck.

00:12:02.960 Go have that glass of whiskey in your bed as you're getting ready for tidying up the night.

00:12:10.940 Go celebrate that holiday.

00:12:13.560 And you know what?

00:12:15.280 I'm not saying that you need to keep things completely private.

00:12:17.700 You can have those conversations with those brothers and sisters in the church that share those same liberties.

00:12:23.120 But to flaunt your liberties in the face of those who may be weak or who have told you that they are weak.

00:12:31.520 As a way of persuasion to your position.

00:12:34.740 Is what Paul is addressing.

00:12:39.200 Now verse 15 says,

00:12:40.940 We who are strong, sorry, verse 1 says, chapter 15, verse 1 says,

00:12:48.600 We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves.

00:12:57.820 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up.

00:13:01.920 Don't you love it when scripture is so clear?

00:13:04.280 Okay, you can read stuff from Paul and you're like, wait, what did you say?

00:13:07.300 I have to read that 14 times before I understand it.

00:13:10.080 You don't have to do that with this verse.

00:13:12.060 It's really easy.

00:13:13.620 We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failures of the weak.

00:13:17.480 Okay?

00:13:18.600 So first, notice that Paul places himself among the category of the strong.

00:13:26.820 Implying that having freedoms is a sign of maturity.

00:13:31.180 It's a good thing.

00:13:33.320 When you don't have your conscience bound to the externalism of, you know, you can't do certain things and certain holidays.

00:13:39.420 No, you're totally free in the gospel.

00:13:40.960 And you get that?

00:13:41.760 That's a strength.

00:13:45.220 Second, he says that the strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak.

00:13:54.000 So it's not good to have an ultra-sensitive conscience and not understand that all things are lawful.

00:14:01.460 You're free to basically do anything as long as it doesn't sit against the law of God.

00:14:10.240 But wine in and of itself does not sin against the law of God.

00:14:13.940 Drunkenness does.

00:14:16.440 Drunkenness does.

00:14:18.020 Tobacco in and of itself does not sin against the law of God.

00:14:23.000 But abusing it might or using it as a way to stumble another brother it might.

00:14:32.100 So Paul does not sugar foot around these issues of right and wrong.

00:14:37.260 Doctrinally speaking, the strong are right and the weak are wrong, doctrinally speaking.

00:14:42.840 But what makes this entire narrative so interesting is that being right is less important than being loving.

00:14:54.300 I know a lot of you who are married can understand that reality.

00:14:59.800 Sometimes being loving is more important than being right.

00:15:02.640 and the men often say well being right is being loving

00:15:07.960 well there's truth to that now the greek word for obligation

00:15:14.720 ophelo it means a duty to pay you have a duty you have an obligation

00:15:22.280 you have goodwill that is due it's often translated as the word ought ought

00:15:29.980 uh example uh in ephesians husbands ought to love their wives as christ loved the church same word

00:15:37.680 same word there and so here it has the same force it's really a command the strong

00:15:43.140 ought to bear with the weak that's your duty

00:15:47.540 but then he says and pay attention here he says and not please ourselves

00:15:53.280 okay like you know how hard that is not please ourselves

00:16:00.800 your whole life is about pleasing yourself when you look at it honestly in a mirror

00:16:08.020 in other words when we live in a way that does not consider how our actions or our freedoms or

00:16:14.720 affect other people. It comes from the motive to please ourselves. Now, self-awareness is

00:16:27.060 very difficult because self-love is very easy. Self-awareness is very difficult because self-love

00:16:33.600 is very easy. Matthew Henry says, every man is a self-flatterer and ready to take the first

00:16:40.960 excuse to justify his actions.

00:16:46.480 Paul gives us an alternative way.

00:16:49.720 He says

00:16:50.480 in the next verse, instead of pleasing yourself,

00:16:53.180 please your neighbor to build them up.

00:16:57.440 Again, this is like,

00:16:59.040 do you know how hard that is?

00:17:03.080 You struggle to do this with your own

00:17:04.680 family.

00:17:09.260 I want to zoom out just for a second.

00:17:10.960 because it's really easy to miss the greater Christian principle that's being taught here.

00:17:18.820 And that Christian principle is one of the most important Christian principles in the entire Bible.

00:17:25.820 It may be the most important Christian principle in the entire Bible. 0.80

00:17:31.660 And that is self-denying love.

00:17:35.780 self-denying love it's like it's such a big topic you can't even preach on it

00:17:44.520 you just have to say the words self-denying love in other words this is not just a response to a

00:17:55.720 conversation around liberties and convictions paul is importing a christian virtue that is

00:18:04.020 way bigger than this little conversation we're having today.

