20 Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats.21 It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.[a]22 The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God. Blessed is the one who has no reason to pass judgment on himself for what he approves.23 But whoever has doubts is condemned if he eats, because the eating is not from faith. For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin. (Romans 14:20-23 ESV)
A bit of a long passage today, but one that bears reading a few times to understand its context.
What the passage conveys, in summary, is that “not everything that is good for us is profitable.” Meaning, just because there is no law against something we might do, it may not be profitable for us to do it if it makes our brother stumble.
It is much like adhering to foreign customs when we travel abroad so as not to offend. We want to do the same thing where we are so that we do not cause someone else to stumble. Imagine having a friend who struggles with alcoholism. We would not want to open a bottle of wine and serve it with a meal, even though we have no issue with its consumption. It could cause our brother to stumble back into his addiction.
Reflect on: Reread the passage a few times and consider where you might be taking liberties that could cause another to stumble.
