Romans pt 7: The Seat of Judgement, Ro 14:10-12.

by Tommy Preson Phillips

Judging 

When Paul writes this line, he is within walking distance of what in Corinth is called the Bema seat. From this platform the city elders would judge the misdeeds of the people, day in and day out. They would stand on the ground below the court, seated above on beautifully painted marble thrones, and they would hear the trials and pronounce judgement.  Many Roman cities had these, but Corinths was renowned for having the largest Bema seat around, which is fitting, as they loved watching the public courts. Consequently, that is also why Paul gave the Corinthians specific instructions not to take part in the court, and not to sew each other because of how it tarnishes the name of Christ when “…one brother takes another to court—and this in front of unbelievers!” (1 Co 6:6). 

Paul tells the church in Rome that when they judge each other, they place a stumbling block in front of each other. But what does that mean?

Stumbling Block

The word translated as stumbling block is the Greek word Proskomma, and refers to a foot striking a stone. It is the word you would use while you are traveling on the road and you trip over something, causing you to fall and possibly ending your journey.

I have had many people in my life throw stumbling blocks in my path, some of the biggest being ideologies that I was judged by in my youth and young adulthood. If I embraced them, I was judged a "true Christian," and if not, I was ostracized, which happened more often than not.

• I was told that I had to accept views of the cosmos that seemed to reject observable science;

• I was told that I had to value one nation over others, and one political party over another;

• I was told everything from tattoos to drinking to even going to movies was a sign that I wasn’t right with Jesus.
  These were personal preferences that became ideologies and finally were made into doctrines with no grounding in Orthodoxy; and at no point did they form me - nor those who judged me by them - towards Christlikeness.

But along the way, there were saints who removed those stumbling blocks; the spiritually formed ones, usually older - people who have suffered - reminded me that God is with me and for me. Oftentimes they found themselves ostracized as well.

Jesus says that those who follow him closely will do so much more than remove stumbling blocks. They will make the path straight, they will move mountains:

“Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you.” (Mt 17:20–21).

When Jesus spoke about removing mountains, he was using a phrase which the Jews knew well. A great teacher, who could really expound and interpret Scripture and who could explain and resolve difficulties, was regularly known as an uprooter, or even a pulverizer, of mountains. (1)

Israel believed that the Messiah was the one who would come and “prepare the way of the Lord.” Jesus' mission was to make it easy, and our role as Christians is to make the path easier, not harder.

We have no business asking “Who belongs and who doesn’t?” Instead, we are called to ask “Who is outside, and what can we do so that they can enter in?”  When we judge, we are - in one way or another - choosing wether or not we will separate ostracize the other, and THAT is where we create stumbling blocks to Christ.

There is a wordplay in the Greek that sort of comes out like a catchy slogan:

“Do not KRINEIN (judge) each other, but KRINEIN (judge) that you should not place a stumbling block in front of the other.”  (2)

Paul says “if you want to judge someone, then judge when yourself; decide wether or not you are like Jesus, and if not, make it right!"

Is Paul Describing Tolerance?

Christlike tolerance is different than the tolerance of western liberal democracy. 

Paul lays out two different examples where people looking at the same religious principles came to wildly different conclusions, and he knows that if someone is thrown out, they will never become what God intends for them to become. So this isn’t tolerance for the sake of peace, but rather, patient tolerance for the sake of growth. As you spend time at the table with the other, the Spirit joins you there. God intends to work through your community and your family, but also your opponents and your enemies to form you like Christ.

Tolerance, for Paul, is not “holding lightly to your beliefs.” These are not simply differences of opinion, these are convictions; there is no suggestion that we should just hold our convictions a little lighter and take them less seriously. He says two things: “We should be convinced in our own mind,”  not “ambiguous in your own mind.” (3) He says that we should hold the convictions of others in high regard, and not separate yourselves from them.

Romans 14 is a passage about understanding that everyone in the church is trying to follow Jesus in the best way possibleeven though they might have come to different conclusions than you. It is an acceptance of where people are at, even if they are in a tiny minority in the church, it's okay! God will do God's thing, have faith, and do not be afraid. There are many things that someone else at the table might consider righteous, but you cannot, and for you to act against your own conscience is unhealthy for your soul. 

But for those of you pushing them and shaming them into seeing things your way: you might think you are “opening them up,” that you’re “saving them,” but you might be tying a weight around their necks that will drown their faith. It is better to try and understand where people are at, why it is so important to them, and to help them be faithful to God in the way that God has called them to, whether you understand it or not.

The question we learn to ask from culture is: “Who belongs at the table?”. But the question we learn from Jesus is “What am I willing to suffer so that others can be included?”. 

Can we come together in a way that is empathetic to what each side is feeling, assuage each others fears of us, and learn to protect each others convictions?

Discussion Questions:

Has anyone thrown stumbling blocks in your path?
- What were they? - How did it affect your view of Jesus and the church?

Do you believe you've thrown stumbling blocks in the way of others?
- How have you grown since then? - Why are you able to recognize it now, but not before?

What can we do in our local communities to both live by our strongly held convictions and also clear a path for those who do not share them to come to Jesus?
- In your eyes, Is it possible to do such a thing? Or is judgment and ostracism necessary to have a healthy and Christlike community?

Later this week:

I will be posting more topics of conversation that center on Romans 14, including:
- The constraints of Christian freedom.
- Why Paul uses the Strong and Weak Labels when it might seem problematic to modern sensibilities.

(1) Barclay, Matthew.

(2) Lancaster, Romans.

(3) Wright, New Interpreters Bible Commentary, Vol IX.