seesion4disussion
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Colorado Christian University *
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BIB-102A-O
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Philosophy
Date
Feb 20, 2024
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docx
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Uploaded by DeanEnergyDove41
In today’s society we have a tendency to be quick to judge others when it comes to their streaks and weakness. A couple of examples people may look down on me because I have an LPN license and not an RN license. Does that make me unable to care for their loved ones due to
my education? Or can they overlook that based on my real-life knowledge that I apply to take care of their loved ones. Some people look down on others because they are homeless and do not
take the time to ask why they became that way. Was it any fault of their own or a victim of circumstance such as a house fire or maybe losing their means of income during the pandemic,
Does Jesus love me any less because I can not physically run a mile?
I am currently struggling with a situation at work with a resident and their family. Am I being a “weak” Christian by judging the family on their actions and just listening to the resident’s point of view. As a Christian I need to take a step back and realize there is always two sides to the story, and I do not have the big picture of past years between them. It is a fine line to walk in a situation like this. We who are strong in faith have an obligation to overlook the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. ²Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. —
Romans 15:1-2 This passage is a call to self-sacrifice for the spiritual benefit of others. Paul was writing in the first century to a church troubled by competing convictions about food and Sabbath observance. Should we eat meat or vegetables? Should we worship on Sunday or Saturday? It is not our place as Christians to judge others on their Christian beliefs. If they worship on Saturday and you worship on Sunday you will accept that as part of their belief and not judge them. The strength Paul refers to here is being strong–or weak–in the faith (Romans 14:1)
“Failings of the weak” does not mean sinning. Scripture is clear that we should flee sin and temptation, and not help people continue in it (Romans 6:1-2). Rather, Paul is talking here about people who are failing to fully grasp their freedom in Christ. We need to ask God to help us in our day for the greater good of bearing with those who are weak in faith. This is love. Pleasing others this way is pleasing to God.
Failings
“Failings of the weak” does not mean sinning. Scripture is clear that we should flee sin and temptation, and not help people continue in it (Romans 6:1-2). Rather, Paul is talking here about people who are failing to fully grasp their freedom in Christ.
Bear With
To bear with
means to help shoulder the burden. This is not a call for the strong to carry the weak, putting in all of the effort. Nor is it mere “putting up with.” Bearing with
contains a sense of compassionate help, of love of neighbor. We are to willingly help those who are weaker in faith, prioritizing their convictions and not insisting on our own to their harm.
Please This “admonition could be radically misunderstood,” writes New Testament scholar Thomas Schreiner, “for some neighbors may be pleased with gossip, sexual sin, violence, and so on.” Nor
is Paul affirming people pleasing which elsewhere he condemns (Galatians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians
2:4). “What Paul calls for here…is pleasing people ‘for their good, for their edification’” (
Romans, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament
, 746). This pleasing is toward the goal of spiritual growth. The Way of Sacrifice
The Christian life requires sacrificing self for the good of others. We see it in our passage and throughout Paul’s letters:
Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. (Philippians 2:3)
Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. (Colossians 3:12-
13)
I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, (Ephesians 4:1-2)
Jesus is our ultimate example. He went to the cross willingly so that we might be reconciled to God. Now we look to Jesus not only as our example, but also as the One who secured our ability to follow it. He promised His Spirit would take up residence in those who trust Him, empowering us to obey His commands, commands like: bear with the weak, rather than please yourself. Please your neighbor, to build him up. When I first arrived at our church I had weak faith about God’s design for women in the church and home. I believed His Word was true, but I did not see how it was good. The elders and other members who were strong in faith on this issue were gentle, patiently teaching me from Scripture
to trust God’s good design (1 Thessalonians 5:14). They helped me see that His wisdom, when obeyed, leads to human flourishing. It is their strong faith that paved the way for God’s
transforming work in my heart. I can now say with conviction and much personal experience, that loving authority is a good gift that, when used as God designed it, is for the good of those it serves.
God’s way of settling differences and disagreements in the church goes against our sinful nature. That’s why we need His help to obey. Left to ourselves, we prefer self. But when we consider others, it is evidence of Spirit-empowered transformation. This is cause for praise–
to God be the glory! When you are on the receiving end of another believer’s selflessness, when a brother or sister is considerate of your conscience at the expense of his or her own preferences, it is a great encouragement and cause for thanksgiving to God. May God help us in our day of fracturing congregations to forgo pleasing ourselves for the greater good of bearing with those who are weak in faith. This is love. Pleasing others this way is
pleasing to God.
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