We who are strong ought to bear with the failings of the weak and not to please ourselves. Each of us should please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. For even Christ did not please himself but, as it is written: “The insults of those who insult you have fallen on me.” For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through endurance and the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus, so that with one heart and mouth you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Accept one another, then, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God.
—Romans 15:1-7 (TNIV)
Today Paul continues his discussion of how “strong” Christians should behave toward their “weaker” brothers and sisters in Christ. Note that Paul here identifies himself with “strong” Christians, and urges his fellow brothers and sisters to bear with the failings of the weak. Paul surely cannot be talking about sins here. Instead, the context of chapter 14 suggests that he is talking about those matters on which Scripture is silent (and sin is definitely not a matter on which Scripture is silent).
Paul’s faith in Christ is shining through magnificently again in this advice. “Be like your Master is toward you,” he says. “Build them up, don’t tear them down. Resist your innately proud urge to look down at your nose on your brothers and sisters because you must remember that Jesus bore the hostility of humans so that we can all live forever with God.”
Then Paul also reminds us that Scripture is written, in part, to encourage us as we bear one another’s burdens. This business of humility and having to live in a broken world can be a real drag at times and Paul’s faith leads him to remind us one of the reasons why we read Scripture. It is God’s voice reminding us that a better time is coming. “Hang on,” God constantly reminds us in Scripture. “Don’t lose heart and don’t lose hope. I’ve saved you from your sin and when life beats you up so badly that you forget this, then read my word so that your heart can be refreshed and you can be reminded of your sure and certain hope that is so wondrously expressed in my Son’s death on the cross.”
So here we see two other ways in which faith manifests itself in action: forbearance, patience, and reading Scripture for encouragement to be reminded of our hope that is in Christ.