What does it mean to be weak in the faith (Romans 14:1)?

Romans 14:1. — By "him that is weak in the faith," is not meant one who would trifle with sin (such as drunkenness, etc. as it is often applied), but a believer who, from legal prejudices, was scrupulous as to days, meats, etc. The question is of things ritual, not moral.

The weak are not those who are tampering with evil, or walking in disobedience to the word, but rather those who were not in the full liberty of Christianity — those who may be very legal as to minor matters, and thus, not only have tender conscience but, even, a morbid conscience.

(Vv. 1, 2). The weak in the faith, then, are not to be shunned; they are to be received. Nevertheless, the reception of such is not to be used for the determining of mere questions. The one received must not think that his reception involves the reception of his particular views as to meats or days. Furthermore, those who receive are not to take occasion by receiving one with a conscience as to these things, to interfere with his conscientious convictions before the Lord. One believes that he may eat all things; another, that the Apostle describes as weak, believes that it is right to eat herbs only.

(Vv. 3, 4). The Apostle instructs us that, in such matters, there is to be mutual forbearance. For this he gives three reasons, First, God has received both, the weak and the strong. His reception of us did not depend upon our eating, or not eating, certain meats. Secondly, in such matters, to our own Master we stand or fall, and we are not to judge another man's servants. Thirdly, the Lord is able to sustain us and make us to stand, even if, in such matters we are weak in the faith.

(Vv. 5-8). The Apostle includes also the question of regarding or not regarding special days. His argument supposes that, whatever view is taken, whether of days or meats, each one is acting as before the Lord. None of us live to ourselves but to the Lord. It is well to see that the Apostle is not speaking of the Lord's day. The observance of the first day of the week, as the Lord's day, has the sanction of Scripture, and is not left as an open matter (See John 20:19; Acts 20:7; 1 Cor. 16:2; Rev. 1:10).

The apostle now proceeds to treat of a question exceedingly delicate and critical, especially in days and places where the saints consisted of any considerable mixture of converts, brought out of systems so opposed as those of Jews and Gentiles. What to the strong in faith is an indifferent matter may trouble the conscience of those who are weak, as the apostle here distinguishes them. The weak were such Christians as were still shackled in conscience by their old Jewish observances, as to days, meats, etc., by distinctions not moral but ceremonial; the strong were those who saw in their death with Christ the end to all such bondage and enjoyed liberty in the Spirit. Carefully must we guard against the offensive misinterpretation that the weak mean those who tampered with evil. Contrariwise so fearful were they of sin that they were needlessly burdened and thus cherished a conscience not tender only, which is of the utmost moment for all, but scrupulous. But they were in no way lax, which is an evil of the greatest magnitude and only exaggerated, not diminished, by increase of knowledge. The weak were really ignorant of the liberty wherewith Christ has set us free, and hence apt to burden themselves continually where they might have found rest for their souls. They knew not that His yoke is easy and His burden light.

The practice to which brethren are called in such matters is mutual forbearance (Rom. 14, Rom. 15:7), all agreeing in doing what they do to the Lord, spite of difference in judgment of what should be done. Room is thus left for growth in knowledge as the word of God opens to our faith, while conscience meanwhile is respected. "Now him that is weak in faith receive, not to decisions of reasonings. One believes that he may eat all things, while he that is weak eats herbs. Let not him that eats despise him that eats not, and let not him that eats not judge him that eats; for God has received him. Who art thou that judgest another's servant? To his own master he stands or falls; but he shall stand, for God is able to make him stand. One esteems† day above day, while another esteems† every day. Let each be fully persuaded in his own mind. He that regards the day to [the] Lord regards [it], [and he that regards not the day to the Lord regards [it] not.]‡ And he that eats to [the] Lord eats, for he thanks God; and he that eats not to [the] Lord eats not and thanks God. For none of us lives to himself, and none to himself dies; for both if we live, to the Lord we live, and if we die, to the Lord we die. Therefore, both whether we live and whether we die, we are the Lord's. For to this [end] Christ died and lived,†† that he should rule over both dead and living. And why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou too despise thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of God. For it is written, [As] I live, saith [the] Lord, to me shall bend every knee, and every tongue shall confess to God. So then each of us shall give account about himself to God." (Ver. 1-12.)

