Being fully persuaded. Romans 4:18-25.

 What do we know about Romans four so far?

That God called Abraham at a time when he was living in Ur of the Chaldeans, in the plains of Shinar, the empire of the Assyrians. You might say they were foreigners but WE ALL came from Noah and his descendants. Knowing how much of a destructive force the Assyrians were upon the earth, I cringe when I don't see Abraham responding quickly to God when He tells Abram (his name at this point in the story,) to get out of here and go to the land that I will give you and your descendants. After a trip to Egypt, he finally arrives in the promised land.

Abraham does not seem that faithful.

What if God only concerns himself with the end result and not the junk in between?

As we read about the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11, we see many who did not start well but ended well. At this location, God shows up in a very vivid dream; it is so vivid that most read about the encounter as though it happened in the physical realm. Because of this dream, Abraham demonstrated his allegiance to the oral contract that God has made with Abraham.

This contract includes promises to Abraham's seed, which means that after many years of NO children with Sarah, the impossible is going to happen any day now. What makes this worse is that they are both getting to the point that making babies is not even on the menu anymore.

But Abraham was believing in God. Yes, there were “things” that happened between the promise and the fulfillment, but Abraham had faith; and yet, there is that tag line, but God.

We have made it through Romans 4:17 to this point, so let's move on.

Romans 4:17-18 NASB (as it is written, "A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU") in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. (18) In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, "SO SHALL YOUR DESCENDANTS BE."

Those words, “in hope against hope he believed,” were spoken about Abraham.

What is the writer talking about?

Abraham heard, and in the case of the dream, effectively lived out God's promise to him. The promise from God is the reason for the hope. Looking at the circumstances would be the things that are against your hope, and I covered several of those things in the paragraphs above. One of those things was Sarah. Not knowing if the reason for NOT having children is her problem or Abraham's, Sarah tells him to go test the water with her handmaid Hagar and because of Sarah's pushing, Abraham takes Hagar as a wife - legitimizing Ishmael (Now it is really complicated.) Abraham shrugs his shoulders and says, why not, and Hagar gets pregnant. Considering that we were told that they both thought that their bodies,, in terms of making babies, were dead, demonstrates that Abraham now had faith. Well, now we know that the infertility problem has been with Sarah the entire time, but none of this makes believing in the promise any easier.

“ he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations.”

As far as we know, Abraham seems to be driven to fulfill this role; that's an interesting thought. After all, you can't have descendants without having a boy child.

Romans 4:19 NASB Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah's womb;

This next verse is what I have been talking about when I said, God is not as concerned about the events in between the promise and the fulfillment.

Romans 4:20 NASB yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God,

“ with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith,”

Are you kidding me, I just talked about one of those moments of wavering. Consider that God made the promise to include Sarah, and no one else. So, Hagar could easily fall under a human propensity to lust. Yes, I get it and spoke of how sex, for Abraham, would require faith on his part anyway.

Does that make the act right?

No, but God can use everything if He needs to. I must tell you that signed up for a free course from Hillsdale college on the book of Genesis, and just yesterday 1/5/22, the discussion was about Abraham and Hagar. Dr. Jackson talked about the nuances of the wording and it is there before us (if we choose to look) that Abraham took Hagar as a wife, as well. How he could simply throw away a wife and a child I do not know. But even that is resolved in scripture, as Hagar returned to Sarah.

How is Ishmael a God thing?

Looking far into the future, there will be a people group known as the Assyrians. Ishmael and his descendants will play a role in the punishment of Israel at the hand of the Babylonians.

When Jonah was sent to the people of Nineveh, to deliver a message of God's judgment if they do not change, Jonah seemed to know something of God's character and knew that He would relent (for the moment,) and show them mercy. Who were these people? They were Assyrians – descendants of Ishmael.

Romans 4:21-22 NASB and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform. (22) Therefore IT WAS ALSO CREDITED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.

“and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform.”

From the delivery of the message to Abraham, until the fulfillment with the birth of Isaac, was 25 years. We are told that Abraham was “fully assured.”

Have you ever given any thought to what it would be like to be fully assured?

We are told, in Hebrews 11:6, that without faith it is impossible to please God. I am sure that the writer of Hebrews meant a good-sized bucket full of faith. I strive to maintain my bucketful but I think this striving creates a problem as it tends to push me over into the idea of working to please God.

“Fully assured” is the Greek word plērophoreō said twice. The word means to carry out fully, to be completely assured or persuaded.

