ENCOURAGE one another!

No despising...

Romans 14:7-8 reminds us that our lives are not our own. As I said yesterday, this is not simply a Christian concept or ideology. It is true for everyone that each one is a creation of God and will stand before Him.

However, it’s the Christian that should fundamentally understand that his life is not his own. We have been bought with a price, the precious blood of Jesus. Whether in life or in death, we answer to God for how we are treating His amazing grace through Jesus Christ.

Those verses following (see below) remind us not to despise a weak believer for being weak and not to despise a strong believer for being strong. The weak believer will stand before God and so will the strong and each will have to give an account of themselves. Whew.

Though justification — being made right with God — is by faith alone through Christ alone, what Christians do with the fantastic gift of being made right with God will affect God’s judgment of their service to Him and the rewards they will receive.

Now, we ought to spur one another on in acts of love and good deeds. We ought to exalt Christ. We ought to encourage and edify. We ought to be in accountability relationships with believers who are pursuing abiding relationship with Jesus. We ought to do all of that — and more! — while at the same time not despising one another.

This seems very much like a tension we cannot hold without a lot of help from God.

Do we ignore fellow believers?
Do we encourage fellow believers?
Do we oppress fellow believers?
Do we love fellow believers?

Many spend their ministry energy constantly berating fellow believers. Flip the script; spend it praying for fellow believers.

It’s a humbling thing to be reminded, “...each of us will give an account of himself to God.”

10 Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God;
11 for it is written, "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God."

12 So then each of us will give an account of himself to God. - Romans 14:10-12