Overview
A preference is something an individual likes or finds comfortable. A principle is a fundamental truth that applies across situations. Confusing the two produces judgment, pressure, and division. Through Romans 14 and Romans 12, this teaching shows how believers can hold convictions without forcing preferences on others, walk in love, protect liberty, and build a principled lifestyle.
Transcript
The Difference Between Preference and Principle
Well, let’s turn to Romans chapter 14, please. We want to take a little bit of time just to consider preference versus principle, the theme of biblical character. Preferences are things that we like or are comfortable with.
They are things that are applicable mostly to the single individual or a situation. We don’t want to insist on a preference as if it is a principle. Now principle principle is a fundamental truth or proposition that serves as a basis for a belief system or behavior or even a chain of reasoning and has a broader application beyond one person or one situation.
In other words, you can take a principle and apply it in a variety of situations. Preferences aren’t like that. In a group effort, the emphasis is always on principles rather than preferences.
And there can be principles in a preference, sure. So they’re not always mutually exclusive. But those preferences, you know, things that we’re comfortable with, we don’t want to make a campaign out of them because that can become a habit.
We want to walk in principles as a lifestyle. I just want to look at two sections in the Word, Romans 14 and Romans 12, part of them, to show a distinction between a preference and a principle. And in Romans chapter 14, verse 1, him that is weak in the faith receive ye but not to doubtful disputations.
Receiving Believers Without Disputes Over Opinions
What this section is talking about is not judging believers that are trying to figure things out. They’re not a weak person. They’re weak in the faith.
Weak here is without strength. Being weak in the faith, the faith of Jesus Christ, it means that they’re weak in the accomplished work of Christ. That means that there’s still things that they practice that they think need to be accomplished or they need to abstain from in order to fully realize what the accomplished work of Jesus Christ is.
Strong in faith is to understand the accomplished work of Christ as grace and that there’s no merited work needed at all. There’s no commission, an act of commission, and there’s no act of omission. There’s nothing that needs to be, that you need to stop doing in terms of the faith of Jesus Christ.
Then it says, for one believe it that he may eat all things, another who is weak, meaning without strength in the faith, eateth herbs. Herbs are vegetables. So verse 2 says, some may eat all things.
To them, this is an illustration that they don’t have anything that they need to add to the work that God did in Christ Jesus in terms of what they eat and what they don’t need. But the weaker individual thinks that there’s something they need to abstain from. In this case, it’s meat.
This is not talking about diet for somebody’s health or somebody prefers vegetables above meat. That’s not what it’s talking about. It’s an illustration.
It relates to the faith. So it has nothing to do with what people prefer in terms of eating. So the lack of strength here is that there’s still something that needs to be done.
In this case, it’s a work of abstinence. Learning the accomplished work of Christ is a process of letting go of works, either works of commission or works of omission in order to be accepted and putting on grace. This takes some putting on of the word because works are extremely subtle.
Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth for God hath received him. In other words, wherever people are at in their walk, let’s not judge them. Who art thou that judges another man’s servant to his own master he standeth or falleth? Yea, he shall be holding up for God is able to make him stand.
Absolutely. Everyone’s at different stages in their walk. So we don’t judge them as servants before God because God can work with them where they are.
These are things people need to figure out in light of the accomplished work of Christ. Now he moves to a different illustration. Verse 5. One man esteemeth one day above another, another esteemeth every day alike.
Let every man be fully persuaded in his own mind. Here this illustration is talking about preferring certain days. This would have application in terms of the Sabbath, but there is no such application after the day of Pentecost.
So here you have people that are preferring one day over another, but the direction here is let them make up their own mind. So that’s what we want to do. We want them to make up their own mind.
Each Believer Answers to God
God allows us room to grow and to develop. As we get rooted in the faith of Jesus Christ, which is accomplished work, we allow people to grow and develop themselves as well. And that’s what Romans 14 is talking about.
