The strong and the weakAim__To promote the values of acceptance and support in God’s family.

__Session 6

39

Module__Truth and lifeSession 6__The strong and the weak

In our last session in Romans we’ll continue to discover how this letter is a fantastic blend of theological truths and practical instructions as Paul gets into the nitty-gritty of ensuring the church functions effectively.

In recent years, our TV screens have been hit by the Big Brother phenomenon. There are now countless shows that rely on the fi reworks that are ignited when you put a diverse group of people in a confi ned space for several weeks and turn up the pressure. However, this isn’t really a new idea – just take a look at the early church and some of the problems they had! The early church contained a diverse mix of rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, slaves and masters – even having men and women worshipping together was a new idea for many. So, it’s hardly surprising that they had a few issues.

As Paul wrote to the Romans, he addressed some of the specifi c issues they were facing. One of them was the issue of food. The question regarding what Christians should or shouldn’t eat is one that regularly crops up in the New Testament. The Jews were used to following very strict guidelines about what they could and couldn’t eat, and even the foods they were allowed to eat had to be prepared correctly. Then there were also questions regarding whether it was OK to eat meat from animals that had been offered as sacrifi ces to idols.

Paul was a strong believer that Christians could eat anything. (Check out Acts 10:9–16 to see why Christ’s followers started eating non-kosher food, 1 Corinthians 8 to see what Paul says about food sacrifi ced to idols and 1 Timothy 4:3–5 to discover why many believe it’s important to pray before we eat.) However, despite this he understands why some people choose not to eat certain food. In 1 Corinthians 8 he explains how there might be those who struggle with eating certain foods because it reminds them so much of the idol worship they used to be involved in.

Today, most Christians believe that there is nothing wrong with drinking alcohol in moderation. However, imagine if a recovering alcoholic starts coming to your church. They’ve decided to go teetotal in order to overcome their addiction. If they came round for lunch you probably wouldn’t offer them a glass of wine. In fact you’d probably not have any wine on the table at all. This isn’t because you don’t think Christians should drink wine, it’s because you want to support them.

As we delve into Romans 14 and 15, the specifi c examples Paul uses might seem a million miles away from the issues that you face in your church. However, the values of acceptance and support that underlie everything being said are certainly as important and relevant today as they have ever been.

__Leaders’ introduction

40

Idea 1

__ Title: Varying opinions

__ Why: To illustrate how we all hold

different opinions on some issues

> Get everyone in the group to

stand up and clear as much space

as possible. Then, get one person to

stand in the middle and express an

opinion (it does not necessarily have to

be an opinion they personally hold).

For example, ‘Abortion is always

wrong’, ‘Britain should never replace

the pound with the euro’ or ‘Torturing

a suspect is acceptable in order to

prevent a terrorist attack’.

> Then everyone needs to position

themselves near or far from the person

depending on whether or not they

agree with them. So, if they strongly

agree, they should stand next to them.

If they strongly disagree, they should

stand as far away as possible (no

leaving the room though!). If they don’t

strongly agree or disagree they should

stand at a point that they think best

represents their opinion.

> Keep asking different people to

express an opinion for as long as

the young people stay engaged

with the activity. Try not to let them

get too involved in discussions on the

opinions brought up though, as this

will detract from the aim of

the activity.

> If you don’t think a free-for-all will

work, you could come prepared with

20 opinions and you or another leader

could be the person standing in the

middle each time.

> Introduce the session by explaining

that churches are usually made up

of a variety of people with differing

opinions and this can sometimes cause

tension. This was one of the issues Paul

wrote to the Romans about, but may

still be an issue that happens in our

churches today!

Idea 2

__ Title: Big Brother church (part 1)

__ Why: To introduce the idea of the

church being made up of a diverse

mix of people

__ With: Big Brother video clip

> It’s quite possible that your group

needs no introduction to Big Brother!

However, if there are those in the

group who aren’t familiar with the

concept you might need to explain it

to them. You might also like to show

an explosive, but appropriate, clip of

what happens when a diverse group

of people are made to live together

in a confi ned space for a long time.