00:18:08.680 We see it all over the Bible, and I'm going to just read a few verses. Philippians 2, 4,

00:18:12.300 do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit. How many

00:18:16.460 have you failed at that this week?

00:18:20.040 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit.

00:18:25.000 But in humility, count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only

00:18:28.320 to his own interests, but to the interests of others.

00:18:29.940 these are like impossible

00:18:34.480 without the Holy Spirit

00:18:36.820 1 Corinthians 10 24

00:18:40.860 let no one seek his own good

00:18:43.260 but the good of his neighbor

00:18:45.500 do you know how difficult that is

00:18:49.500 let no one

00:18:51.440 seek his own good

00:18:52.460 but the good

00:18:55.520 of his neighbor

00:18:56.040 James 2 8

00:18:59.140 If you really fulfill the royal law, according to the scripture, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

00:19:06.300 I think you start to quickly realize, I need Christ.

00:19:11.620 How far do you fall short of perfection?

00:19:16.100 So far.

00:19:18.100 Very far.

00:19:21.380 John 15, 13.

00:19:22.960 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.

00:19:29.140 Self-denying love is what Paul wants us to grasp in the conversation of unity.

00:19:38.340 I'm a pastor, and I deal with conversations of division a lot.

00:19:42.720 Between family members, between spouses, between business partners.

00:19:48.660 Do you know the solution to those problems?

00:19:52.400 Self-denying love.

00:19:55.540 for the sake of unity.

00:20:01.260 Does it mean you compromise truth?

00:20:04.960 It means that you prioritize unity.

00:20:10.280 And we see how he grounds this in an example.

00:20:13.360 Look to verse 3.

00:20:15.520 He says,

00:20:15.900 For Christ did not please himself,

00:20:17.900 as it is written,

00:20:18.920 the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.

00:20:22.900 Okay.

00:20:23.660 If Christ did not please himself,

00:20:25.540 and the slaves are not greater than their master

00:20:29.980 then why is your life

00:20:33.640 all about pleasing yourself?

00:20:39.960 If the slave is not greater than the master

00:20:42.960 and Christ did not please himself

00:20:46.320 why is your life

00:20:49.140 so focused on pleasing self?

00:20:55.540 John 8, 28-29, Jesus says,

00:20:59.180 I do nothing on my own authority,

00:21:02.860 but speak just as the Father has taught me,

00:21:07.960 and he who sent me is with me.

00:21:12.180 He has not left me alone,

00:21:14.040 for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.

00:21:21.400 What is the priority of your life?

00:21:25.540 Is it to please yourself or to please God?

00:21:32.180 Now, when it comes to us, there's a difference between sacrifice merely because it's commanded and sacrifice because you actually love people.

00:21:41.580 That's the difference between moralism and worship.

00:21:49.900 1 John 3.16 says,

00:21:51.400 By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our life for the brothers.

00:22:01.380 Moralism is easy.

00:22:03.960 Love is hard.

00:22:07.340 You know what's hard?

00:22:09.000 It's to care.

00:22:11.960 You know why preaching is hard?

00:22:14.080 It's because it's not me just throwing out words.

00:22:18.900 Lecturing can be easy.

00:22:20.880 Preaching is hard.

00:22:22.440 You know why it's hard?

00:22:23.560 Because I have to care.

00:22:25.920 I have to care that what I read gets into your soul.

00:22:34.240 That's hard.

00:22:40.960 Love-driven sacrifice is the biblical example.

00:22:43.400 Why don't you turn with me to 1 Corinthians chapter 9

00:22:49.000 Verses 21 through 22

00:22:51.460 Why don't you turn there now

00:22:52.400 Digitally or in your paper Bibles

00:22:54.200 1 Corinthians chapter 9

00:22:55.540 21 through 22

00:23:06.320 You're going to see the model of

00:23:08.520 Self-sacrificing love from Paul

00:23:11.240 He says,

00:23:42.240 We are to be like Christ and Paul, who are willing to modify our lives on non-essential doctrine for the betterment of the souls of our brothers and sisters, or for the lost.

00:24:01.520 It's a great way to be like Christ.

00:24:03.960 It's a great way to live like Christ.

00:24:07.380 Then he cites Psalm 69, 9, which is, it's actually a messianic psalm.

00:24:13.540 And it's the son talking to the father.

00:24:17.680 You know, he says, for zeal for your house has consumed me.

