Our Compassion And Our Consecration

That is, there are some roommates that can teach you more about life in the dorm, than any college professor can teach you in a classroom. One thing they certainly can teach you a lot about is patience.

When you have a roommate in the dorm:

• When you want to study, he wants to play the radio

• When you want to sleep, he wants to stay up and study

• When you would like to have someone to talk to, he wants sleep

• When you put a book down, he picks it up, and only God knows where it is when you are ready to start studying again

• When you want to wear your favorite shirt, he is wearing it out on a date

• When you are ready to shave, you find that you have no shaving cream because he used it up

Living with a roommate in college can be a tremendous time of adjustment and learning, especially when it comes to patience. The reason that I say that these are some of the greatest lessons we can learn, is because life itself is like this. Everyone has problems, but everyone does not know how to deal with them. Some think the solution to problems is to run from them, and pretend they do not exist.

We cannot run from our problems, we have to deal with them.

• Some people have a difficult time in their MARRIAGE, because they do not know how to deal with the problems of marriage. They go from marriage to marriage, never learning how to adjust and deal with their problems

• Some people have a difficult time on their JOBS, because they do not know how to deal with problems on the job. They go from job to job, because they have never learned how to deal with their problems.

• Some people have a difficult time in CHURCH, because they do not know how to deal with problems. They go from church to church, because they have never learned how to deal with their problems.

In chapter 14, Paul said we are to receive those who are weak in the faith.

In chapter 15, after dealing with how we are to RECEIVE the weak in the faith, he tells believers that we also are to HELP the weaker brethren. Of course, he is addressing this to the stronger Christians.

The weaker brother can’t help the weaker brother, because he can’t help himself. If he can’t help himself, how can he help someone else?

• This would be like a marriage counselor that has been married ten times, wanting to give advice to others about how to keep their marriage together.

• This would be like a fellow drowning, and a fellow who does not know how to swim jumps in and tries to save him.

The strong, mature Christians have reached the place in their lives where they care about themselves, but they also care as much for others. In order to care about the weaker brother, we have to have compassion for them. Let's look at...

I. THE COMPASSION OF A STRONG BELIEVER

Look at verses 1-7 we read, “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. For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope. Now the God of patience and consolation grant you to be likeminded one toward another according to Christ Jesus: That ye may with one mind and one mouth glorify God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Wherefore receive ye one another, as Christ also received us to the glory of God.”

Christian people should be the most compassionate people on earth. There are two ways that Christians should show compassion.

(1) WE SHOULD SHOW COMPASSION TO THE SINNER

The only hope that the lost world has, is that we Christians will be compassionate, and show them what God’s Word says they must do to be saved. We certainly should have compassion for the SINNER. But also-

(2) WE SHOULD SHOW COMPASSION TO THE SAINTS

Some professing Christians will express concern for the SINNER, but they do not have any compassion for the SAINTS.

For example, they will send a missionary thousands of miles to help someone they have never seen, that lives in another country, but you cannot get them to walk across the street to show compassion to a SAINT of God that needs some help.

The book of James talks about this. James says that if we really have the kind of faith we are suppose to have, it can be seen in how we deal with others.