I was raised Southern Baptist, not the strict fundamentalist kind of Baptist, but the “drinking and tattoos are sinful” kind. Our church didn’t ascribe to as many rules as some Baptist churches did. My parents, faithful believers, played cards with friends every Friday night, and I went to the prom and danced. You wouldn’t catch us drinking or getting a tattoo, though. Ours was a typical Southern Baptist church of that era, the 1960’s and 1970’s. There wasn’t much preaching or teaching on the idea of “matters of conscience” (personal belief choices that are not strictly prohibited in the Word of God). Matters of conscience would include things like: what version of the Bible to use, what type of music is appropriate, hairstyle and clothing choices, homeschool vs public school, worship style—hymns or contemporary, whether to drink alcohol, or get tattoos, even particular eschatological views (like whether Christians will experience any of the tribulation).

All of these are issues on which believers may disagree. None are specifically prohibited or mandated in God’s Word and most importantly, they have nothing to do with salvation. When scripture is silent on an issue or doesn’t specifically address it, believers have the freedom in Christ to use discernment, guided by the Holy Spirit, to decide what to do. It’s what’s referred to as Christian liberty.

In Romans, chapter 14, Paul is writing to the church in Rome, made up of both Jews and Gentiles. There was disagreement on what rules must be followed to please God. The Jewish believers observed Holy Days, refrained from eating leftover meat from pagan sacrifices, and believed in circumcision. The Gentile believers didn’t follow Jewish customs and were convinced that all food was clean. Interestingly, Paul refers to the Jewish believers as the weak ones and the Gentiles as the strong. Because of these different views, there was division between the groups and there was a tendency to judge one another. Paul made the point that believers should love each other more than they love their personal convictions. Christians today should take note.

So how do we decide where we’ll stand on these issues of Christian liberty? Scripture does offer some guidelines. Here are three helpful things to keep in mind:

• Paul tells us in Romans 14:13, that we are not to be a stumbling block to a brother or sister in the faith. In other words, if we know that our brother doesn’t share our opinion about an issue, we shouldn’t flaunt our choice in his face thus, causing him distress or hindering his chances of coming to the Lord. Love for our fellow man should take precedence over our personal rights. That’s a hard one for so many of us today, especially in America. We’ve become a self-centered, me first, people, not wanting anyone to take advantage of us.

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others.” Philippians 2:3-4 (CSB)

• There is no room for judgement or contentious arguing in the church over matters of conscience. Paul reminded the Romans that one day we’ll all have to stand before God and that He is the only righteous judge. (Romans 14:10-12) Again, love must take precedence over the desire to be right. We should never argue over non-essential facets of faith. Our wise pastor repeats a particular phrase often from the pulpit. He says, “We must not let our convictions become condemnations” I love that so much, don’t you? We want our church to be a welcoming place where love is felt, and salvation is primary. Salvation, my friend, is by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Nothing more.

“So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another.” Romans 14:19 (CSB)

• Every believer has the Holy Spirit within to guide them in making decisions on matters of conscience. We can read the Word for ourselves, pray, and listen to the Spirit’s voice, as we seek to know what to do on these issues. The Lord led my husband and I to make certain choices because they were wise choices for our young family. We had Christian friends who made different choices, and that’s ok. As parents, we all want the same thing—for our children to be safe and healthy, and to come to know the Lord as their Savior.

“Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask of God, who gives to all generously and ungrudgingly, and it will be given to him.” James 1:5 (CSB)

In a nutshell, as we make choices on matters of conscience, we must not intentionally offend others with our choices. We’re not to argue with fellow believers over minor issues and we shouldn’t make choices that are physically or spiritually harmful to others. We wouldn’t want our choice to inhibit someone from coming to Christ. God gave us minds to think and reason, and offers wisdom to help us do the right thing.

“For the Lord gives wisdom; from His mouth come knowledge and understanding. He stores up success for the upright; He is a shield for those who live with integrity so that He may guard the paths of justice and protect the way of His faithful followers. Then you will understand righteousness, justice, and integrity—every good path.”

Proverbs 2:6-9 (CSB)