The Impact of Each Action

Originating from Greek, the technical term ADIAPHOROUS can be found in theology and its translation is "indifferent" or "indistinguishable".
This refers to acts, words, or thoughts that are neither commanded nor forbidden by the Bible, implying that such things, in themselves, are neither good works nor sins, but something that may or may not be practiced without pleasing or offending God.
It's no secret that there are things—like adultery, murder, lying, theft—that are forbidden to Christians, and many others—like vigilance and the pursuit of... sanctification, That is, to seek each day to be like Jesus—which are commanded.

Therefore, there are also things that are not forbidden, but neither are they commanded: Scripture does not say what kind of entertainment a Christian can enjoy, what kind of food he can eat, what kind of colors are appropriate or inappropriate to wear in his clothing…
However, when discussing the consequences of practicing or not practicing any of these adiaphorous acts in daily life—even though several acts, in themselves, are neither sins nor worship of God—the circumstances and motivations in which they are practiced always imply that the practice will be one or the other.

In chapter 14 of the Epistle to the Romans, for example, Paul discusses a question that troubled the Christians of that region: to what extent can we live freely in a Christian context, and on what should we base our understanding of what we should or should not do in relation to what is neither commanded nor forbidden by God?.
Given that there were many recent converts to Christianity, they still lacked complete clarity and understanding of what it meant to live the Gospel in their daily lives.
Therefore, as we can see in the initial verses, Paul makes it very clear that the question of what to eat or avoid, as well as the differentiation between days, as some did, preferring to keep the Sabbath, was simply a matter of OPINION.
And this is so true that it is stated twice in the initial part of this chapter:

Welcome the one whose faith is weak, but not to quarrel over him. opinions.
One person believes he can eat anything, but the weak person eats only vegetables;
Let not him who eats despise him who does not eat;
And let not him who does not eat judge him who eats, for God has welcomed him.
Who are you to judge someone else's servant?
It is to his own master that he stands or falls;
But he will stand, for the Lord is able to sustain him.
One person considers one day more sacred than another; another considers every day alike.
Each one has opinion well defined in his own mind.

(Romans 14:1-5 – ARA)

The question of abstaining from certain foods, especially meat, stemmed from the fact that much of the meat sold at the time consisted of the unburned parts of sacrifices to idols, the pagan gods of the empire. The controversy over the distinction between days came from many Jews who had accepted Christ but were still attached to Jewish customs.
Both in the aforementioned text and in another — in this case, 1ˢᵗ Corinthians 8 Paul explains that consuming commercially sold meats is not inherently wrong, because an idol is nothing more than carved wood or stone and has no power whatsoever, being incapable of affecting a Christian's life in any way.

Now concerning food sacrificed to idols, we know that an idol is nothing at all in the world, and that there is no God but one.

(1ˢᵗ Corinthians 8:4 – ARA)

However, in both Romans and 1ˢᵗ Corinthians, Paul makes it clear that what should motivate any Christian decision in this regard is love for the weaker brother, that is, the one still immature in faith. Therefore, he states:

If your brother is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting in love.
Do not destroy, by your food, the one for whom Christ died.

(Romans 14:15 – ARA)

In other words, a Christian should not be vain or selfish, doing whatever he pleases in matters relating to adiaphora, but should consider how his attitude will be understood by others.

But if someone tells you, ‘This has been sacrificed to idols,’ do not eat it, both for the sake of the one who told you and for the sake of conscience.;
I mean conscience, not yours specifically, but that of the other person.
For why should my freedom be judged by the conscience of others?

(1ˢᵗ Corinthians 10:28-29 – ARA)

Therefore, although the conscience of others has no jurisdiction or right over the life of a Christian, the Christian, out of love for those who have also been saved by Christ, should avoid as much as possible any acts that might cause scandal, leading the weak to abandon the faith.
It is evident that the same also applies to the case of differentiating between the days: EVERYTHING is a matter of OPINION and everyone is free to differentiate them or equate them.

Therefore, there are only two situations in which an adiaphora becomes a sin: when it scandalizes those who are weak in faith and when it is practiced by someone who considers it to be a sin.
This last situation is pointed out in the final verse of Romans 14:

But whoever has doubts is condemned if they eat, because their eating is not from faith;
And everything that does not come from faith is sin.

(Romans 14:23 – ARA)

In other words, while eating sacrificed meat (just like observing or not considering a certain day as special) is a matter of opinion, if someone believes that performing such an act is a sin and does it anyway, that person is committing a sin. Not because of the act itself, but because they are rebelling against their own faith, acting based on doubt, or even seeking to satisfy their flesh.
That is why there is, in fact, no neutrality before God for any act that is committed: everything that a human being does, before God, is either worship or sin.
Often, as in the case of those who adiaphora, it is not the act itself that causes scandal, but acting against one's conscience or provoking scandal among those who are weaker in faith.

Therefore, let every Christian be mindful to always seek to do what pleases the Father, even if it may not please themselves.
In this way, in addition to pleasing the Savior Jesus Christ, you will also be preventing other brothers and sisters from being lost, as well as maturing and strengthening your own relationship with Christ, seeking more and more to be like Him each day.

In the Bonds of Calvary

Eduardo Pydd Teixeira

ORIGINAL TITLE: There is no neutrality.

Fewer and fewer people have been able to acknowledge their sins because we live in a time when many ecclesiastical organizations welcome and encourage them as if they were ad hocs, but this is just another example. indication That the end times are rapidly unfolding, and before the Lord returns like a thief in the night, the prophesied reign of the Antichrist must be consolidated not only in Brazil, but throughout the world!
In the 2023 phase of "The Worst Gospel," I decided to use new formats in the hope of helping to increase the reach of content related to the Scriptures—stories, videos, shorter texts, guest authors…—and this publication, which I took the liberty of revising and illustrating, is part of that project.
Thank you for reading this far.
I still need all the help I can get: comments, shares, and reactions help spread this content, which was entirely produced with the intention of contributing to the edification of the Body of Christ in the world.