So Abraham, by some standard set by the writer of Hebrews, carried out fully what God asked of him, or, he was fully assured/persuaded. Get real, Abraham was a broken human, just as we are; and, as a broken human, subject to the same temptations that we all are. I can assure you, that just as the serpent did to Eve, Satan tried to move Abraham off course and quit. While we do see some of the failures, like Hagar and Ishmael, God does not focus on the failures but the end result; the things that demonstrate that you were fully persuaded and provable by the end result.

Perhaps one of the ways we become assured or persuaded is to understand that God never lies, He cannot, so what we have been told is true. Reading passages that speak of the nature of God in those terms and then mulling them over in your mind, until you believe it.

“... God, who cannot lie, promised long ages ago,” (Titus 1:2 NASB)

Since we never judge a thing based upon one witness, here is a second statement about God.

"God is not a man, that He should lie, ...” (Numbers 23:19 NASB)

Romans 4:23-25 NASB Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, (24) but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, (25) He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.

“ Now not for his sake only was it written”

If you have been following the conversation, then you would know that the subject is Abraham. These promises were not written for Abraham only. The NLT translation puts it this way. “it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit.”

So, who else was intended when God spoke these promises to Abraham?

“but for our sake also,”

Again I lean on the NLT where it says “for our benefit, too.” Here the writer, who was clearly writing to the Jews, is also speaking to the reader, which is you. Ah, but although it seems that life in Christ is merely handed to you on a plate, you must pick up the fork to partake. The fork, in this case, faith.

Do you understand that there was a man named Jesus?

“God will also count us as righteous if we believe in him, the one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.” NLT

Faith happens when you move over into an internalization of Jesus; that He is the Son of God; that He died for to redeem your life back from the enemy (this doesn't happen individually, it happened once covering everyone but does everyone accept that Jesus lived and died for them, no, they don't; this acceptance happens individually.), and that Jesus will bring you to the Father to live for all eternity.

The NLT points out that it was the Father who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.

And finally, we have this.

“He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.”

I despise how quickly we choose to send Judas to hell, especially since NO ONE has been sent to hell yet; that all happens at the great white throne. Yes, there are two exceptions and they are the antichrist and the false prophet, both of which are humans; this happens just before the millennial reign begins.

I mention Judas as we see him as the one who delivered Jesus over to his death. But who did Judas deliver Jesus to, and why? Some think he was trying to force Jesus into His role as Messiah of Israel.

The UCRT dictionary explains that Jesus was both actively handed over - having offered up Himself.

“... Jesus did this once for all when he offered himself as the sacrifice for the people’s sins.” (Hebrews 7:27 NLT)

And passively handed over.

“so also Christ was offered once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. ...”(Hebrews 9:28 NLT)

Regardless, the question is, what will you do with Him? It is the only thing you will be judged for.

Admit that you are a sinner. This boils down to the realization that you are broken, we all are, and that you cannot fix this on your own.

Believe on Jesus Christ. There is NO other answer. Oh sure, if you're stupid, even during the time of wrath, you will find that there is NO other way to the Father. Heaven, peace, and life in the heavenly kingdom, can only happen if you give your life to Jesus.

And Confess – Jesus, I have come to realize that there is no hope without you. And you already paid, with your life, so that I could have this life and peace with the Father. I accept and receive your life in me.

The prayer of faith. James 5:13-20.

We ended our last look at James with James 5:11.

“We count those blessed who endured. You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.” (NASB)

Did you get that?

The Lord is full of compassion and is merciful. I suppose much of this mental confusion that I have endured about His nature and character comes from the horrid sermons I have heard over the years. These messages were laden with guilt and implied that you needed to work harder, perhaps even be a missionary and have a spear run through you to prove your worthiness to God.

This kind of works based thinking is what Islam teaches, even to the point that if you get your blood spilled, you can never be sure it is enough blood.

It is head conversations, such as this, that prompt me to think, “and I am the guy that is telling people that Jesus Christ is coming back, and soon.” When I talk with people, you quickly find out that they are not looking for Jesus to return as what they have is good enough. Their lifestyle and traditions make up their comfort zone and frequent visits to some organized church allow them to call themselves Christians, right alongside the Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Mormons.

I don’t know which is greater, the desire to tell people that I am looking for His return in September or showing them the details of what the time after the church will be like. I would be hard-pressed to reduce the time after the church to one word, but chaos just about covers it.

Why would I feel comfortable talking about when He might come back?

