Bad Reputation

Scripture: Romans 14:15 – “If your brother or sister is distressed by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died.” (NRSVUE)

This morning, as I was trying to cling to the last few moments of sleep, my wife was blaring her “get pumped up for work” playlist on her phone. One of the songs was Joan Jett’s “Bad Reputation.” It is one of the greatest hard rock songs of all time and speaks of a young woman who lives her life not caring what people think about her.

Disregarding the pressures that other people place upon you can be tremendously liberating, but it can also be limiting. After all, while we might celebrate Jett’s rejection of conformity, it may have limited her ability to continue relationships with the people she grew up with, who might ignore her as a thankless rebel. This is often a trade-off worth making, but it can also limit the sort of things you can do with the truths you have discovered.

When Paul wrote his letter to the Romans, he was concerned that Christians were earning a bad reputation. Part of this was rejecting a norm that had united the Jewish people for centuries. Jews had maintained their cultural identities by only eating certain kinds of kosher foods and rejecting any food offered to idols. But Christians increasingly did not believe this. According to the Gospel According to Mark, chapter 7, Jesus declared all foods clean by saying it is not the food that goes into your mouth but the cruel words that come out of your mouth that will defile you. So, Christians could eat anything, even meat coming from an idolatrous sacrifice.

But when Christians came into Rome and ate whatever they wanted, it created a controversy. Jewish Christians were outraged that Christians would violate the sacred laws and refused to listen to them. Roman Christians assumed that Christians were implicitly accepting the truth of the Roman gods by eating meat sacrificed to them. So, Paul suggested that instead of living according to the liberating truth of Jesus’ teachings, they should instead refrain from eating certain foods so that others could hear the more important message of Jesus and let that transform their lives. Paul writes, “If your brother or sister is distressed by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. Do not let what you eat cause the ruin of one for whom Christ died.” Sometimes, for people to take you seriously, you need to maintain some sort of reputation in their eyes.

In our lives, we need to find a balance between the approaches that Joan Jett and Paul take to the situation. As Christians, we cannot just live according to the ways of the world and ignore Christ’s teachings, so no one gets upset. This would be a betrayal of Christ’s salvation. But at the same time, we need to allow our words and actions to reach the people we want to help and not scare them away.

How do you find balance in this? If you are the Paul side, how do you maintain a courageous commitment to the gospel? If you are on the Jett side, how do you temper your truth with love? Think of something in your life that is causing friction with your friends and neighbors, and this week, pray about how love rather than being right can shape your actions. A reputation of showing love and courage is one worth having.

Prayer: Dear God, through you, I need not care about my reputation, but I do care about loving others. Help me put my love for God and neighbor ever foremost in my heart. Amen.  

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