We cannot take one scripture and apply it to every situation. It is important to take the whole picture into consideration and search other scriptures on the subject to get a better understanding of God’s truth.
Each person’s own convictions must be taken into consideration and it helps to have a closer relationship with Christ to know what He wants for you specifically.
We are not to be the cause of someone else to stumble by encouraging them to do something they feel is wrong. It may not seem wrong for one, but if other’s conscience is telling them it is wrong then it is wrong for them and we need to be considerate of that and even change our behavior if doing it in front of them would cause them to be tempted and fall.
We can take all of God’s instructions into consideration and ask Him what He wants for us specifically and not judge others for doing something that is wrong for us. That is between them and God.
I am not talking about breaking commandments here- but if we dive into that for a moment, the Bible says the person who keeps all the laws except one is as guilty as the person who has broken all of God’s laws. We are all sinners. There is no one good, not one. One is just as bad as two or more and they are all on the same level of guilty in God’s eyes, although they may have different levels of consequences.
Each of us must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling. We can help others understand the Scripture the way we interpret it and bring divine guidance and clarity to help them have a different perspective than they may have had before but it is ultimately between them and the Father to determine what is right for them.
With that said, I also believe that if a sister or brother in Christ is led away by false teaching, it is our responsibility to point them gently and lovingly to God’s word and truth so they can do a self-evaluation in the presence of God to get to the root of the belief and see where it is stemming from so, they can have a clearer picture of what God wants.
If you have doubts and do it anyway- you are sinning. You are not following your convictions if you do anything you believe is not right.
We are free in Christ and can interpret what is right and wrong based on what God puts on our hearts and minds, but we should not use our freedom to satisfy our sinful nature. Our freedom is meant to serve one another in love and let the Spirit guide us to righteousness.
Our sinful nature is opposite of what the Spirit wants. That is why it is important to not let our human desires and pride get in the way of what God wants for us. If we stay close to Him and are communicating with Him daily, staying in His word and listening to His instructions for our lives, we can live more fully in that freedom.
For further reading: James 2:10, Romans 14:13-14, 22, Galatians 5:13-17
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