Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters. One person’s faith allows them to eat anything, but another, whose faith is weak, eats only vegetables. The one who eats everything must not treat with contempt the one who does not, and the one who does not eat everything must not judge the one who does, for God has accepted them. Who are you to judge someone else’s servant? To their own master, servants stand or fall. And they will stand, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

When someone is planting a seed, great care is taken to make sure this seed germinates. Many times, gardeners will plant “starts” in their homes in cold weather areas before it warms up. This way they can not only get a head start on the growing season, but also keep the environment right. This includes good light, regular water, fertilized soil, etc. They also take care of it indoors, where pests and animals cannot cause problems. Later, in the garden, they may attach wood supports or trellises to help support the plant and/or put chicken wire around it to protect it and maximize its fruit potential.

And as we have new followers of Jesus join the church, these early Christians should be nurtured in a similar way. We need to encourage them, uplift them, and help carry their loads. The person who compares to others, in order to make themselves feel good about themselves, is an immature Christian. They have forgotten who they serve and whose opinion really matters. We are servants of the Most High God, and he provides us with the ability to grow strong in our faith and to stand for the truth. Do we train and correct? Yes. But we save those moments for the core truths of the faith. When older Christians add rules to younger Christians, (where the Bible is not clear), they place themselves in the seat of judge and elevate themselves too high. Left there, they will become conceited and useless in their faith. And worse, they can do a lot of damage to the faith of the new Christians.
So, we must appreciate the excitement and energy of new Christians and steer them toward the most profitable activities and practices that will promote the good news of Jesus.

Lord, teach me to relish the opportunity to mentor, uplift, and encourage those around me. May your Word go out from my mouth and empower their young faith to grow, supported and strong, in you.