A verse for the strong
“We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.” —Romans 15:1
The book of Romans is a tough read, a comprehensive study, and quite possibly the most important book of theology in the New Testament. Paul wrote this book to help the churches serve the gospel with strength from the Holy Spirit, uphold holy standards for the Christian faith, and find the joy and hope of God’s blessings. If Christians lived according to the book of Romans, we would change the world.
Chapter 15 sums it all up
Chapter 16 is Paul’s thank-you list. Chapter 15 is the summation of his book of theology. The chapter begins with his message to the Christians who are strong in their faith, and his words should probably hang over the door of every church. Sadly, many Christians wouldn’t understand or even agree with Paul’s message.
Paul was a Pharisee. In fact, Paul described himself as a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees” (Acts 23:6). Paul’s pedigree as a Pharisee was well known, and yet, he dedicated his life to sharing the gospel message of Jesus Christ. Paul knew there was no decision in life more important than surrendering to Jesus as Lord and Savior.
The apostle knew how important it was to obey God’s laws. Paul also knew how completely impossible it was to achieve a right relationship with God through our own abilities and works. Paul had fanatically tried to kill Christianity in the beginning, using self-motivated, unrighteous indignation as his strength. He lived the rest of his life with the weight and consequences of his sin. No one teaches more about the value of God’s grace through Christ than the former Pharisee.
Paul wrote the words in Romans 15 to sum up a long list of theological truths he had been inspired to record carefully. He begins with the words, “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves” (Romans 15:1).
How might that one verse change our churches and our Christians today?
Who are the strong?
If we made a list of the strongest Christians we know, how many modern-day Pharisees would be named? Human nature still tends to measure works when defining spiritual strength. That tendency isn’t completely wrong. The book of James almost didn’t make it into our Bibles because it says, “faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead (James 2:17). A strong Christian displays their faith through their obedience to God’s Word. If a person’s life doesn’t preach the gospel, their mouth probably won’t preach it well. That said, we won’t preach it well unless . . .
Paul said, “We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak.” Why are strong Christians obligated to bear with the mistakes and failures of the weak?
The answer: Because apart from the strength of God’s Holy Spirit, we are weak too. The fact that we can consider ourselves strong is equivalent to considering ourselves extremely and gratefully blessed. Paul is telling the strong Christians how incredibly lucky they are to have been filled with Christ. Paul is reminding his readers that our knowledge of Christ’s sacrificial gift of grace for our own sin obligates us to bear with those who have not yet gained the strength that could be theirs as well.
What if the “weak” who entered our churches were overwhelmed by the love and acceptance of those inside? What if they felt nothing other than welcomed and included by God and his people? What if we determined that next Sunday, we are obligated by God’s Word to bear with someone’s mistake or failure? Who would leave the building thinking, “I want to come back here next Sunday!”
The tension: How do we “bear with” sin without offering “acceptance” for the sin?
This is the tension of living as a strong Christian without, as Paul put it, the choice of “not living to please ourselves.” This is the other behavior that Paul would say we are obligated to embrace.
We all need a little bit of Pharisee in our witness. The Pharisees were respected because they were so eager and careful to obey God’s laws. We “fight the Pharisee within” because we want that same respect from others. Paul, the Pharisee of Pharisees, told us we are obligated to bear with the sins of others “not to please ourselves.” In other words, we don’t offer grace for the weaknesses of others to make us look better or feel better than we truly are. We aren’t better; just more fortunate.
How do we address sin with grace? First, we admit we understand the inclination for sin. Our sins might be different, but they still separate us from God. Second, God wants better for our lives. There are consequences for every sin. God will either bless and reward or discipline our lives. Grace does not mean God doesn’t respond to our sins. Grace doesn’t usually remove the consequences of our sins either, just the eternal punishment we would deserve without his grace.
Sometimes the best way to obligate ourselves to bear with the failings of others is to obligate ourselves to sharing his message of truth. We can speak to someone who is living with spiritual weakness and failures, look them in the eyes and say with compassion, “God wants so much better for you than this. God wants to be able to pour his blessings into your life, but he can’t bless disobedience to his words of truth.” Our convictions are a gift of encouragement and grace from God if we will speak them with his love for others.
Romans 15:1 is a verse for the strong
If we want to follow Paul’s teaching, we should memorize Romans 15:1 and allow the Holy Spirit to use it as a check to our human natures. The Holy Spirit of Jesus has to contend for our motivations just like he had to contend with a Pharisee named “Saul of Tarsus.” That Pharisee had to be completely changed by his salvation down to his very name. Paul battled the Pharisee within every day of his life, and we will have a similar battle.
We are obligated to treat people with grace because that is how Jesus treated us. We are obligated to serve others, not to please our own sense of self, but to please Jesus. Jesus is and always will be our model of selfless service. We are obligated to serve others as Jesus would have served them.
It probably won’t take long for the Lord to test your obedience to Romans 15:1. Who will you see today and realize you have an obligation to selflessly serve? I hope we will all prayerfully welcome the opportunity.
At the end of chapter 15, Paul wrote, “May the God of peace be with you all. Amen” (Romans 15:33). I think he would pray the same thing for all the “strong Christians” today.