Hi all,
The body of Christ is expert in breaking fellowship over things they should have worked through, and failed miserably at breaking fellowship for reasons scripture actually addresses.

Knowing when and for what reason to break fellowship is the subject today. Loving someone in the Lord is an art, which means no 2 situations will be exactly alike, but there are core sins the NT mentions as reasons to break fellowship. Paul puts them together in a list in 
I Corinthians 5:11.

The list
"But I write to you not to keep company with anyone who is called a Christian if they are a fornicator, or greedy, or an idolater or abusive person, or a drunkard, or swindler (dishonest in business), with people like that, don't eat nor fellowship with." (v12-13: For what have we to do with those outside the body of Christ? Aren't we to judge those within (the body)? But those that are outside the body God judges. Therefore put away from yourselves that wicked person.")

We aren't to judge motives, but we are to judge the fruit of a person's life. I've previously identified the sin of fornication as sex outside of marriage. The context of Paul's writing was a man in the (house) church who had an ongoing sexual relationship with his step-mother. All the believers knew of it, yet no one confronted him about it, and Paul said that was wrong, for a lifestyle of unrepented fornication is a reason to separate.

'Greedy' - this word literally means 'eager to have more'. Think about the 'prosperity' teaching and how greed has entered into so many churches and the hearts of many believers, disguised as the blessing of God. People try to mix unholy spirits of greed/lust with the Holy Spirit and the result is erroneous teaching that appeals to the flesh and emotions rather than stirring people to deeper growth as individuals in Christ and developing Christ-like character.

'An idolater'. Idol worship in Paul's time often also involved having sex with temple prostitutes, but in general an idol is something a person is devoted to, that comes between that person and God. Paul lists idolatry right after greed with good reason. An idolater is someone who has elevated something or someone as more important than God. Not the occasional infatuation with a new car or new shoes or new friend, but someone who as a lifestyle holds the object of their devotion as most important in their life. 

I had a friend who was very proud of his car. One day while driving it the Lord told him he was committing idolatry. He argued back that he had no shrines nor statues nor did he pray to the saints. The Lord simply replied: "You've put this car between us." He repented of pride in his car and submitted it to Him in his heart.

'An abusive person', which is the literal translation of the Greek. Paul doesn't define abuse, though 'one who reviles' is often used here. This would refer to verbal and mental/emotional abuse, with the implication that it could involve physical abuse.

I had to tell a man who beat his wife that he was not welcome at church. They had 5 children and he would beat his wife so badly it would take her nearly a month before the bruises would heal, yet neither I nor her friends could get her to leave him, nor would he repent; She refused to understand when he beat her he had broken the covenant of marriage as surely as if he had slept with another woman.

We tried to get her to go to a ministry that had a safe house, separating for awhile in the hope of bringing him to his senses and that he might seek counseling for his anger and abuse, but each refused. Sad, but I was right to break fellowship with him while embracing his family who were the victims of his violence.

'Drunkard'. This means 'to be drunk with wine, intoxicated.' Today we would define this as substance abuse, one who as a lifestyle or regularly gets drunk, on drugs, etc. We must walk in love towards those seeking to overcome such addictions and lifestyle, and the key seems to be whether these people are making progress in Christ towards overcoming their sins, or not. For those who call themselves Christian yet they make no effort to judge themselves, we are to turn away from, again, because they have refused to deal with it themselves.

'Swindler'. This word, 'harpax' in Greek, is from the root meaning, 'to seize, carry off by force'. In ancient times it described what we would call a grappling hook or snagging hook that is sometimes used by fisherman. It is the act of throwing out a hook to snag (someone) and reel them in. Thus, swindler, dishonest in business, a liar and deceiver. When you read of 'ravening' (wolves in sheep's clothing), it is this word. From those who make prey of others in church, business, or life - have no fellowship.

Again, all these sins are practiced by people who call themselves Christians, yet live a lifestyle or maintain habits exactly opposite all that is called God and Godly. These are people who have hardened their heart towards God in one particular area. They may say they love God and that can be true in some areas, but they protect this particular sin, refusing to judge themselves. From such Paul says break fellowship.