Check out www.channel4.com/

bigbrother for more information

and clips.

> Ask the young people to make a

list of similarities between church and

Big Brother.

> Then, get the young people to

imagine what would happen if your

group had to live together in the Big

Brother house with no outside contact

for ten weeks. Emphasising that they

are to think about themselves and

not make personal comments about

others in the group, ask everyone the

following questions:

__ What would you fi nd the hardest?

__ What habits do you have that

might annoy others?

__ What would you bring to

the house?

> Explain that the early churches

were made up of a diverse mix of rich

and poor, Jews and

Gentiles, slaves and masters, and

that even having men and women

worshipping together was a new idea

for many. It’s not surprising that there

were occasionally some issues! We’re

going to be looking at what Paul had

to say about some of these issues in his

letter to the Romans.

Idea 3

__ Title: Strengths and weaknesses

__ Why: To realise that we all have

strengths and weaknesses and

can therefore help each other

> Divide the young people into pairs.

Ask each pair to think of something

that one of them is strong at and the

other one is weak at. And then to fi nd

something else that the other person is

strong at and the other one is weak at.

> Gather everyone together and

encourage each pair to share their

strengths and weaknesses with

the group.

> Then introduce the session by

explaining that within the church

we all have different strengths

and weaknesses so it’s a great

environment to support one another.

However, the danger is it can

sometimes cause us to look down on

one another instead.

__BeginModule__Truth and lifeSession 6__The strong and the weak

41

Idea 1

__ Title: Supporting the weak

__ Why: To think about how we’re

meant to support the weak

__ With: ‘Newcomer’ PDF or PowerPoint

presentation (web resource), ‘Wealth

winners’ cards (resource page 76)

> In advance, download the

‘Newcomer’ images web resource.

Work through the images, discussing

how you would respond if these people

started coming to your church. Would

you welcome them? How would you

treat them? What would you do to

help them? What would you certainly

not do?

> Ask a volunteer to read Romans

14:1–3 and use the information from

the leaders’ introduction to explain

why food was such a big issue for the

early church.

> Now ask a couple of volunteers to

read Romans 14:19 – 15:7. Explain that

Paul wants us to accept one another

and calls those who are strong in faith

to help those who are weak in faith, not

to judge them.

> Divide a large sheet of paper into two.

On one side write down characteristics

of ‘weak faith’ and on the other ‘strong

faith’. Then, tell the group you’re now

going to pause and play a game.

> In advance, photocopy and cut out

enough ‘Wealth winners’ cards from

resource page 76. for each young

person to start off with three cards.

Share out the cards and divide the

group up depending on a particular

characteristic (for example, eye colour

or whether they wear glasses). Choose

a method that will give you two similar

sized groups, but be obviously able to

tell who is on which team. The example

of eye colour will be used from now on.

> Explain that the winner will be the

fi ve people (choose a number that

means a third of your group will be

winners) who end up with objects

worth the most. There are four ways

that cards can be exchanged:

__ If a blue-eyed player approaches

a brown-eyed player, the brown

player has to show the blue player

their cards. The blue player must

take any card they like and

give the brown player one of

their cards.

__ If a brown player approaches a

blue player, each player has to

choose one of the other player’s

cards, without seeing what the cards

are worth.

__ If a brown player approaches

another brown player, then both

players must switch all their cards.

__ If a blue player approaches another

blue player, they put all their cards

together, shuffl e them and deal them

out so they both end up with three

cards again.

> Play the game until the young

people get the hang of it and you know

that a few players are becoming very

‘wealthy’! Stop and work out who the

winners are. Now explain to the group

that you’re going to play the game

again, but this time, by the end of the

game you want everyone to have

cards of a similar value!

> Explain to the group that Paul urged

the early church not to be like the

‘strong’ people in the fi rst game, but

instead to work together, supporting

each other to help the weak become

stronger. Church isn’t about getting

to the ‘top’ and being the ‘strongest’

person; it’s about a group of people

who are all trying to become more

like Jesus.