Verse 1. "Him that is weak in the faith receive ye." Such is the plain and positive commandment of the Lord who knows His sheep, and whose will it is to reject none who truly come to Him (John 6:37). It is the believer who is to be received, without reference to the degree or measure of his faith. With respect to this, there might be a large diversity. There are babes who have need of milk, as well as men who use strong meat (Heb. 5:12-14). The emergence of a believer's conscience from a state of legal bondage into the perfect liberty of Christ, might be, and often would be, in fact, a matter of time. But, in the meanwhile, the government of such conscience was in the hands of the Lord, who had received its owner on the ground of faith. And so it is immediately added, "not to doubtful disputations," or, according to the margin, "not to judge his doubtful thoughts."*

An ignorant conscience is a very different thing from a defiled conscience. There were some who professed that they knew God, while in works they were denying Him. Such persons had a mind and a conscience alike defiled (Titus 1:15-16). But widely different is the case of the man who, while under impressions perhaps most erroneous, and altogether remote from those which a fuller light would produce, yet walks with pure intent under such impressions, as under a yoke which God has placed upon his neck. It would be a proof of spiritual weakness if a Christian abstained from meats. But so long as his observance of this scruple was not obtruded on the conscience of other men, as a thing absolutely right, he was not to be despised on account of what might seem to the more established saint a bondage of conscience unworthy of the liberty of Christ (verses 2, 3).

But where the conscience of a believer is, in its intelligence, below the just appreciation of the truth which forms the standing of real Christian liberty before God, there is a danger that his spirit will become censorious in proportion to the sensitiveness of his conscience. This opposite evil is, therefore, equally to be watched. For the moment individual conscience is set up as a standard by which to judge another's conduct, the Lord is thrust out of His true place. The judgment of declared evil is a different thing entirely. In such a case, it is the Lord who, by expressing His own judgment in the word, leaves nothing but simple obedience as the course of the Christian. That word grants no immunity to an evil or defiled conscience. It deals with evil according to the truth and holiness of God.

Various principles ought to govern the sentiments and conduct with regard to the weak. It was hard for the Christian, who had been a Jew, to renounce his old and divinely-established differences of clean and unclean, of days holy and days common. The converted Gentile had, or ought to have had, no difficulty whatever; for what respect could he have longer for the particular parts of a system which, as a whole, he had rejected as false and idolatrous? But these very diversities of their circumstances exposed the Christians, who comprised both, to danger from disputes as to these questions of conscience about outward things. For it must be carefully borne in mind, that what the Holy Ghost lays down does not refer to matters of moral good or evil, not to doctrine or revelation, but to questions which grew out of the relics of Jewish feeling. In other words, "the weak" brother was one who loved Christ, and who hated sin, not less really than "the strong." The weak were not lax, but the contrary: they were extremely and painfully scrupulous, hence their anxiety as to eating meat or keeping a day. It was a remnant of legalism from which they had not been set free, from feebleness in apprehending the place into which we are brought through and in Christ risen from the dead.

Now it is well to remember that human nature always tends to one or other of the perils which threatened the saints at Rome. Liberty, if not exercised immediately in Christ's service, is apt to slip into a lack of conscience: sense of responsibility, if not maintained with full and unclouded rest in God's grace, soon degenerates into a burdened and groaning scrupulosity. The Christian is in principle delivered from both these snares: he is dead with Christ, and so ordinances of "touch not, taste not, handle not" no longer apply. They are meant for those who are living in the world; whereas, he is dead with Christ and risen with Him, no longer to be occupied with such earthly restrictions, but free to set the mind upon things above, where Christ sitteth at God's right hand. Such is the position of the Christian for himself; but then for his brethren, there is the love that bears with and respects the conscience that is tried by the very things in which he realises his liberty. Love bends to feebleness of faith, never to latitudinarianism; love does not put a cause of tripping or stumbling before one's brother.

