Strengthening the Weak

Romans 15:1-2
We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. 2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.

We touched on this a couple of days ago, so lets go in a little deeper. There are two things we are tempted to do when we encounter another Christian who has stumbled: 1) To criticize and judge; 2) To gloat or take joy in their failings. Have you been someone who succumbed to temptation and joined one of these camps? I have and thus I put myself in the same situation as my stumbling brother - maybe not the same in human eyes, but to God, I have sinned just the same.

The answer to this dilemma was given in verse 2, we are to build up, strengthen, our brother for his good. What does the Lord do? Ps 37:23-24. You need to look that up to answer the question. So if we follow the Lord's example, what do we do? Eccl. 4:9-10.

Decide today, the next time you see another Christian stumbling, will you destroy them (please yourself) or will you build them up?