Because, as Paul states,

“But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; (5) for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness;”
1 Thessalonians 5:4-5 NASB

After Jesus finished speaking to the crowd about the sower and seed, the disciples came to him and asked:

"Why do You speak to them in parables?" (Matthew 13:10b NASB)

It almost comes across as though they understood the parables; I don't think so. Jesus answered them with:

"To you, it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them, it has not been granted. (Matthew 13:11b NASB)

This is not that difficult and the prophet Daniel confirms that God/the Holy Spirit, will give insight to many.

"Those who have insight among the people will give understanding to the many;...” (Daniel 11:33a. NASB)

The argument that most throw at you, and some will argue that this is a church doctrine set in stone, is Matthew 24:36.

“But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” (NASB)

In doing this, these antagonists overlook the context, which I will give you here.

“Now learn the parable from the fig tree: when its branch has already become tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near; so, you too, when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door. “Truly, I say to you; this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Matthew 24:32-34 NASB)

It is a safe assumption to say that Israel is that fig tree, and its branch can be seen in some major events like the six-day war which occurred in 1967, in which Israel regained the land that God had spoken to them as being theirs, back. Sadly, that didn’t last long, as the United Nations got involved and Israel relinquished some of the captured lands. The Gaza strip is an example. Israel, to some degree, feels that it is successful and secure. In other words, the fig tree has become tender and has put forth its leaves. Having come to realize that this is happening I look to Jesus' words when he told those listening; then, you can know that summer is near. This reference to the end of time has little to do with summer, but summer, for the fig tree, is when you can pick the fruit.

Do you not realize that we, the church, are, in a sense, the fruit?

The gathering of His church then is the picking of the fruit. He next says, “when you see all these things, recognize that He is near, right at the door.” Just looking at Israel alone, puts us in a place where we can look for the door to open and the Father to lean out and call us home for dinner.

Jesus gave us one more huge clue to help us determine where we are in this timeline.

“Truly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.”

Israel became a nation in 1948; that date alone should be the lower limit of the timeline. A generation in 1948 was 64.6 years. If you wanted to get technical, Jesus made these statements at a time when the average life expectancy was about 35 years. Based upon the more modern sixty-five-year average, then we are seven years beyond Jesus' proclaimed time frame.

• The summer is near;
• He is right at the door,
• and this generation will not pass away.

Folks, we are there.

Considering the persecution that is coming, these words from James should bring you hope.

“You have heard of the endurance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.”

Since you are now filled with hope and know that God is merciful, then you can take your prayers to Him. And thus, this next section is entitled.

The Prayer of Faith

James 5:13 NASB Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.

Suffering is the Greek word kakopatheō and means to undergo hardship, be afflicted, and endure affliction.

Considering that our churches just recently got shut down again, you might think that many of us are suffering. James tells us, we must pray.

Cheerful means just that, cheerful.

If you are cheerful, then sing!

James 5:14-15 NASB "Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; (15) and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him."

Sick, as used in verse 14, is the Greek word astheneō and means to be weak, feeble, to be without strength, and powerless.

Sound familiar?

There are so many things that can make you feel this way, especially when we, three weeks after reopening our churches, got them shut down again. If that is the way you feel, and many of us do, then call for the elders of the church, and they are to pray over you.

“and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick,”

We just covered the word sick in the previous verse, but look up the word sick, as used in James 5:15, and you find the Greek word kamnō, which is means to toil, by implication to tire (figuratively faint, sicken), and be wearied.

With a purposefully created virus, moving our state governors to open and close our churches, beaches, and restaurants, in irregular, indeterminate cycles - causing us to lose our bearings, it is easy to see how we can be tired, sick and weary.

James tells us the prayer of faith will restore not only the sick but also the weary. The NASB conveys the idea that God will raise you up. Let’s consider the word raise for a moment.

Raise is the Greek word egeirō and means the idea of collecting one’s faculties); to waken (transitively or intransitively), that is, rouse (literally from sleep, from sitting or lying, from disease, from death.

The idea of collecting one’s faculties makes me think of the boxer who has come close to being knocked out. It takes them several seconds to regain their composure and gather their legs back under them. For some, it is called “regaining your bearings;” for others, it conveys the idea of rousing someone from sleep; and, finally, healing from a disease or death.

You go to the elders and lay your tattered life before them, with the hope of collecting your faculties; doesn’t that imply that you have missed the mark somewhere along the line?

Sorry if I keep repeating specific themes like sin, which is, at the least, nothing more than missing the mark.

Regardless, all of it was paid for at the cross.