Weak Christianity would say for the sake of the part of their heart that loves God we should continue with them, but there comes a point you become an enabler of their sin, helping them continue in that sin. The man sleeping with his step-mother no doubt loved God in maybe 70% of his life and heart, but it was based on the 30% he refused to repent of, that they were to break fellowship. Paul said that sin would affect the whole church, so for the sake of others they had to break fellowship with the man.

Focusing on the 70% they love God and refusing to deal with the 30% that is potentially lethal to the their spiritual and moral lives, is like a physically abused wife of an alcoholic refusing to protect herself though she has been hospitalized due to her husband's beatings, because he is a good provider when he is sober. There comes a point you have to realize the person is using the 70% they say they love God to manipulate you to serve as they do, their 30% sin that is ruining their (and your) life.

But what if...
But what if you know of someone, or work for or with someone, or are married to someone, who fits one or more of these descriptions? What if you love them and want to work with them to overcome one or more of these sins? What is the point you end your involvement in their life in this area?

Let us look deeper into what happens after you've walked that extra mile in love, after you've been slapped that 2nd time, after you've given your resources but are now at a point you must protect what remains and go on with what God has called you to do.

Balance, balance
"And if he trespasses against you 7 times in a day, and 7 times in a day turns back to you and says, 'I repent', you shall forgive him." Luke 17:4 Note that's immediate repentance after the sin, which means this person is trying to overcome, and we are to respond with forgiveness in such a case.

But what if you are walking that extra mile with them and they exhibit false repentance (next week's subject) and insist on continuing in their sin, and you can walk no further? In Exodus 14:22 the Lord tells Israel they had sinned against him 10 times (over the course of about 13 months) since they left Egypt, and He was finally going to give them what they wanted.

Insert history lesson here: They got to the border of the Promised Land within 13 months after leaving Egypt. On the 10th rejection of His Word/Voice in Numbers 14:22, He allowed them to have what they said they wanted, to die in the wilderness, a process which took 40 years of wanderings. But the initial journey to the border of the Promised Land was no more than 13 months. (Covered in Exodus 14, through Numbers 14)

Israel had hardened their heart to the Lord - remember, on the outside they looked to be lovers of God and religious. These people made offerings through the priests, kept the Sabbath, kept the dietary laws and everything a good Jewish person would have done - but at each opportunity for growth in God, they refused. That is why after 10 times, God let them have what they wanted.

In Steven's final words in Acts 7, he summarizes that time frame in Israel and says in verse 42: "And God turned" (and gave them up to worship whatever they wanted). And God turned. The word 'turn' here, 'strepho', means "to turn the back to people" and is used to describe what God did to Israel after their 10th time in 13 months of unrepentant sin.

If you read Numbers 14:40-45, it was only AFTER that 10th time, AFTER God turned His back on them to give them what they wanted, that they 'repented'. And still, His decision was firm, He did not change His mind. That is the hard part when we love someone, to get to the point we can go no further, then have them cry and beg us to take them back, to let them live at home, to just help them out '1 more time'. But once the Lord had turned, He turned, and let them suffer the consequences of their sin.

How do we know the difference between genuine repentance and false repentance so that we can make such a decision? That's next week. Until then...(and remember to email me at cwowi AT aol.com).

Blessings,
John Fenn
www.cwowi.org

Hi all,
Last week I shared the perspective that breaking off fellowship with another Christian, if done correctly, is merely a response to THEIR breaking off fellowship with the Lord in some area of their life. Anything we must do in the natural to limit our contact with them is the unfortunate result of their actions.

What NOT to do
A woman who was a student at the Bible school where I was Director, came to me for advice. A family had left the church she attended and the pastor from the pulpit told everyone that family had demonic problems and he was forbidding anyone from talking to them, because it was not God's will that they leave his church.

She worked with the wife in that family and saw her every day. She wasn't aware of any demonic problems, but they had left the church due to constant pressure and infighting. The student told me she didn't feel right about what the pastor said, but still....she wondered. I told her to ignore her pastor, start looking for another church, and be the best friend she could be to that woman.

How many of us when involved with a church thought we had made life-long friends, only to discover after we leave the church our 'friend's want nothing to do with us - our 'friendship' was totally dependent on us going to the same church? How sad, and not necessarily a reason to break off fellowship.