00:24:22.180 And the reproaches of those who reproached you have fallen on me.

00:24:28.860 Now, Jesus is the ultimate model of loving sacrifice.

00:24:33.500 We'll talk more about that passage in a second.

00:24:35.440 Paul offers a brief affirmation in the next verse.

00:24:38.600 Look to look to verse four for a second.

00:24:41.160 Paul offers this brief affirmation of trustworthiness of the scriptures.

00:24:47.540 It's like a weird parenthetical that Paul inserts there.

00:24:52.480 He just cites from the Old Testament.

00:24:55.100 And then verse four, he goes, for whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction.

00:25:01.740 that through endurance and through the encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope.

00:25:07.220 What a great little side note.

00:25:13.980 Now, I want you to pay attention because we're smart Bible interpreters.

00:25:17.820 This is the second sentence in a row that begins with the word for.

00:25:24.080 I don't know what translation you're using, but in my NASB, and I believe the ESV as well, for.

00:25:30.220 Now, the word for functions almost always as what's called a causal clause.

00:25:35.960 It can be changed out for the word because.

00:25:39.180 So essentially, Paul is making this kind of cascading argument.

00:25:41.840 He's like, let each of us please his own neighbor for building them up, verse 2,

00:25:45.880 because that was the model of Christ, verse 3.

00:25:48.000 And we know that because the model was prophesied in the Old Testament, verse 4.

00:25:53.100 That's kind of the argumentation that we see there.

00:25:56.320 In other words, he's justifying his use of the Old Testament by reminding believers that whatever was written in the former days is for our instruction.

00:26:08.100 It's trustworthy.

00:26:09.860 It's trustworthy.

00:26:16.720 Now, I'm deciding if I want to, there's a section of my sermon that I've highlighted.

00:26:23.160 I'm not sure if I want to preach it, but I think I'm going to, okay?

00:26:26.320 this is an excellent scripture

00:26:31.280 supporting the doctrine of sola scriptura

00:26:33.920 throughout the new testament the apostles rarely if ever

00:26:40.140 appeal to non-scriptural tradition of the old testament

00:26:43.960 saints

00:26:44.360 instead they appeal to scripture with

00:26:49.800 overwhelming frequency did you know that there

00:26:53.940 are over 300 direct quotations of the Old Testament in the New Testament. And there are

00:27:01.220 over a thousand allusions to Old Testament scripture in the New Testament. So why do

00:27:09.760 I say this? Because I'm constantly battling over doctrine with Roman Catholics. Now for 0.94

00:27:19.920 Roman Catholics to elevate kind of a 0.57

00:27:21.840 non-scriptural tradition 0.98

00:27:23.360 and fail to carry on the apostolic

00:27:27.960 model that we see here in the New Testament

00:27:29.840 of using scripture as the basis for doctrine

00:27:31.840 and practice, at the very least

00:27:34.080 is strange.

00:27:35.580 Very least, it's strange.

00:27:38.000 Only three times do we see the

00:27:39.960 apostles appeal

00:27:41.860 to tradition.

00:27:43.800 1 Corinthians 11.2, 2 Thessalonians

00:27:46.180 2.15, 2 Thessalonians 3.6.

00:27:49.120 That's it. Three times.

00:27:53.520 So in the New Testament, we have three calls for honoring tradition.

00:27:59.840 And 300 apostolic examples of using scripture to affirm doctrine and practice.

00:28:10.760 I want to just sit on that for a second.

00:28:14.540 there's not one verse

00:28:17.640 in the entire Bible

00:28:19.080 that says that you should pray to Mary

00:28:21.620 there's not one verse

00:28:25.200 in the entire Bible

00:28:27.000 that says that you

00:28:29.260 or that shows

00:28:31.560 not even describes or prescribes

00:28:34.140 somebody to pray to a dead saint

00:28:36.620 there's not one verse

00:28:39.540 that's weird

00:28:43.340 So to walk into a Roman Catholic Church where the central focus is Mary and praying to the saints should at least cause you pause.

00:28:58.120 Why?

00:29:00.200 Well, because they appeal to tradition over Scripture.

00:29:06.840 So this is an important consideration.

00:29:09.120 It's not to disrespect Roman Catholics.

00:29:11.760 It's to ask them for an examination and an answer.

00:29:17.840 The New Testament emphasizes the word of God as the rule to Christian life and practice.

00:29:26.820 Rome and Eastern Orthodoxy, they emphasize tradition and the church fathers.

00:29:31.460 The question I have for you is what rule will you adopt?