If that is true, then why do I need to go to the elders, and confess to them that the world is tearing me up, and I am not sure how much more I can take. Only to have them declare that my sins are forgiven?

This is why James continues with,

James 5:16 NASB "Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much."

Confess. Gr. exomologeō, To confess from the heart, freely, publicly, openly (Thayer)

First off, don’t pour your personal failures out before everyone. Some people are not safe and will spill your information in front of just about anyone; and some of those know full well what they are doing to you. Take some time to find safe people; even then, some people you thought were safe may not be. In that case, you will have to trust the Holy Spirit to lead you to something like Recovery, or a small group where the leader, under guidelines, works to create a safe atmosphere.

Why would you do this confess thing?

For some of us, this missing the mark has become a habit, and not something you think you need to worry about, as you do it so often. Depending on what it is, it can merely be annoying or lead to the destruction of relationships. For others, it can be a step toward imprisonment or death.

The soundness within confessing might be understood aS God giving you a preview of the future and the trouble it holds; that, and a chance to do something about it. Being forgiven does not mean that you continually live your life in a whirlwind and all the destruction that it brings. Confessing puts that “small” thing out in the open and eliminates it from being our secret because our secrets quickly become our prisons. You should know that what you thought was a secret sin is the thing that will get you pulled from power somewhere down the road. If these people you are sharing your small failures with don’t pray with and for you, get away from them. You see, the effective prayer of a righteous person can accomplish much.

It was the words of James that freed me, as one day it occurred to me that this confessing is little more than my admitting my small and big failures, even if it includes the way I recently mishandled my dog.

There are times after I have poured out my heart before the men, that several of them merely sit there staring at me. In my head, I imagine that they do not have a clue as to what I just said since they have never sinned. Now, I know that is not true, and here is why.

James 5:17-18 NASB "Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. (18) Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit."

Look up the phrase, “with a nature,” and you get this Greek word homoiopathēs, which means similarly affected or subject to like passions.

What that tells me is that he was capable of sinning, and did so, just as we do. Note how the verse tells us that Elijah prayed earnestly that it would not rain – and the rain stopped for three years and six months. Some preachers will stand before you, and act like this time that Elijah spent in prayer was a consecrated and holy moment; and, that Elijah did this repeatedly in some systematic manner. I don’t know about that, for that inference of a methodical prayer life becomes especially difficult when you are running for your life from the king and his deadly wife, Jezebel.

When you look up the word earnestly, Webster’s dictionary will lead you to the word importunately, which means with urgent request and pressing solicitation. Elijah was trying to affect a turn of this murderous king and his wife, toward God. Even if it stops raining, who knows how long it will take before Ahab and Jezebel respond to God if they ever do. We know they did not. Obviously, the rain did stop, and Elijah sat by what seemed like the only trickle of water in all the land; and, the ravens brought him food because God took care of him.

“he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.”

Elijah killed the 400 priests of Baal, and then, almost as if Ahab had been standing there, says, I hear the sound of the roar of heavy rain. Stop here for a moment.

What King travels without his bodyguards?

I suspect they all do, and having witnessed Elijah hack up Jezebel’s priests, why wouldn’t they, in turn, hack up Elijah? Something we may never know here on earth. So it does not seem logical that Ahab stood quietly by as God sent something that acts like a small nuclear blast, to consume the sacrifice, the rocks, and the water in the trench.

1 Kings 18:42 NASB "So Ahab went up to eat and drink. But Elijah went up to the top of Carmel; and he crouched down on the earth and put his face between his knees."

“So Ahab went up to eat and drink,” as though it was just another day.

Elijah goes to the top of Mt. Carmel, crouches down with his face between his knees, and WHAT?

We are only left to assume he prayed for rain. How and what that prayer looked like is perhaps intentionally left out, and I can see a good reason for that, just as Jesus used a different technique each time He healed someone. The result of this man’s prayer’s, IT RAINED.

So where have we been in the last few minutes?

We opened with, “Is there anyone among you suffering or sick, they should go to the elders, where they will anoint you with oil and pray, and the Lord will raise you up."

But we found something interesting.

Those two simple words, suffering or sick, talk about the person who is struggling, afflicted, undergoing hardships, and doesn’t have the strength to stand on their own. Only because they, like Elijah, have learned through the school of hard knocks how to pray, these elders will take your life before the Father, "and He will raise you up."

And yet there is one more thing that seems unusual: “if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.” Well, of course, he has, we all do, but we confess our sins (one to another,) not because we like embarrassment, but because there is healing and freedom in doing that. Again I tell you, be careful about who you share your sins with because NOT everyone is safe.