Knock these off the list of reasons why
Over the last 2 weeks I've shared scripture that says it isn't right to break fellowship with someone over their belief in what day to worship, nor their diet or drink. And though it says we discuss opinions, the discussion should never become an argument, so differences of opinion aren't valid reasons though you may get to the point with someone all they want to do is push their 'pet' doctrine or argue - then for self-preservation you may have to limit contact.

Going back 1 and 2 weeks, the person we are considering breaking fellowship with has lost sight of the fact they are accountable first and foremost to the Lord. They forget they must prove their own faith, they lose sight of the fact we have attempted to be at peace with them, but not to the point we come to ruin, and they've lost sight of the fact they must recover themselves from their situation - we can try to help, but they must summon up the courage and backbone and take charge of their life, spiritual life and natural life.

If they won't do these things, we have to move on with our life. We can only run after them that 1 extra mile, only let them slap us 1 extra time, only give them 1 coat - for we too are accountable to the Lord, and we too must prove our own way, and we too must live in peace, and we too must recover ourselves out of our situations.

But what about the 'big reasons'?
Remember, I lead a house church network. But that is the exact context of the whole of the New Testament, for the writers of the New Testament were house church leaders, writing to people in house church, so the context of the New Testament must be understood from the living room perspective, not the auditorium.

So when Paul wrote I Corinthians 5 about how they should have dealt with the man having a sexual relationship with his step mother, it means that this man was sitting in Justus' house*, having meals together as house church does, having the Lord's Supper with everyone else - and they all knew of his sin but did not confront him. (*Acts 18:7)

Paul said "...and you are proud and arrogant! And you ought to be in sorrow and shame, until the man who has done this thing is removed from your fellowship and your midst! v2

Now THAT is a reason for breaking fellowship. But remember what I said last week about how Jesus handled people who wouldn't follow Him - He didn't run after them, and in fact it was they who stepped away from following Him. So any action the body would have to take would only be a confirming act of the stepping away from the Lord the person already did. Don't let them blame you for their own failings.

The man in I Corinthians 5 was evidently a Spirit-filled, tongue talking, water baptized, believer in Jesus - he just had a seriously dysfunctional family and an equally serious problem with lust. Sexual sin in particular is mentioned in scripture as a reason to break fellowship, in part, because it endangers everyone.

Why is this sin listed so often?
Paul went on to tell the Corinthians in the very next verses:
"I wrote you in my previous letter not to associate (closely and habitually) with unchaste (impure, sexually immoral) people. Not meaning of course that you must altogether shun the immoral people of this world, or the greedy graspers and cheats and thieves or idolaters, since otherwise you would need to get out of the world and human society altogether!"

But now I write to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of Christian if he is known to be guilty of immorality or greed, or is an idolater (whose soul is devoted to any object that usurps the place of God), or is a person with a foul tongue (railing, abusing, reviling, slandering), or is a drunkard or a swindler or a robber. No, you must not eat with such a person." I Corinthians 5:9-11 Amplified Version

The first instruction had to do with 'fornication'. I'll look at the other things he lists next week - verbally abusive, reviling, slandering, drunks, dishonest in business, and thieves.

Paul said to break fellowship with someone living in sexual sin. The reason I say living in that sin and not a one time or sporadic sin, is because the man in Corinth had an ongoing relationship with his step-mother, ongoing to the point the whole house church knew about it.

The word translated 'fornication' is mentioned 15 times in the KJV epistles as something believers should avoid. It is listed as a work of the flesh and a characteristic of an unsaved person and lifestyle. So why is 'fornication' so important that Paul and others say we should have no fellowship with someone in that sin?

The word 'fornication' in Greek is 'porneia' or 'pornos', and means 'illicit sexual intercourse'. Let me explain the difference between adultery and fornication. In Matthew 5:28 Jesus defined adultery as a fantasy, of the imagination and thought process. Fornication is the physical consummation of the imagination.

First century temple worship included the making of offerings to a god and then sealing the offering by having sex with a temple prostitute. If you wanted your livestock to make lots of baby sheep and goats, then you made a meat (animal) offering and had sex with a temple prostitute, hoping by your sex act to inspire the god to stir the animals to mate- the same went for blessing crops, a business deal you hoped would lead to increase, and so on. I go into more detail in my 'Jezebel Spirit' series it helps define what the 'Jezebel spirit' really is.

