Romans 14:7–8: For none of us lives to himself, and no one dies to himself. For if we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. Therefore, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s.
Whether you live, you will have to live to Him; whether you die, you will have to die to Him. Our Christian conduct is not gauged by the foods spread out on the table, but by the fact that our lives are spread out before Him. That is the important thing. One day we are going to have to give an account of the things we have done in this life. “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad” (2 Cor. 5:10). At that time it will not be a question of the meat you had on the table; it will be the question of your relationship to Him when you sat down at that table. You can be godless without meat; and you can be godless with meat, of course. 1
Application
- Do you really live for Him, or do you really live for you?
- The answer is found in how much of your life is involved in sacrificial living, versus serving when it is convenient for you and your schedule.
Prayer
Lord, teach me how to die to myself more often.
1. McGee, J. V. (1991). Thru the Bible commentary: The Epistles (Romans 9-16) (electronic ed., Vol. 43). Nashville: Thomas Nelson.