Stand By Your Convictions

One of my favourite movies from earlier this year was a movie on Netflix, “The Two Popes.” Anthony Hopkins plays Cardinal Ratzinger, a strong conservative leader within the Roman Catholic church, who becomes Pope Benedict XVI. Jonathan Pryce plays Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio, a powerful progressive figure within the Catholic church. The two are deeply divided on many moral and social issues. As leaders of the two factions within the church, the movie traces their interactions and discussions over time until Pope Benedict XVI retires and Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio is elected and becomes Pope Francis, the current Pope. The tension between conservative and progressive thinkers is not unique to the church, but it does seem uniquely heated, right from the earliest times when culturally conservative Jewish Christians began to live alongside more progressive non-Jewish Christians. In the decades after Jesus death, Israel descended into chaos. Many Jewish Christians escaped the chaos and made their way to Rome. By the time Paul writes to the Romans, the conflict has begun to boil. The conservative Christians were concerned that the progressive Christians were breaking Old Testament Laws. The progressive Christians, usually non-Jews who hadn’t grown up with all the Old Testament Laws, didn’t consider them important at all. How often do we see this play out in our communities of faith? Perhaps some Christians have particular standards they grew up with that they feel are vitally important, and so express displeasure at those who do not see things the same way. This can be about a myriad of things including music style, attendance records, dress codes. It’s fascinating to think that the Pope is the current leader of that very same church Paul addressed in the New Testament book of Romans. Join us as we turn to Romans 14 to see what Paul has to say to the progressives and the conservatives in the Roman church, but also to all of us.

Scripture References: Romans 14:1-23

From Series: Becoming Love | More Messages from Phil Inglis | Download Audio

From Series: "Becoming Love"

God is Love. Holiness is about growing into who God has called us to be. Becoming love is about living more and more with a heart and character that reflects God's love for us and for people. Join us for this series as we explore the letter to the Romans to understand more about who God is, who we are called to be, and how we make sure we are on track to becoming love just like God is love.

Discussion Sheet - Becoming Love - With Open Arms