Paul directly addresses sex with temple prostitutes in I Corinthians 6:13-18: "Meats for the belly, the belly for meats. But God will destroy them both. The body is not for fornication, but for the Lord. And the Lord for the body. And God has raised up the Lord by His power, and will raise us up as well (to eternal life). Don't you know your bodies are the members of Christ? Shall I then take the members of Christ and make them members of a prostitute? God forbid. Don't you know he that is joined to a prostitute is one body? For two He said, shall be one flesh. But he that is joined to the Lord is one Spirit."

Best case scenario                                                                                 
The act of sex is the physical consummation of a covenant made in the heart between a man and woman, and this covenant as all ancient covenants are, is witnessed by God (in other cultures other deities), so that a man and woman can't be 'married' to each other in heart until and unless that covenant of the heart is witnessed and sworn before God and/or His representative. That means every time a husband and wife have intercourse, it is a confirmation of the covenant in their hearts.

To commit that act with another person you aren't first in covenant with, not only messes with the head and heart, it is the act of breaking the covenant with your spouse - or Christ if a single person. The offended spouse may acknowledge the covenant is broken and file for divorce. The mystery of the covenant of heart and physical consummation of that covenant is a type of Christ and the church, now mystically united by the Spirit, but one day we will see Him and be in His presence physically.

So fornication for a Christian is a slap in the face of Jesus, a breaking of covenant with Him worthy of breaking fellowship with that person. For a Christian to commit fornication it means they have broken covenant with their spouse and/or their walk with God - and that is why Paul in I Corinthians 5, James and Peter and the apostles in Acts 15, and elsewhere say not to fellowship with someone living a life of regular fornication.

The solution for them is a repentance that acknowledges the 4 elements I have mentioned the last 2 weeks: They must realize they are accountable to Jesus, just them and Him. They must realize they must walk out, prove, their faith. They must realize we have tried to be at peace with them, but their decision to live in continued sin forces us in our relationship to acknowledge the truth of their walking away from the Lord in this area. And they must realize they alone must recover themselves out of this snare of the enemy.

If someone is struggling with porn, do we fellowship with them? If they harbor fantasies about a person in (house) church to the point that other person(s) feel uncomfortable around them? That is why Paul said to the Corinthians when they wouldn't deal with the man; Don't you know a little yeast leavens the whole lump of dough?

That person may have to be separated if their personal battles become manifest so other people feel uncomfortable by wandering eyes or suggestive talk - that is a reason to confront them with the 4 elements above. Remember, they have first stepped away from growth in the Lord in this, forcing you to take action you don't want to take, but merely a reflection of decisions they've already made.

They may need to stay away from (house) church for a time, perhaps some personal ministry with another man if it is a man with the problem, or a woman if it is a woman - some personal mentoring time through the week as they walk out repentance and deliverance from lust, adultery, fornication until the body as a whole feel comfortable once again having them in their midst.

I've run out of space this week...more next week!                                                                          
Blessings, 
John 
www.cwowi.org and email me at cwowi AT aol.com

Hi all,
Last week I shared a foundational understanding of the faith and what each person's responsibility is. These included:

#1 - Being aware we will stand before Christ individually to give account of ourselves to the Lord.
#2 - We each must walk out or 'prove' our faith while not becoming critical of others.
#3 - We are to seek peace, but not to the extent we become a door mat, nor bring ourselves to ruin while bettering others.
#4 - A person must recover themselves from strife, immaturity in general - no one can do it for them.

Self-deception - 3 examples
Self-deception is knowing the Word but not doing it. Knowing what is right but refusing to do it.

#1 - For instance, the Word says if you don't work you don't eat. Not a problem for most, but some would rather play spiritual giant than doing the hard thing of getting a job and staying with the job even if they don't feel like it. It is a lot more fun and boosts the ego to spend hours in social media and talk of praying for people at the grocery store. Meanwhile, they are running out of food and are behind in bills.