The question concerning brethren who were weak in faith, how they are to be treated by those who are strong is now taken up. Those weak in the faith had not the complete knowledge of their position in Christ, though they knew Christ and loved Him. They did not realize that certain observances of days, or abstinences from meats and drinks, could not affect their salvation in any way. There were scruples and conscientious difficulties, as there are still among God's people. One believeth he may eat all things, he knew his full Christian freedom--another who is weak eateth herbs. How are these two to treat each other? Were they to criticize and condemn one the other? "Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him that eateth not judge him that eateth, for God hath received him." The weak in faith are to be received, but not to doubtful points of reasonings; these questions are not to be brought up for discussion, or worse, to make them a test of Christian fellowship. Judging a brother, or condemning him on such matters is forbidden, for inasmuch as God hath received him, he is the Lord's servant and not ours. The rebuke is "who art thou that thou judgest another's servant? to his own Lord he standeth or falleth." More than that, the Lord in His gracious power shall keep him in all his weakness. He bears with him, "the Lord is able to make him stand." Each is responsible to the Lord. Each does it as unto the Lord. No one lives to himself, and no one dies to himself, we are all the Lord's. There is also a day coming when we all must stand before His judgment seat and then He will judge, who knows the secrets of every heart. Therefore we must not judge. Every one, as stated in all these cases, should be fully persuaded in his own mind and should not judge another, but look forward to the judgment seat of Christ.

The subject of the chapter is the importance of receiving one who is "weak in the faith" (verse 1). Such will have defective thoughts as to many things, and they are not to be received in order to start arguing with them over points of difference. Such argumentations would indeed be "doubtful disputations," or the "determining of questions of reasoning." Those who are strong have to remember that the "weak" brother is weak not in his reasoning faculties but in his apprehension of "the faith." What he needs therefore is some larger understanding of the whole truth of God. If this be patiently ministered to him, many of these questions will settle themselves.

The subject of this chapter is the importance of receiving one who is "weak in the faith" (verse 1). Such an one will have defective thoughts of many things and he is not to be received in order to start arguing with him over points of difference. Such argumentations would indeed be "doubtful disputations," or the "determining of questions of reasoning," and those who are strong have to remember that the weak brother is weak not in his reasoning faculties but in his faith. What he needs therefore is some larger apprehension in faith of the whole truth of God. If this be patiently ministered to him many of these questions of reasoning will settle themselves.

Well, those that are "weak in the faith", if we look at the context of that passage, it refers to those that have a conscience which is more scrupulous, more tender than necessary. They believe that they should do, or not do, things which Christians, that have more knowledge, know that they can do. That is what those that are "weak in the faith" means. Of course, we should not be at all unwilling to receive those that are mistakenly perhaps more scrupulous in their behaviour than we are. Some might say, for example, Oh, I don't think that a Christian should have a mortgage. Others, most of them in the assembly, might say, Oh, but I think they can! why not? Well, if you can say the one that does refuse the mortgage (in view of those that think they should have a mortgage) is the "weak one", you should still receive him, but "not to doubtful disputations"... not if he starts to argue about it, and generally make a disputation in the assembly. That's quite clear but we don't get very far with that.

“Now, him that is weak in the faith receive not to (the) determining of questions of reasoning.” (New Translation.) We may make a mistake either way. We may become so narrow as to reject a brother weak in faith, or we may make our receiving a cavilling person, the determining of doubtful questions, and reasoning speculations. The Holy Ghost would have us carefully avoid both these extremes. In many things such as eating and drinking, esteeming one day holy, or all days alike — in all such matters, we are not to judge one another, but walk together in love.