Yes, I am a Christian! (Part II)
Stop right there; Did you read the previous blog? If you have not done it yet, I encourage you to go and read it and then come back here, since you will not understand much of the message without the portion that precedes this blog.
So, taking up what was mentioned in the previous blog, I ask you the following question; Why do I have to act assuming that my brother is going to think badly of me? I'll leave this here and come back to it later.
The part preceding the verse that is below talks about regulations and guidelines on how a woman and a man should behave, it talks about the woman having to cover her head because it is dishonorable and it refers to her submitting to her husband, It speaks of the fact that women must keep silence and be submissive at all times and that men are the body of authority in all areas, etc. But if you notice in the last verse of this chapter, it also says that we must judge if these customs are correct or not, since this is the only thing they know as Christian behavior.
Customs, times, mentalities, laws, all these things have changed, and even the Bible advises that we adapt certain things to the times (be careful, not everything in the Bible is ready to adapt, there are things that will never change) .
For example; Women no longer cover their heads, they are not always quiet, at that time it was not even allowed for a woman to work, but the point is not this. The word of God is eternal, and it becomes alive in our lives and the holy spirit gives us the discernment to understand it and to connect it to the present time, the word of God does not become obsolete, on the contrary, read the following verse.
“Judge for yourself if it is okay for the woman to pray to God without covering her head. Nature itself teaches us that it is a shame for man to grow his hair; instead, it is an honor for the woman to let it grow; because she has been given her long hair to cover her head. In any case, if anyone wants to discuss this matter, he should know that neither we nor the churches of God know of another custom. "
1 Corinthians 11: 13-16 NASB
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Just like this verse there are many in the bible, as is the verse from 1 Timothy 2: 9; that speaks that women should dress chastely, with decorous clothes and not with ostentatious trousseau or gold, that they should be simple and not wear exaggerated hairstyles, that their adornment be their good works and that they should listen to instructions in silence and submission. Everything is perfect, but we all know that even in the Christian church this is not fully fulfilled, much less at this time, there are many things written in the Bible for a particular reason and for a time and an occasion.
Tell a Hindu that putting an earring on their nose is a sin or that it is vulgar as many on my island think, or even about trousseau or gold, or speak to an Irishman that it is not correct to drink beer with food, or a Scottish man that their not supposed to wear a skirt, or an African in a tribe that it is a sin to make marks on their skin, and if I continue I do not finish, some Christians believe that they are the only living beings on earth and they put rules and stipulate orders such as if there were no one else, they condemn left and right, and believe themselves immaculate, only they and their culture exist.
The same Paul in the verse above says; "Neither we nor the churches of God know of another custom." Alluding to what exactly that is, culture and custom, they did not know anything else.
The bible is a book whose last pages were written more than two thousand years ago, and its beginnings and origin dates back much more than five thousand years in history, with this I am not saying that what it says in the bible already It does not fit in this modern time or that it is obsolete, on the contrary, I go back and repeat, the more time passes the more truthful what is written in the word of God is done, what I do say is that not everything adapts to these times As I said before, there are many things written like the ones mentioned above that speak to a specific people and for specific reasons.
On many occasions commandments, rules, and even curses are mentioned above some people because of the idolatry, disobedience and pride of man, the key point here is; Where is your heart when doing things? What is your intention behind it?
In the portion in Timothy, the prophet is saying these things because women wanted to rebel against their husbands, and because they were not giving men their rightful place, women were making a stir in the church, for this reason the prophet writes these things, and maybe at some particular time for the same reasons some pastors must carry out these same rules in their congregation, it is the same as John the Baptist or Samson, both were Nazarites, they were not allowed cutting their hair, or doing many things, they were men specifically dedicated to the service of God, but not because they were not allowed to cut their hair does not mean that all men should not cut it, well it says in 1 Corinthians 11 that man should not keep their hair long or the woman cut it short, so if we start to analyze, both the situation of Samson and John the Baptist and the situation in 1 Corinthians 11 are both contradictory. So who is right?
As I told you, the word is written in a time and an occasion, it is not the same time in which people were condemned in exodus for tattooing their skin, the reason was because they were idolaters and they tattooed animals, beasts or their gods to invoke and worship them, I am not saying that tattooing is not a sin, but this is another subject a little more delicate which deserves more Bible study.
In the word says; "everything is legal for me (that is, everything is allowed) but not everything suits me", as it also says in The word that if something in my mind is a sin, even tho is not in the word yet and I do it, then it will be counted as a sin, if in your conscience you consider that tattooing is a sin, then for you it is, if you do it It will count as one, but you cannot condemn the one who does it, nor believe that that person is not a child of God or that they are going to hell because for you a tattoo is like the seal of the beast.
It is the same with the one who does not eat pork because in the Bible it says that it cannot be because it is impure, or the one who does eat it, or the one who keeps the Sabbath, or the one who does not keep it, or the one who puts a Christmas tree and the one who does not, because he believes that by doing this he is sinning as an idolater because the Christmas tree was designed to worship the sun god.