00:29:35.140 At the end of the day, which one wins?

00:29:37.680 the word of God

00:29:39.380 or the tradition of the church?

00:29:49.500 I'll stop right there,

00:29:50.580 but Paul begins

00:29:51.420 the conclusion of his entire argument.

00:29:53.900 If you look to chapter 15, verse 5,

00:29:57.180 he says,

00:30:00.040 May the God of endurance

00:30:01.260 and encouragement

00:30:03.500 grant you to live in such harmony

00:30:06.300 with one another

00:30:06.920 in accordance with Jesus Christ,

00:30:08.680 that together you may with one voice

00:30:11.380 glorify God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

00:30:16.100 Therefore, welcome one another

00:30:17.460 as Christ has welcomed you

00:30:19.400 for the glory of God.

00:30:24.380 Paul is speaking of Christians

00:30:26.040 who are struggling to find unity

00:30:27.520 in their relational realities of the church.

00:30:30.580 And he says this prayer,

00:30:31.800 may the God of endurance and encouragement

00:30:33.700 grant you to live in harmony.

00:30:36.920 You know what I really want?

00:30:38.720 I want harmony between all the denominations.

00:30:42.940 I want harmony even between Rome and EO, Eastern Orthodoxy.

00:30:47.320 I want that.

00:30:49.020 Lord willing, in a thousand years, as the Holy Spirit works through the church,

00:30:55.420 we will find greater and greater unity so that when Jesus returns,

00:31:00.480 he comes back to one true spotless church.

00:31:05.640 Right now, we live in a divided time.

00:31:07.880 We do.

00:31:08.940 And it's painful.

00:31:10.600 It's painful.

00:31:13.300 But Paul's prayer is,

00:31:14.960 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another.

00:31:22.660 Okay, first, I want you to notice that in verse 4, look back to verse 4.

00:31:25.780 It says, Through endurance and through encouragement of the scriptures, we might have hope.

00:31:32.360 And then, here he says, may the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in harmony with one another.

00:31:38.460 So what just happened there?

00:31:39.440 It just showed that you cannot separate God from his word.

00:31:43.000 They are the same.

00:31:46.260 They are the same.

00:31:52.660 Now, I don't know about you, but church conflict is difficult.

00:31:56.840 I've done it.

00:31:58.100 Maybe a lot of you have done it.

00:31:59.160 Church conflict is difficult.

00:32:01.360 You know why it's difficult?

00:32:04.320 Because it's typically long.

00:32:08.800 And it's fascinating that the apostle here uses the term endurance.

00:32:14.960 Do you know how hard unity is?

00:32:18.200 I mean, I get tired trying to seek for unity.

00:32:24.780 I become impatient with people.

00:32:28.380 I become discouraged.

00:32:31.360 In the midst of these fights, again, how many of you have church hurt?

00:32:37.480 You know, the vast majority of church conflicts end because they have lost endurance and encouragement.

00:32:46.960 It's wonderful that Paul prays for that specific thing.

00:32:49.820 May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony.

00:33:01.360 now again I want to make it clear that when you pray for harmony

00:33:05.860 you're not praying for compromise I think it was

00:33:09.900 John MacArthur who once said

00:33:12.140 people say that theology is divisive yes

00:33:17.740 it divides truth from error and I agree

00:33:21.420 I'm not telling any of us to divide or to compromise

00:33:26.100 on truth I'm calling us to

00:33:30.140 prioritize unity

00:33:31.560 and to work through truth.

00:33:39.380 He says that the purpose

00:33:40.640 of their harmony,

00:33:42.300 if you look down to verse 5,

00:33:43.880 that together you may have one voice.

00:33:47.540 Glorify the God and Father

00:33:48.680 of our Lord Jesus Christ.

00:33:52.920 God the Father loves unity

00:33:54.740 among his children.

00:33:55.820 I don't know about you,

00:33:56.380 if you're a parent,

00:33:58.460 you know what the hardest thing

00:33:59.220 about being a parent is?

00:34:00.140 is watching your kids fight.

00:34:04.600 Now, it's not as extreme when they're 7, 8, and 10.

00:34:11.040 But I know some of you older folks have watched your kids fight at 25, 30, and 35.

00:34:19.220 It's painful.

00:34:21.060 It's painful.

00:34:22.880 When you watch your home divided.

00:34:25.660 God's will for his house is to not be divided

00:34:33.420 Proverbs 6 16 through 19 the author of Hebrews or the author of this is using a Hebrew rhetorical device

00:34:48.540 When I was in seminary, I had to study Hebrew poetry.