So I ask: Do we break fellowship with the Christian who spiritualizes everything just because they would rather appear busy doing spiritual things more than working and being self-supporting?

#2 - The Word says not to forsake the gathering together of ourselves. So what about your friend who you call every Sunday morning to get them out of bed so they will go to church, knowing if you didn't call them they would not go to church? Is there a point, or at what point, do you stop playing Holy Spirit and break fellowship with them, letting them decide if they want to go to church or not?

#3 - The Word says to forgive as you stand praying. If you have 2 friends who aren't speaking to each other because of some offense each took, how long do you try to play matchmaker, running back and forth between them trying to get them to forgive? Do you finally break fellowship with both of them, throwing up your hands in disgust and sad you lost 2 friends?

What is our responsibility?
Each of these 3 are examples of people who know to do the Word, but refuse to do it. Is confronting the lazy overly spiritual friend about getting and keeping a solid job, and then not fellowshipping with them until they become self-supporting, the correct action?

What about stepping back from calling the friend Sunday morning, or urging 2 friends to forgive one another, is that stepping back from trying to help them grow up an act of breaking fellowship with them? And how do you feel with your own grief and sadness over their decisions as you watch them self-destruct?

Guilt trip
Can you be secure enough in yourself to know you did all you could do - you walked the extra mile but can't go another, turned the other cheek but can't let them abuse you, gave what you could of yourself but can't bring yourself to ruin or exhaustion? Can you be at peace with that?

The reason I ask is that before we deal with 'big reasons' the Word gives for breaking fellowship, if a person grew up being everyone's servant, or with condemnation to feel they are never doing enough so therefore they are not good enough, which means if someone goes to hell it is their fault, or if they grew up religious rather than Christian, they may think the Christian thing is to be a door mat, a punching bag, a soft-spine non-confrontational bowl of jello.

Some people are raised to think they are never right, can never assert themselves, and they think that is what being a Christian is. So for them the phrase 'breaking fellowship' means slip back into the darkness without making a ripple in a friend's life, even though they can see a person self-destruct before their eyes.

Where is the balance?
Go back to my 4 points from last week, listed at the start above. (Make these people aware of the following):

#1, Do these people know they are accountable first and foremost to the Lord for their lives? That they have a responsibility to Him because they've been bought with a very great price, and He expects them to do something with what He did for them? They are not their own, they were bought with a price, so grow up.

#2, Do they realize their faith is for them to walk out, and you can't be their Jesus. He must be their Source, not you. Do they realize you have bent over backwards for them, trying to get them to become self-sustaining, get them to church, get them to forgive? They must walk it out by themselves and Jesus.

#3, Do they realize you have tried and tried to find peace for them? Do they realize you have been a shoulder to cry on, a friend they could pour their wounded emotions out on, an ally urging them to do what is right?

#4, And lastly, do they realize they must recover themselves out of their situation? Does the hungry friend realize he is hungry now because 1 month ago when first laid off, he didn't get up the next morning and get a job? Does the lazy friend realize he or she must decide for themselves they want to fellowship and to worship God with other believers in that gathering we call 'church'? Do the friends in strife realize they must recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, that you can't do it for them?

When we step back and let a person grow up, that is a form of 'breaking fellowship'. Understanding this lays the groundwork for the 'big reason's for breaking fellowship the Word lists.

Jesus broke fellowship with people - or did He?
Did you ever stop to realize the Lord did not chase after the Rich Young Ruler who turned down Jesus' invitation to become a disciple? Why didn't Jesus go after him? Why did He allow the fellowship with someone who obviously knew Him, end? (Matthew 19:16-22)

In Luke 9:57-62 a man wants to follow Jesus, but He tells him it is a life of travel with no home base. Another said 'yes', but requested permission to attend to his dead father. In that time a dead person was placed in a tomb and mourned 7 days, then they were mourned a full 30 days. Then after 1 year with the body now decomposed, their bones were collected and placed in an ossuary box and reburied.

Culture lesson detour - The rabbi's of Jesus' time taught (incorrectly) the decaying flesh was a means of atoning for one's sins, so the collection of their bones and reburial was another time of mourning, but on the day after interring the ossuary family was to rejoice, knowing (father) was now fully atoned, the mourning process now ended.

