“Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.” 
–Romans 15:7, The New International Version

I came across the verse above in one of my devotions this morning. The most challenging word in there? Accept. What? Who? Why?

Being a curious soul, first I thought that I would look at different versions of the same passage: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=romans%2015:7;&version=65;31;50;46;49;.

What I found interesting was the cross-reference to Romans 14:1: “Accept him whose faith is weak, without passing judgment on disputable matters.” (NIV). Okay, that helps a little. But still: “accept”. What exactly does that mean and look like? Me, trying to digest things in the complex English language. I turned to my good friend Merriam-Webster (aka, the dictionary). I don’t think this is the definition being talked about: “to regard as proper, normal, or inevitable”. Another definition had just two words: “to receive”. I’ll have to try to do some more digging and find the Greek or Hebrew word used, but my interpretation this morning is just the act of receiving without passing judgement. Acknowledge.

But does my mere acknowledgement of those who call themselves my enemy bring praise to God? The color of my skin. My religious beliefs. Do those who look down and persecute those things, can I just acknowledge them and therefore bring praise to God? What my mind tells me is that by not being acknowledging, by not accepting, the denial will eat me up and destroy me. Don’t judge, but acknowledge?

However, being in a frame of mind of accepting opens me up to Romans 15:13:

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”

If anyone has time and would like to share with me some background from Greek and/or Hebrew text related to Romans 15:7 it would be appreciated. I would love to know what those other text had used for our seemingly ambiguous word “accept”.