Scripture to Read: Romans 14:17
God’s Word is incredibly transforming and as God led Paul to write His Word, God has been showing us areas of our lives that we must examine so that we do not cause anyone else to stumble in their walk with Him. For example, today, we read in Romans 14:17, “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.” The issue of food has been spoken of throughout Romans 13 and 14. We have already discussed why this has been spoken of so much but here it is again. God does not want His children to miss what He’s saying. God also had Paul deal with this issue of eating meat in 1 Corinthians 8, which would be another great chapter to go and read now to help better clarify what God is getting across to all of us. But since God has told us in Romans 14:17 that His kingdom is not about eating and drinking, He says something similar in 1 Corinthians 8:8, “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.” So, food and drink don’t make us right with God nor do they condemn us before God. But God’s kingdom is about us living a life filled with His righteousness, peace, and joy through His Holy Spirit, who lives in us. God gave us the fullness of His righteousness, peace, and joy when we surrendered to Him as Lord, so let’s live accordingly.
Challenge & Application
· What has held you captive that you thought would condemn you before God but now you know it will not?
· How are you walking in the fullness of God’s righteousness, peace, and joy each day, knowing you have them through His Holy Spirit?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!