See preferences can become a habit too, and we don’t want to do that. We want to distinguish between what we’re comfortable with and what we prefer as opposed to a principle. And we’ll get to that in a minute.
Look at verse 10. But why dost thou judge thy brother? Or why dost thou set it not thy brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of God is the text. Christ is not in the text.
It’s God, G-O-D. And that judgment seat is the Greek word bema, the raised platform. For it is written as I live, saith the Lord, every knee shall bow to me and every tongue shall confess to God, so that every one of us shall give account of himself to God.
When we get gathered together, like it says in 1st Thessalonians 4, 13 through 18 and other places, Jesus Christ will meet him in the air and will be escorted to God. And we know that that doesn’t mean in terms of judgment, because the judgment has already been pronounced in Christ Jesus. We are justified through the work of Jesus Christ.
We’ll have our new bodies and we will have rewards that will be presented. Let us not therefore judge one another anymore. Well, what are we, what’s the context? It’s the one that is weak in the faith.
They don’t have strength in the faith. They still think there’s stuff that needs to be done or there are things they need to abstain from in terms of the faith. Now if somebody doesn’t want to eat meat, that has nothing to do with nothing.
If somebody doesn’t want to go out in the sun, that’s up to them. That’s not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about how it relates to the faith.
So let us not therefore judge one another anymore, but judge this rather, that no man put a stumbling block in our occasion to fall in his brother’s way. This is where preferences and things that we might be more comfortable with can be the challenge, where we might put a little bit more emphasis behind a preference. When we’re in the context of a group, preferences really take back seat to principle.
In your own life and in my own life, you can prefer chocolate ice cream, you can prefer vanilla ice cream, but we don’t want to make that a principle for universal application. A stumbling block is an occasion that put in front of a brother that they’re having difficulty getting over. It’s a challenge for them.
Though we’re very comfortable with it, they’re not comfortable with it. I know and I’m persuaded by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself, but to him that esteemeth anything to be unclean, to him it is unclean. Where people come from, their orientation of life can at times put things in certain categories.
Walk in Love and Do Not Cause Another to Stumble
Some people think that Sunday is a holy day. Well, the word in the category in our day and time that every day would be holy, if you will, but some people really have that set in their mind. So that’s okay.
In other words, we don’t judge them. But if thy brother be grieved with thy meat, now walkest thou not charitably or in love, destroy not him with thy meat for whom Christ died. And I invite my friend over who’s a vegetarian and I want to really show him that it’s okay to eat meat, so I don’t serve any vegetables.
I just serve meat, let’s say. I put him in a position where he’s got to accept this. That’s not a good way to go.
Let people make up their own minds and then they grow and develop and they see that there really isn’t anything to be added or anything that we need to abstain from in terms of the faith of Jesus Christ. That work is accomplished. Let not then your good be evil spoken of.
In other words, my freedom in Christ has a limit if it’s causing my brother to offend. Now, I’m talking about preference. I’m not talking about where we control each other.
That’s not what I’m saying. But we’re aware of each other and we are cognizant that we don’t want to put a stumbling block in front of others. For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
That’s what the kingdom of God is about. It’s not about meat and drink and Sabbath days and all that. It’s about righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit.
For he that in these things serveth Christ is acceptable to God and approved of men. When we ascend to more lofty principles and not necessarily the world of opinion and preferences, we rise above this stuff. That’s where the kingdom of God is found because it’s found in righteousness and peace and joy the Holy Spirit.
It’s not in preferences and opinion. And then what happens is it really fits with the things of God and with men. Let us therefore follow after things which make for peace and things wherewith one may edify one another.
So what we pursue is peace amongst ourselves and what’s going to uplift my brother. For meat destroy not the work of God. The work of God in Christ Jesus has been completed.
There’s nothing to add to it. There’s nothing can be taken away from it. All things indeed are pure but it is evil for that man who eateth with offense.