James has one more piece of advice.

"My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins." (James 5:19-20 NASB)

“If” is a big word, and yet it is a word with hope. I think any of us would rejoice to see even one fellow believer turn back to spiritual maturity. Having been a leader in several recovery groups, there were a couple of men who struggled at the time but still hold tightly to the Lord. Just thinking about them bolsters my heart.

Note how James, reiterates that that one brother who aided in turning back the one who was sinning, saved his soul from death. Here is where it gets complicated for me.

If Jesus could say of the disciples, of all you gave Me I have lost none, and yet we know about Judas Iscariot, then either Jesus lied, or Judas is not lost, or He never had Judas to begin with?

That evokes another question because WE have been given to Him, just as the disciples were, so how can James say we who have turned someone back, will save their soul from death?

That word save is the Greek word sōzō and can also mean to protect.

But for me, there is still that question above.

Soul here is the Greek psuchē. The first thing the Strong’s give us is breath.

We are not talking about something unreal here. We are talking about saving another human being's life. Since they belong to Jesus, then, NO, they are not going to hell, but their potential and usefulness here on earth can be cut short. Perhaps in saving their life, our selflessness allows them to save someone else from death as well, and thereby, our voices and actions exponentially cover a multitude of sins.

Do not pass judgment. Romans 14:1-4

Do Not Pass Judgment on One Another

If you did a quick overview of Romans 14, then you would know that the first three verses are inherently tied together. One of the first things you see is the word judgment; however, if all you used was, say, the NASB, you might not understand why Paul uses the word judgment. I will try to explain.

Romans 14:1 NASB Now accept the one who is weak in faith, but not for the purpose of passing judgment on his opinions.

How would you know this person, who just walked in the door, is weak in their faith, and what does it mean to be weak in faith?

You wouldn’t know, that is unless you had some in-depth conversation. And, just because these “new” people don’t see things the way you do, does not necessarily mean they are weak in faith.

[As I write this, the United States is shutting down mode over the Covid 19 virus. Not knowing what is affecting me physically, and the fact that my sinuses began draining again, I opted not to take any lip off of people at church, and stay home. Since the church I attend is a modified “faith” church, although they will not tell you that, to some, my actions would indicate that I did not have enough faith. Given the global circumstances, I would be very annoyed if someone started coughing all over me. Does that make me weak in faith?]

Let's look at other translations and see if we get any clarification.

Welcome with open arms, fellow believers who don't see things the way you do. And don't jump all over them every time they do or say something you don't agree with—even when it seems that they are strong on opinions but weak in the faith department. Remember, they have their own history to deal with. Treat them gently.

(Romans 14:1 MSG)

Did you catch that, he is not just talking about someone who is merely weak in their faith, he is talking about fellow believers who don't see things the way you do? Well, there are two or three conflicting opinions to every truth you might be expressing.

An example. Sitting in a home-group, “of men,” a man showed up who was reasonably new to the church. The assumption was made that this guy knows nothing. So, in an attempt to show off some biblical prowess, based on tradition and opinion, and not the word, the question was asked, how big do you think David was when he slew Goliath? The man who asked the question is someone I have known for close to twenty years and, the standard religious tradition is that David was a boy of about 12 years. When no one would dare to answer the question I said, I will take a crack at it, and said, about six foot four inches tall, or so. Well, guess what happened, I got verbally mugged because I said something with which they did not agree. By the way, there is biblical evidence that David was about that tall, but I will leave that to you to find out.

Some of these people can be very opinionated and therefore come as though they know everything. Another example came to mind when an ex-pastor brought in stacks of the book, “The Shack,” by William Paul Young. That Pastor said it had impacted his life, and he wanted others to read it. I bought one. I struggled a bit with the book because the imagery was not what I was used to. If you read Eugene Peterson's book, “What's So Amazing About Grace,” you came to learn that in his church, in the South, racism was simply a way of life.

While it may not have been so openly visible for me, I strongly suspect that racism ran through the church I attended as well; these hidden racist attitudes caused some of my struggle as I read The Shack. The Holy Spirit told me to shut up and keep reading, and I did, but I still approached a man at our church who had a Theological Doctorate and asked him about “The Shack” because I wanted answers. His response was, I will not discuss something that is filled with such weak theology. I never bothered him again.