It is very important that you read the following verses;
“Receive well the one who is weak in faith, and do not enter into arguments with him. For example, there are those who think they can eat anything, while others, who are weak in faith, eat only vegetables. Well, the one who eats everything should not look down on the one who does not eat certain things; and the one who does not eat certain things should not criticize the one who eats everything, because God has accepted it. Who are you to criticize someone else's servant? Whether it looks good or bad is his own master's business. But he will look good, because the Lord has the power to make him look good. Another case: There are those who give more importance to one day than to another, and there are those who believe that all days are the same. Each one must be convinced of what he believes. Whoever keeps a certain day keeps it to honor the Lord. And he who eats everything, to honor the Lord, eats it, and gives thanks to God; and whoever does not eat certain things, to honor the Lord he stops eating them, and he also gives thanks to God. "
Romans 14: 1-6 DHH94PC
In short, what does it matter whether they eat or not eat, what day they keep or what day they do not keep, whether or not they do it is for the Lord who stops doing it or does it.
I cannot criticize my brother for what he does or for what he does not do, that is not my job, each being or individual is responsible for how he lives his life in Christ, BUT, in the same way I say that, I would say This, I must not do anything that makes my brother fall, and much less should I give reasons for someone to speak evil about the good that is in me, because I profess Christ, if there is any brother or even a non-Christian person close to me and have some weakness and I know it, my duty as a person "mature in faith" is not to do what could be a stumbling block to my brother.
And with this I return to the question I asked above; Why should I act assuming that my brother will think badly of me? In no way, the one who judges, judges by the condition of his own heart, like the one that the first thing that saw in the photo was the table with the mojitos, or like the one who sees the photo and does not even realize that there are mojitos on the table (alluding to my story in the first part of the blog).
Of what abounds in your heart, is what you will see everywhere.
If there is bitterness in your heart, you will see bitterness in the other, if there is gossip in your heart, you will always believe that everyone talks about you, if there is conflict in your heart, you will always think that the other is seeking to contend, if there is pride in your heart, you will always see pride in others.
“Therefore, we should no longer criticize each other. Instead, make up your mind not to do anything that causes your brother to stumble, or jeopardizes his faith. I know that there is nothing impure in itself; As a believer in the Lord Jesus, I am sure of it. But if anyone thinks that a thing is unclean, it will be unclean for him. Now, if your brother feels offended by what you eat, your behavior is no longer one of love. May your food not cause the one for whom Christ died to be lost! So do not give room to speak ill of that good that you have. "
Romans 14: 13-16 DHH94PC
Here of course it says it; "If your brother feels offended by what you eat, then your behavior is no longer one of love"
My brothers, before going into the matter of this biblical text, let's do a little historical recount; At the time this letter was written to the Romans, there were already many converts to Christianity, so let's clarify the following; The Romans are considered Gentiles, they do not come from the Jewish lineage, therefore they are not circumcised and have a habit of eating all kinds of meats, while the Jews, by laws and commandments stipulated in the Old Testament, considered many animals as impure, for which they did not consume them.
Where do I want to go with this? The Romans did not follow the laws and commandments of the Jews, however they lived alongside them once they were converted to Christianity, and I emphasize this, TO CHRISTIANITY, they did not convert to Judaism, therefore they did eat pork, among other things, So, as they knew that the Jews did not eat certain things, here Paul clearly tells them, that if it bothers their brother (the jews), that they (the Romans) ate pork in front of them, so that they did not do it, because if they did, knowing that it bothers them (the Jews), they would no longer be acting in love.
Do you realize the importance of knowing the historical context of why the bible says what it says? Nothing written in the bible is written because yes, everything has a reason, a why, a time and an occasion.
"Because the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating or drinking certain things, but of living in justice, peace and joy through the Holy Spirit."
Romans 14:17 DHH94PC
Do you see what I tell you? It was not my friend to judge me by the mojito he saw in the photo, nor was it up to me to have published it so I don’t cause my friend to fall in sin (assuming he has some heart condition, which I cannot assure you), do you remember what I said? What about what is in the heart? If you see that someone judges you for no apparent reason or without biblical basis to tell you that you are sinning, see further, there are people who criticize because perhaps they want to do what you do and do not dare because they are tied to what people will say.
And just as I feared, this topic "spikes and spreads", make your comments below, and stay tuned, for the third and final part of this trilogy.
Prayer:
I pray that each one of us will have the discernment through the Holy Spirit, to understand the word of God, “which is alive and effective and sharper than a double-edged sword” and that it helps us to live in peace with our brothers. in faith, and that gives us wisdom, for those who still do not know Christ to be able to show them a Christ, who saves, restores, frees and above all who loves us, and through that love, to love ourselves, in order to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, first. Amen.
Part I and III
https://www.cindynunez.com/english-blogs/are-you-really-a-christian