00:34:52.620 And you had to learn that the way the Psalms and the Proverbs and Ecclesiastes,

00:34:57.960 the way they are written is actually quite fascinating.

00:35:01.680 All we know in America is that a poetry must rhyme.

00:35:05.440 But in Hebrew, there is a variety of materializations of poetry.

00:35:15.220 And one of those is called a numerical ladder.

00:35:21.000 And a numerical ladder means that it's building suspense and a climactic end.

00:35:27.080 So the last thing on the list is the most important.

00:35:31.240 And you can see this in a variety of passages.

00:35:34.740 But here in our verse, in Proverbs 6, 16 through 19, it says,

00:35:39.180 there are six things the lord hates seven that are abomination to him so it's like six but the

00:35:46.960 plus one the seventh is the serious thing and it goes on he says haughty eyes a lying tongue

00:35:54.280 hands that shed blood that innocent blood a heart that devises wicked plans feet that make haste

00:36:02.240 and run towards evil, a false witness who breathes out lies,

00:36:06.180 and the last thing, the most vile thing,

00:36:11.740 one who sows discord

00:36:14.160 or division among the brethren.

00:36:19.340 The Lord hates those who sin

00:36:22.300 in division more than he hates liars, 0.98

00:36:27.080 murderers, and deceivers. Think about 0.99

00:36:30.320 that. God hates divisive people in the church. Now, I don't think, from my experience, been in

00:36:43.780 ministry about eight years full-time, my experience so far is that the vast majority of people aren't

00:36:52.100 at first being intentionally divisive. Oftentimes, they're being unintentionally divisive,

00:37:00.320 almost because of a carelessness.

00:37:03.300 They're not being careful.

00:37:06.200 They're not watching their mouth.

00:37:08.960 They're not understanding that what they are doing is gossip.

00:37:14.380 They are speaking too much in general.

00:37:20.700 This happens often.

00:37:24.280 But then after time,

00:37:25.940 a root of bitterness often takes in the heart and that unintentionality turns evil

00:37:36.720 and that evil starts to divide the church and that division often proliferates because

00:37:47.500 people go and they create a fellowship around their grievance. They invite and

00:37:54.780 they build alliances with other people who share those grievances and they

00:38:01.540 create allies. And then you have three or four families, six families, seven

00:38:08.920 families, and it turns into church splits all over the world. God hates that. He hates

00:38:21.060 it. Unity is the priority for his church. Unity is the priority for this church, for

00:38:30.920 you, for me.

00:38:34.960 So, rather than

00:38:37.000 seeking

00:38:37.440 what you want,

00:38:41.980 seek what will

00:38:42.920 be best for the other

00:38:44.980 people in this church.

00:38:50.160 What would

00:38:51.020 be good for you to do

00:38:52.600 for the building up

00:38:55.060 of the unity of this church?

00:38:59.880 What dinner

00:39:00.860 needs to happen?

00:39:03.040 What event needs to be hosted?

00:39:05.640 What phone call

00:39:06.880 needs to be made?

00:39:10.040 Instead of

00:39:10.860 thinking about you,

00:39:13.600 think about

00:39:14.940 how you can bless

00:39:17.140 and strengthen the unity

00:39:18.780 in this church.

00:39:21.300 You want to be like Christ?

00:39:22.880 Do that.

00:39:24.320 You want to be like a sinner? 0.98

00:39:26.200 Then be selfish. 0.99

00:39:28.300 Be selfish.

00:39:28.960 again i'm not asking you to compromise i'm asking you to prioritize unity have hard conversations

00:39:38.480 but do it with unity at the forefront amen let's pray father we thank you lord

00:39:47.140 for your holy spirit who helps us in this difficult world this difficult work of unity

00:39:54.260 and Lord we ask that you would bless

00:39:59.680 the men and women and children

00:40:01.420 in this church

00:40:02.240 to have a heart for unity

00:40:06.720 Lord if there is any bitterness

00:40:09.540 if there's any

00:40:13.700 walls that have been

00:40:14.560 put up

00:40:16.500 Lord we ask that you would

00:40:19.740 give us a heart to take

00:40:21.760 those things down

00:40:22.520 help us build a church

00:40:27.100 that's unified

00:40:27.800 for the glory of the gospel

00:40:30.820 in Jesus name

00:40:32.160 amen

Dale Partridge - June 09, 2025

Romans 15_1-7 - How to Navigate Differences in Christian Liberty and Conviction： Part 3

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