“We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.” -Romans 15:1
Those who have advanced further in the gospel have no place to be proud or puffed up; rather, the grace of growth comes with responsibility. In the same way the master must take the apprentice under his wing and mentor him, so must the stronger carry the heavier end of the load.
In his commentary on this passage, John Calvin rightly posits this principle is true of all of God’s good gifts:
For as God has destined those to whom he has granted superior knowledge to convey instruction to the ignorant, so to those whom he makes strong he commits the duty of supporting the weak by their strength; thus ought all gifts to be communicated among all the members of Christ. The stronger then any one is in Christ, the more bound he is to bear with the weak.
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