To be honest, I struggled with the crowd passing judgment against me that evening, and yet, I have passed judgment against them. The brother who asked about David's height, went on, several years later, to lead a study in Romans, just as I am still doing, months after the other has ended. I dropped out after some time, rather than to get into contentious arguments, primarily because my friend was teaching Warren Wiersbe's commentary on Romans. While some of that information could be deemed useful, I also found aspects that grieve me, such as: telling the audience that the book of Romans was primarily written to the Gentile world.

Here is where the idea that Romans is a Gentile's book comes into play.

Romans 14:2 NLT  For instance, one person believes it’s all right to eat anything. But another believer with a sensitive conscience will eat only vegetables.

You get some freshly converted Jew, and they will come undone if you hand them a pulled pork sandwich. 

Would that bother a Gentile? 

Hardly. So if he is talking to Gentiles, then why have this discussion? Perhaps there is more to this idea of eating anything. 

Peterson's Message says this.

For instance, a person who has been around for a while might well be convinced that he can eat anything on the table, while another, with a different background might assume all Christians should be vegetarians and eat accordingly. (Romans 14:2 MSG)

Interesting, how Peterson says, “ while another, with a different background might assume all Christians should be vegetarians and eat accordingly.” 

Since you know your Bible, then I will bring up that Peter was the Apostle to the Gentiles, but that didn't last long. 

How do we know this? Because of this.

About noon the following day as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the roof to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds. Then a voice told him, "Get up, Peter. Kill and eat." "Surely not, Lord!" Peter replied. "I have never eaten anything impure or unclean." The voice spoke to him a second time, "Do not call anything impure that God has made clean." This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven. (Acts 10:9-16 NIV)

Immediately after this, Peter was called to the home of Cornelius, the Centurion.

The men replied, "We have come from Cornelius, the Centurion. He is a righteous and God-fearing man, who is respected by all the Jewish people. A holy angel told him to ask you to come to his house so that he could hear what you have to say." (Acts 10:22 NIV)

This Centurion was a Roman Gentile. Watch what happened.

The apostles and the believers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him and said, "You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them." (Acts 11:1-3 NIV)

Obviously, for most of the Jews, their faith was not strong enough to handle Peter's sitting with Gentiles, let alone the eating part. Why because these new converts may have been willing to eat pulled pork and lobster?

Romans 14:3 NIV  The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them.

What did Eugene Peterson say?

“Welcome with open arms, fellow believers who don't see things the way you do. And don't jump all over them every time they do or say something you don't agree with.”

Is this also Paul's way of telling these Jews that the Gentiles are acceptable? 

The Complete Jewish Bible tells us:

The one who eats anything must not look down on the one who abstains; and the abstainer must not pass judgment on the one who eats anything, because God has accepted him— (Romans 14:3 CJB)

There does not seem to be anything abnormal, as one is merely abstaining. This can work both ways. But let's pursue what might not be said in this rant. The first church council was made up of Apostles, Jews, and they held tightly to their Jewishness. So when they gave instructions to the “Gentile” believers, they merely said,

but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood. (Acts 15:20 NASB)

This did not explain the reasons why you don’t consume the blood, as it is for most, just disgusting. Paul takes it a step further.

Now concerning things sacrificed to idols, we know that we all have knowledge. Knowledge makes arrogant, but love edifies. If anyone supposes that he knows anything, he has not yet known as he ought to know; but if anyone loves God, he is known by Him. Therefore concerning the eating of things sacrificed to idols, we know that there is no such thing as an idol in the world and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, yet for us, there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him. However, not all men have this knowledge; but some, being accustomed to the idol until now, eat food as if it were sacrificed to an idol, and their conscience being weak is defiled. But food will not commend us to God; we are neither the worse if we do not eat, nor the better if we do eat. But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone sees you, who have knowledge, dining in an idol's temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols? For through your knowledge, he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died. (1 Corinthians 8:1-11 NASB)

So it has more to do with freedoms and liberty, and Paul practically uses the same language here, as he did in the letter to the church in Rome.

While I intend to include this next verse in the future study, it is undoubtedly, and contextually, an aspect of this conversation.

Romans 14:4 NASB Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master, he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.

Consider these words:

“Who are you to judge the servant of another?”

What does that mean?

Paul, as I have pointed out on several occasions, opened this letter in this manner.

Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus called as an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, (Romans 1:1 NASB)

Do you not realize that we are all bond-servants?

And if we are bond-servants, then this portion of this verse stands true.

“To his own master, he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.”

If scripture is true, and it is, then we will either stand or fall because we are the Lords. Thank God, He will make us stand, not only in this world but also in the world to come.