It is good neither to eat flesh nor to drink wine nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth or is offended or is made weak. So that takes knowing people, doesn’t it? That takes loving and care and time to know where people are at, doesn’t it? It takes work. If we’re going to work as a team we’ve got to know this and we’ve got to operate on principle not preference.
Hast thou faith? Have it to thyself before God. If you know what the faith of Jesus Christ is and you can walk in the grace of God then have a great time doing it. But let’s not put any stumbling blocks in anybody’s way.
Happy is he that condemneth not himself and the thing which he alloweth. That’s fantastic. What he allows is in the category of preferential, not anything contradictory to the Word.
Faith, Liberty, and a Clear Conscience
You know, it’s not talking about stealing. It’s not talking about lying. That’s not what it’s talking about.
It’s talking about those preferential things, those things that people are comfortable with as they develop and grow and they learn the grace of God. You rest from your own works. Takes time for people.
It’s not about the meat or the vegetables or the Sabbath day. It’s where people still have to add to the accomplished work of Christ. They’ve got to do something or they’ve got to abstain from something and we have to give them room to grow and develop.
So they learn that that’s not it. And he that doubteth is damned of eid because he eateth not of faith for whatsoever is not of faith is sin. What this is talking about is the one who practices these things in doubt, meaning he may know better and he still does it anyway.
He’s double-minded. The word damned means he just allows judgment against himself and sin here is just missing the mark. That’s all it is.
To hit the mark would be to be strong in the faith consistently and then for anyone who is strong in the faith to allow others to grow and to develop their strength in the faith. And that strength comes from stopping from their own works. Adding to it.
I got to do something else. I’ve got to fast for a week and then God will accept me. You know I’ve got to go to church on Sunday.
No you don’t. If you want to I think it’s great. You don’t have to fix yourself or fix other people.
Not when it comes to the faith of Jesus Christ. Now look at Romans 12. A principle is a fundamental truth or proposition that serves like a foundation for a system of beliefs or behavior or even a chain of reasoning and it has multiple applications across many fields and I just want to show a number of principles here in Romans 12.
And I’m sure you’ve already considered these at some point. But look at verse 6. Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us where the prophecy let us prophesy according to the proportion of the faith is the text. To prophesy, to speak forth as God works within us according to that faith.
That’s a principle. You can apply it in many different scenarios. Here’s another one.
Or ministry on ministering. To minister is a principle. You can minister in multiple situations.
Principles for a Living Sacrifice
Who are he that teacheth on teaching? Teaching is a principle. What I look for often is what is the principle in this situation? That’s where my mind goes. Not what’s what do I prefer? What’s the principle? When we work as a group we want to tune our minds to the principles, the truths of the word and see how they apply.
Look here. Here’s another one. He that exhorteth on exhortation.
So encouraging people. That’s what exhortation means. Encouraging people is a principle.
He that giveth let him do it with simplicity. To give simplicity is in single-mindedness. To give is a principle.
It can be applied in a variety. Universally applied. But we do it with a single-mindedness.
We don’t doubt. We don’t give if we’re not convinced. We should be convinced then give.
He that ruleth with diligence. So to rule we should do it with diligence. That’s a principle.
He that showeth mercy with cheerfulness. Showing mercy can be applied at work. It can be applied at school.
It can be applied in a marriage. It can be applied tomorrow at the supermarket. It can be applied everywhere.
When we apply it, it should be done cheerfully. That’s a principle. Let love be without dissimulation.
Dissimulation is hypocrisy. So our love should have no hypocrisy in it. We don’t say one thing and do something else.
That’s a principle. Abhor that which is evil. Cleave to that which is good.
That’s a principle. Be kindly affection one to another with brotherly love and honor. Preferring one another.
That honor, that respect, that value we put on each other in preferring each other is a principle and can be applied in a variety of situations. Not slothful in business. Fervent in spirit.