> Refer back to the lists you made

earlier and discuss how we can help

those who are ‘weak in faith’ become

‘strong in faith’.

Idea 2

__ Title: Food issues

__ Why: To consider what we can

learn from the food issues the early

church faced

__ With: A variety of dislikeable

foods, Journal page for session

T&L:6 (page 43)

> Have a variety of different foods

available for the group to taste.

Choose obscure foods that they’re

likely not to like! Be careful of food

allergies though and don’t pressurise

people into trying things out. Let this

lead onto a conversation about foods

they particularly dislike.

> Explain that food was a big issue

for the early church and some people

chose not to eat certain types of

food – but this wasn’t necessarily

because they didn’t like them. Use

the information from the leaders’

introduction to explain why food was

such a big issue for them.

> Then, give everyone a copy of the

journal page and ask them to work

through it in groups of twos or threes.

> Once they’ve read all of the

passage and discussed the questions,

bring the group together for feedback

and to chat through any issues that

were raised.

Idea 3

__ Title: Big Brother church (part 2)

__ Why: To consider what our attitude

needs to be like

__ With: ‘Weak and strong’ animation

> Show the group the ‘Weak

and strong’ animation which

can be downloaded from www.

scriptureunion.org.uk/substance.

Then, ask a couple of volunteers to

read Romans 14:19 – 15:7.

> Either all together, or in small

groups, depending on what you think

will be more effective, get the young

people to discuss what sort of attitude

Paul is calling Christians to have

about themselves and towards others.

> If you didn’t use the ‘Big Brother

church’ idea in the Begin section,

quickly draw comparisons between

the church and the Big Brother house.

Then, as a group create ‘character

profi les’ for ten people who could

be part of the same church but who

might struggle to get on. Some should

be ‘weak’ in faith while others should

be ‘strong’. They should be from

different backgrounds and have

vastly different opinions on pretty

much everything.

> Divide the young people into twos

and give each pair one or two of the

characters you’ve created. Ask them

to think about what advice they

would give them about being part of

this church, bearing in mind what the

Bible passage says. Then, gather the

group together for feedback.

> Ask the young people to chat

about what they think they can learn

from this in terms of how they relate to

one another and others in the church.

Ask them to think especially about

how they should relate to newcomers

and people who are very different

from them.

__ExploreModule__Truth and lifeSession 6__The strong and the weak

42

Idea 1

__ Title: Our weaknesses,

God’s strength

__ Why: To consider our

weaknesses and strengths in

light of God’s strength

__ With: Refl ective music, words and

music to ‘Everlasting God’

by Chris Tomlin

> Play some refl ective music and

ask everyone to consider where they

are weak and need support, and

where they are strong and could

offer support. You may like to ask the

young people to share their thoughts

with one another, or you might like to

leave it as a personal refl ection.

> Read 2 Corinthians 12:9 to the

group before listening to or singing

together Chris Tomlin’s ‘Everlasting

God’, which contains the words

‘strength will rise as we wait upon the

Lord’. Encourage young people to

chat to God about their weaknesses

as they are listening to the song.

> Ask a leader to say a prayer to

conclude the session.

Idea 2

__ Title: Big Brother church (part 3)

__ Why: To summarise the session’s

teaching and think about how it

relates to our lives

__ With: Funny audition video clips,

video camera (optional)

> At the beginning of the Big Brother

selection process there is an ‘audition

video’ where those who want to

be contestants try to convince the

producers that they will make a great

housemate. If possible, show your

group a selection of past Big Brother

audition videos. A selection can

usually be found at www.channel4.

com/bigbrother or on YouTube.

> Get the young people to work in

small groups to each create their

own audition videos. However, these

audition videos shouldn’t be for the

Big Brother house, they should be

for the church. Their audition videos

should tell people what they have to

offer the church and what attitude

they would have towards other

people in the church.

