Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations

"Him that is weak in the faith receive ye, but not to doubtful disputations. For one believeth that he may eat all things: another, who is weak, eateth herbs. Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand. One man esteemeth one day above another: another esteemeth every day alike. Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regardeth the day, regardeth it unto the Lord; and he that regardeth not the day, to the Lord he doth not regard it. He that eateth, eateth to the Lord, for he giveth God thanks; and he that eateth not, to the Lord he eateth not, and giveth God thanks" (Rom. 14:1-6). We really need to know the difference between things that are the commandments of God, and things that are just traditions and personal persuasions of men. We should also consider that many things that were under the law of the old covenant, are only continued now by some as traditions of men, because they have been fulfilled by Jesus and done away with in their natural form. That would include many things pertaining to foods and days, such as we see here. That is what the apostle Paul was dealing with here with the congregation in Rome. There were some who believed that God required them to only eat certain things, and to observe certain days as being holy. Those who thought like this were the ones Paul referred to as being "weak in the faith." Others knew better than that, but were trying to impose their liberty and knowledge on those who were not able to receive it yet. The wise apostle was trying to persuade both sides of the conflict to just let the others do what they felt good about, and let God work it all out. The point is that the things they were dealing with were not the commandments of God, but rather they were personal persuasion things.

There's a lot of things like this today that people are doing the same thing with, but the big problem is that there aren't many who are free enough to understand that some of these personal preference things and traditions of men are not the commandments of God. I have seen people who are prophetic give messages to people that are partly from God, and partly from their own personal persuasion about certain traditions and such. I have also seen the damage that can be caused by such instances. I have even been recipient to a few similar 'messages,' and though I wasn't injured by them, I can see that it is not edifying. We really need to be cautious about allowing our own personal persuasions to be mixed in with something that the Lord has actually shown us about someone. Paul was trying to establish a spirit of love and edification among these believers, and that should always be our chief motivation in all that we do. The love of God in a person will always do that if it is the overriding power within them. There are a lot of 'prophetic' people who are not operating in edification, but rather in hastiness and self assurance that they are always 'right.' When we are more concerned about not being wrong than we are edifying who we're dealing with, we are on a seriously wrong track and we need to get off of it. If we think that being a prophet will save us, we should soberly think again: "Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity" (Mat. 7:22,23). The apostle Paul gave us the clear answer as to how that kind of thing can end up that way: "And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not [love], I am nothing" (I Cor. 13:2).

Whenever I see a 'prophetic word' transition into what amounts to personal advice, it alerts and concerns me, because I've seen the Spirit of God transition right out of the equation in many instances like that. For instance, someone among the saints in Rome whom Paul wrote to, could could have given someone a prophetic word from the Lord, and then taper off into something like, "And the Lord wants you to know that you should eat only herbs from now on." If eating only herbs was theirs and many other's persuasion, and they believed it was a requirement of God, that could fit right in with whatever the Lord had actually shown them; or at least that could be their thinking. That's the kind of thing that I'm talking about. I'm writing this article because there is so much prophetic activity going on in the body of Christ at this time, and so many are operating and trying to operate in that mode. So whether we are on the receiving end of some prophetic word, or we are giving the word, these things should really be considered and heeded. Too many people relish the idea of being a prophet, whether they are one or not; but what we should truly relish is loving our brethren as Jesus loved us. I would much rather not have a word for someone who asks me for one, than allow myself to come up with something that is either mixed, or not from God at all. Like the ancient proverb tells us, "Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him" (Prov. 29:20). Knowing what are actually the commandments of God, and what are just traditions and persuasions of men, can go a long way in keeping us from straying in that arena. As the same apostle Paul said, "Let all things be done unto edifying... [and] Let all things be done decently and in order" (I Cor. 14:26,40).