Hello all.  I hoe you had a great Independence Day celebration.  We are so blessed to live in this country where we are free to live and worship as we choose.  My prayer for you this week is that you find your true freedom in the grace of our Lord.

Last week we had our 5th Sunday fellowship.  It was a good time, but I was saddened to note that it was probably the least well attended eating meeting I’ve ever seen at BBT.  There were some reasons for that.  We didn’t have the bus because Priscilla was out with her knee problems for one.  She did call me today and say that she was doing much better.  I won’t make any promises for her but based on that conversation I’m pretty sure she’ll be back.  Thank the Lord, and thanks to all who pray.

We also decided as a church that from now on we will move the Homecoming service time to be closer to our regular service time.  This way we may be able to get more people to come who have responsibilities at their home churches or just don’t want to miss their own services.  It also eliminates the complication of changing transportation schedules.  We’ll provide more details later as we get closer to the event.

In the message, I spoke from the first half of Romans 14, where Paul instructs us not to pass judgment on one other for our personal convictions.  This week I am going to pick up where we left off, covering Romans 14:13-23.  He has clearly established that if one feels he must adhere to certain rituals or dietary restrictions, it is a sign of weak faith.  However, he cautions us not to judge or be contemptuous of one another over these matters.  They are not central to the message of the Gospel.  Now he takes it a step further.  We may be free, but we are never to use our freedom in a way that harms our brother or sister.  For his audience, that meant one might avoid eating certain foods in deference to the consciences of those around them.  For us, the concepts are still the same.  Only the specifics may have changed.

God is always concerned with people.  His desire is to bring them to Himself.  If we are reflecting His heart, we don’t want to do anything that might cause them to fall away.  In everything we do, He is first, and the other is next.  He gave His life to save them.  How dare we push them away for the sake of a little self gratification!  Here Paul speaks primarily to the strong, as those who have a responsibility to the weaker, to guard, nurture, and protect.

What does that look like in today’s society?  It depends in part on who we know and what their background may be.  If you are surrounded by traditional Baptists, it might mean you avoid drinking, or at least posting it on social media.  In some churches it might mean you dress a certain way.  It might mean that you avoid doing things that aren’t wrong in themselves, but might cause others to sin because they are perceived as things that Christians do not do.  For people like me, it might involve staying silent on politically divisive issues that don’t really matter that much.  The objective is always to draw people to Jesus.  One might say there is no higher calling.  Our highest calling is to love God, but in so doing we come to love what He loves.  He loves people!

I love you!  I hope I’ll see you all this Sunday.  Pray for Cathy and Ruth as they are off seeing family.  Cathy will be off celebrating her anniversary this Sunday but we might see Ruth if she feels up to it after her trip  and Gary can bring her.  Keep praying for Lupe.

Larry