Most likely (my opinion) Jesus confronted this teaching because He responded 'Let the (spiritually) dead bury their dead.' It may have been understood as something like 'You have already given your father a proper burial, let the spiritually dead finish the process, for burying his bones won't mean anything as he is already dead. I've called you to preach Life, so be my disciple and tell the gospel of Life! (or something to that effect)

Another man wanted to follow Jesus but first wanted to say goodbye to family members. Jesus didn't run after any of these people - He went about His business.

Aside from the little culture lesson, my point is that we never see Jesus running after people to try to get them to meetings, nor offering anything more than an invitation to become a disciple. Even in John 6:66-67 after He spoke a hard to understand parable about eating His flesh and drinking His blood and many of His disciples left Him, He merely asked the 12, 'Will you also leave me?' He never ran after anyone.

And here is the proper perspective: When breaking fellowship with a believer, it must be understood that they have actually FIRST broken fellowship with the Lord in some area of their life. They walked away from doing the Word. Therefore if we must confront them or tell them they need to find another church or friend, it is because they have first broken fellowship with the Lord in some area(s) of their life.

To say it another way, if you walk that extra mile with your friend, but that is your limit by scripture, but they insist on staying in that sin, it is they who have moved, not you. They first broke it off with the Lord and then you by their refusal to be a doer of the Word. Any action you must take to enforce their decision, is merely a response to their sin, and therefore their fault and upon their heads before the Lord.

What we'll see next week is that breaking fellowship with someone is an act to preserve our own spiritual life, and/or the life of a body of believers. Just as Jesus refusing to chase after the Rich Young Ruler was also an act of preserving and protecting His own ministry and purpose in life, so it is with us. The man was welcome to join Jesus, but the Lord couldn't be distracted from His purpose in life. A good lesson for us, and that's where we'll pick it up next week.

Blessings,
John Fenn

Hi all,
If Christians are known for anything, it is church splits and strife, backbiting and hypocrisy. This series is what scripture says when we can or should break off fellowship with one another...but those reasons do NOT include the following example:

A distraught pastor told me his story: In front of his pulpit on the platform was a small table with a nice lace doily, and on that doily was a chalice and bread plate. A few weeks after he became pastor he moved the small table off the platform to floor level, but still directly in front of the pulpit.

The result of immaturity
Evidently that table with chalice and bread plate had been there for years, donated by a family in the memory of their grandfather, one of the founding elders of that church. The resultant uproar caused a church split. That's right, two of the elders took nearly half the congregation to a store front where they set up their own pulpit with table and chalice on a doily in front of the pulpit just as 'it should be'.

Laying a foundation
There are reasons scripture gives for breaking fellowship with a believer, or one who claims to be a believer but doesn't live it, but it doesn't involve moving great grandfather's table from the platform. Yet before I get into what scripture says about when and how to break fellowship, let us lay a foundation so we can understand the context of the instructions.

#1 - Personal accountability to Christ - everything flows from or is traced to this
"For we must all stand before the judgement seat of Christ that every one may receive of things while done in this (earth) body, according to what he has done whether good or bad." II Corinthians 5:10

We are each personally accountable to God and will individually give account of our lives in Christ. This isn't a heaven or hell judgement, this is as it says, an accounting of what we did since we received Christ's great sacrifice and our new life in Him.

On that day we won't be able to put the blame on others. Not, 'The devil made me do it', nor 'I was bound by the curse of the generations', nor 'If so and so would have done right then I would have done right'. Nor will we be able to cover our true motives for something done in life - we will be as transparent as glass before Him.

Christ in us is greater than any demon, greater than any family curse, and empowers us to be able to do all things through Him who strengthens us. There is no greater One than He who lives within, therefore there are no excuses NOT to be an over-comer.

#2 - Each must prove (walk out) his own faith
Free will is a gift we must learn how to use, how to fight for, and how to live responsibly with.

"Let everyone prove his own life, and then he will have rejoicing in himself and not another. For every person shall bear his own burden..." Galatians 6:4-5

In Rome there was great dispute about what day to worship on, whether to be a vegetarian or meat eater, or whether to drink wine or not. Paul called those who said a particular day was the right one to worship on, and those who don't eat meat, and those who don't drink wine, 'weak in the faith'. BUT he said what each person does, they do unto the Lord, so don't judge one another on such personal choices.

