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Today's Pathway: Romans 15:1-3 We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.

Paul is transitioning from his discussion of Christian liberty to principles for ministering to one another within the local church. There are always going to be both weaker and stronger brethren in any church because growing Christians should be attempting to evangelize the lost and getting new converts into the assembly. Paul's message in verse 1 is that the believer who is more mature should not look down on the weaker brother. This statement is really the bookend to what he said in 14:1 about receiving weaker brethren. Not only should they be received into the church, but the mature Christians should be helping them to overcome their weaknesses. The word "infirmities" simply means to not be strong. Paul is not speaking here of physical weaknesses such as health issues, but rather the spiritual weaknesses that immature believers have in their walk with the Lord. Paul enjoins his readers to carry the burdens of the spiritually weak. This could involve several different things. The stronger brother carries the weaker by not allowing his own liberty to harm his fellow Christian. He assists him by not browbeating him over his immaturity, but by teaching him through the study of the Scriptures and the example of his own life. He helps him through fellowship, friendship and mentoring. He ultimately does it through self-sacrifice.

In contrast, Paul tells his readers that they are not to be concerned with pleasing themselves. This also deals with liberty. It might please me to use my Christian liberty to do a certain thing, but the Christian life is not about pleasing myself. According to verse 2, I should be more concerned about pleasing my neighbor. The "neighbor" here must be a believer, for I am to be "edifying" him, and an unbeliever doesn't need to be edified, he needs to be saved! We have mentioned previously that church members are to be edifying one another (I Thessalonians 5:11), and it requires self-sacrifice to be able to do that. My flesh wants me to take care of me, but the Holy Spirit wants me to take care of others. The mature believer needs to learn to do this. The relationship between a mother and her young child provides an illustration. The infant thinks only of himself. He wants to be cuddled, changed, entertained,or fed, and he wants it right now. The mother may want to (or need to) sleep, eat, take a warm bath, or have a conversation with another adult, but she puts that aside to minister to her child. He is weak and has an "infirmity". She is mature, and, though there may be other things that at that point in time would "please" her more, she sets pleasing herself aside and "pleases" her baby. This should be the norm in our Christian lives as well.

In verse 3 Paul gives the example of Jesus. He did not please Himself. Matthew 20:28 tells us,

"Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many."

"I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me."

Who did you please today?