Where is the weaker brother today?

In our Sunday evening services at Great Whyte we have been looking at Romans 14. Understanding and applying this neglected part of Scripture is essential for both unity and harmony in the church.

Here Paul addresses the relationship between the weak and the strong.

The weak were Christians whose conscience forbid them to eat meat offered to idols and compelled them to strict observance of Jewish holy days. The strong, whose ranks included the apostle Paul were those believers who had understood the liberating implications of being right with God. These believers had no problems eating meat that had been offered to idols and treated every day the same. How could these Christians cope with their differences over issues where the Bible's teaching was not decisive?

Paul addresses this situation by appealing to both the strong and the weak to accept one another. The weak were to avoid being judgemental of the strong and the strong were to avoid being dismissive of the weak. Paul calls on them to avoid these attitudes by considering the character of God who is portrayed as a welcoming father, a soveriegn Lord and a coming judge. Furthermore they needed to treat each other with great respect and needed reminding to keep the gospel central.

I believe that we would do well to think long and hard about this chapter for the good of our church and churches. How different would our history be if the evangelical church in the UK had paid as much attention to Romans 14 as it did to Romans 4?

I want your help. Without being too specific (I do not want names of individuals, churches or ministries!!) can you provide suggestions of where this debate still rages? Where is the weaker brother today? What do you think? I want to hear from you.