Romans 14:15

"I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean of itself; except that to him who considers anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean."

Key Reflection

Paul asserts that while objectively there are no inherently unclean things, subjectively an individual's perception can render something unclean. This reflects the importance of personal conscience and the need for believers to respect each other’s convictions, even when they differ.

From the Scholars: Barnes' Notes

Verse 15. But if thy brother, etc. This address is to the Gentile convert. In the previous verse, Paul admitted that the prejudice of the Jew was not well founded. But, admitting that, still the question was how he should be treated while he had that prejudice. The apostle here shows the Gentile that he ought not so to act as necessarily to wound his feelings, or to grieve him. Be grieved. Be pained; as a conscientious man always is, when he sees another, and especially a Christian brother, do anything which he esteems to be wrong. The pain would be real, though the opinion from which it arose might not be well founded. With thy meat.

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