Hope, Hospitality, Humility, and Like-Mindedness
Serving the Lord. So here you see spiritually fervent in service. Serving the Lord is a principle.
Rejoicing in hope. It’s a great principle. We rejoice in the hope of the return of Christ.
That’s a principle. You can apply and you can teach people to apply. Patient in tribulation.
Patient is endurance. To endure in tribulation is mental pressure. To endure in mental pressure is a principle that can be applied.
You can model what endurance looks like in a challenging situation for people to recognize. How do you endure when you’re mentally challenged? We can model that for people. That’s another way of teaching them and showing them.
Continuing instant in prayer. So continuing prayer is a principle. Distributing to the necessity of saints.
Giving to hospitality. Absolutely. Giving to meet others needs.
Pursuing hospitality. That’s a principle. How do you want to apply it? When do you want to apply it? It’s not like it only fits in one situation.
Like a preference perhaps. And it applies to an individual. It’s a principle that has universal appeal.
Universal application. Bless them which persecute you. Bless and curse not.
So we bless others in spite of ingratitude at times. Then it says rejoice with them that do rejoice and weep with them that weep. So to empathize, to put yourself in other people’s shoes in a favorable or an unfavorable situation is a principle.
Be of the same mind one toward another. Like-mindedness is a principle. Mind not high things but condescend to men of lowest state.
Be not wise in our own conceits. We don’t get too lofty when we think about ourselves. And then we don’t seek vengeance.
Reconsent to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. That’s a principle.
If it be possible as much as lieth in you live peaceably with all men. That’s a principle. We pursue that peace.
Dearly beloved avenge not yourself but rather give place unto wrath for it is written vengeance of the mind. I will repace that the Lord. Therefore if thine enemy hunger feed him.
If he thirst give him drink. For in so doing thou shalt keep coals of fire on his head. Which is an orientalism to warm somebody with hot coals on a container that’s put on the head in the east and they would bring it home to their tent and keep their fire going is an act of generosity and love to warm them with your love.
Build a Lifestyle on Principle
Be not overcome with evil but overcome evil with good. These are powerful and what’s interesting is 14 and 12 are sandwiched around Romans 13. The higher powers in the church that really helped to endorse the principle and then allow the growth where people develop themselves in Romans 14 and Romans 15 begins with we then that are strong.
Just a beautiful package of understanding. The point is simple. Preferences, meaning things that we like or are comfortable with are things that may be more applicable to a single individual or a situation and we don’t want to get into the habit of making them universally applicable.
I like red shirts so now everybody’s got to wear a red shirt. We don’t want to insist on preferences as if it is a principle. We certainly don’t want to get into a habit of campaigning for preferences.
Nothing wrong with them in the right setting. This is something you got to think about because the world does it the opposite. They don’t operate principle but what we want to develop more and more is we want to walk by the principles as a lifestyle.
Key Takeaways
- Preferences are personal or situational; principles are foundational truths that guide many situations.
- Believers should not elevate personal preferences into universal rules for other people.
- Christian liberty is governed by love and concern for another believer’s conscience.
- Romans 12 supplies enduring principles for service, generosity, hope, hospitality, humility, and unity.
- A principled lifestyle remains stable even when circumstances and personal tastes change.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a principle and a preference?
A principle is a foundational truth that applies broadly, while a preference is a personal or situational choice based on comfort or taste.
Why is it harmful to treat a preference like a principle?
It pressures other people to follow a personal choice as though it were God’s universal standard, which can create judgment and division.
How should Christian liberty be exercised?
Christian liberty should be exercised with love, a clear conscience, and care not to cause another believer to stumble.
Scripture References
- Romans 14:1–23
- Romans 12:1–21
- Romans 13:8–10
- Romans 15:1–7
- 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18
Verification note: This page was prepared from a machine-generated transcript. Transcript wording, names, and Scripture quotations should be checked against the original audio and the intended Bible translation before publication.