Love walk - "Let him who eats all things not despise him who eats only vegetarian, and let not the vegetarian despise him who eats all things, for God has accepted each of them. Who are you to judge another man's (Jesus') servant? To his own Master he stands or falls...let every person be fully persuaded in his own mind...let us not judge one another, but let us judge this, whether you are putting a stumbling block in the way of (those weaker in faith).

I know and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself, but to him who esteems it unclean, it is unclean...but the kingdom of God is not in meat and drink; but righteousness and joy and the Holy Spirit, so that he who chooses one or the other still serves Christ, and is acceptable to God, and approved of men in their walk in Christ. Let us therefore follow after things which make for peace..." Romans 14:1-23

They had similar issues in Corinth over meat sacrificed to idols and then sold in the restaurants and meat markets situated around the temple. Some believers were convinced it was a sin to eat meat sacrificed to idols, yet others said essentially, a steak is a steak - I don't care where it came from.

Paul told them, "...we know that an idol is nothing, and that there is no other God but one...However, not every (Christian) has that knowledge, for some with conscience would eat it as something sacrificed to an idol, and their conscience being weak, is defiled. But meat doesn't make us better or worse towards God, just be sure the liberty you have in Christ isn't a stumbling block to those who are weak." I Corinthians 9:4-9

The point made over and over is that each of us must make personal choices about how we worship and what we eat and drink between us and the Lord. Each of us must prove, walk out, our own faith in Christ. Personal choices as above are not a reason to break fellowship with someone.

#3 - We are to seek peace
"Him that is weak in the faith receive, but not to the point of arguing over opinions."

"Let us therefore follow after the things which make for peace, and thing where we can build each other up."

"If possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone."
"But you O man of God, flee these things (context is fleeing love of money) and follow after righteousness, godliness, faithfulness, love, patience, meekness."

"But foolish and stupid questions avoid, knowing that they do nothing but stir up strife and controversy." Romans 14:1, 19, 12:18, I Timothy 6:11, II Timothy 2:23

#4 - If a person is in a mess, THEY are responsible for getting themselves out of it - not you
My name is not Holy Spirit. Neither is your name Holy Spirit. We aren't to convict a person of sin nor judge another person's motives. We ARE to judge the fruit of their lives.

Too many want everyone else to repent and change without turning the microscope on their own heart. They want to pick the splinter out of everyone else's eye while ignoring the log in theirs...hmmm...wonder who said that? (Matthew 7:3) They must first examine their own heart and motives before coming to anyone else.

If they are in strife, they must deal with their own heart, and not come to someone else to agree with their strife nor feel sorry for them: "In meekness instruct those who oppose themselves; if God perhaps will grant them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth, so that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will." II Timothy 2:25-26

You cannot help someone who is angry, in strife, hurt, complaining, or unhappy until and unless they acknowledge the truth. That truth is God's truth - not their version of why they feel like they do or did what they did, not their reasonings so you can understand better - the truth is 'I messed up' free from alibi's. Otherwise they are "...ever learning but never able to come to the acknowledging of the truth." II Timothy 3:7

Turn the cheek? If you try to be at peace, but they insist on being angry with you, that is their problem to work out. As far as it depends on you, be at peace with all. But we are to turn just that other cheek, not becoming a boxing bag. We are to walk 1 extra mile, not a marathon with a person.

We are to give 1 extra coat, not our whole wardrobe. Walking in love is not just giving a person a handout, but giving them a hand up. But if they won't stand on their own two feet, after offering that 1 extra cheek to slap, giving them that 1 extra coat, walking that 1 extra mile - they are on their own. Cut them off and let them stand on their own two feet, for you have done what you could do, and beyond. The rest is up to them.

As it pertains to strife, THEY are the only ones who can recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, and also note that a person in strife is taken captive by the devil AT HIS WILL. What a horrible place to be in - at the devil's mercy. Wow.

Next week the lifestyle and practical examples of what scripture describes as reasons to break fellowship. Stay tuned! Blessings,

John Fenn
www.cwowi.org and email cwowi AT aol.com