> Once everyone has had the

opportunity to fi lm their audition

video, show them to the group.

> Make sure that you do this activity

in a manner that adheres to your

church’s policy on fi lming young

people. Alternatively, if you can’t get

hold of a video camera, you could

encourage the young people to act

them out to the group instead.

Idea 3

__ Title:Fast forward

__ Why: To think about what

Paul would say to your church/

youth group.

> Explain to the group that the

specifi c examples Paul used in his

letter to the Romans might seem a

million miles away from the issues

that you face in your church or youth

group today. However, the values of

acceptance and support that underlie

everything he said are certainly as

important and relevant today as they

ever have been.

> In twos or threes, ask the young

people to think about specifi c issues

Paul might raise if he wrote to your

church or youth group today. If there’s

time, ask them to draft a letter.

> Gather the young people together

and invite each group to share their

ideas (or read their draft letter) with

the group.

> Then, why not create a list of ten

guidelines that you can all put into

practice to ‘promote the values of

acceptance and support in God’s

family’. You could lay it out creatively

on a large sheet of paper and get

everyone in the group (who would

like to) to sign it.

> Conclude by encouraging

everyone to spend some time with

God in prayer. Suggest they say

sorry for the times they haven’t been

accepting or supportive of others and

ask that he would help them to be so

in the future.

__RespondModule__Truth and lifeSession 6__The strong and the weak

43

In recent years our TV screens have been hit by the Big Brother phenomenon. There are now countless shows that rely on the fi reworks that are ignited when you put a diverse group of people in a confi ned space for several weeks and turn up the pressure. However, this isn’t really a new idea – just take a look at the early church and some of the problems they had! The early church contained a diverse mix of rich and poor, Jew and Gentile, slaves and masters, even having men and women worshipping together was a new idea for many. So, it’s hardly surprising that they had a few issues.

As Paul wrote to the Romans, he addressed some of the specifi c issues they were facing. One of them was the issue of food. The question regarding what Christians should or shouldn’t eat is one that regularly crops up in the New Testament. The Jews were used to following very strict guidelines about what they could and couldn’t eat, and even the foods they were allowed to eat had to be prepared correctly. Then there were also questions regarding whether it was OK to eat meat from animals that had been offered as sacrifi ces to idols.

Paul was a strong believer that Christians could eat anything. (Check out Acts 10:9–16 to see why Christ’s followers started eating non-kosher food, 1 Corinthians 8 to see what Paul says about food sacrifi ced to idols and 1 Timothy 4:3–5 to discover why many believe it’s important to pray before we eat.) However, despite this he understands why some people choose not to eat certain food. In 1 Corinthians 8, he explains how there might be those who struggle eating certain foods because it reminds them so much of the idol worship they used to be involved in.

Today, a lot of Christians believe that there is nothing wrong with drinking alcohol in moderation. However, imagine if a recovering alcoholic starts coming to your church. They’ve decided to go teetotal in order to overcome their addiction. If they came round for lunch, you probably wouldn’t offer them a glass of wine. In fact, you’d probably not have any wine on the table at all. This isn’t because you don’t think Christians should drink wine; it’s because you want to support them.

As we delve into Romans 14 and 15, the specifi c examples Paul uses might seem a million miles away from the issues that you face in your church. However, the values of acceptance and support that underlie everything being said are certainly as important and relevant today as they have ever been.

__JournalJournal

Journal

Romans 14:17If an alien started attending your church, what might they think the most important things are?

What should be the most important things? How can you demonstrate this?

Questions, thoughts and doodles

Module__Truth and lifeSession 6__The strong and the weak

Romans 14:1–3Who would you fi nd hard to accept as part of your group? Why?

How do you think you could create a group where everyone is accepted?

Read Romans 14:1–10, then re-read the following verses and think about these questions.

Romans 14:10Why is it important to think about our standing before God before we judge someone else?

Now read Romans 14:13 – 15:7, then re-read the following verses and think about these questions.

Romans 14:15In what ways might it be possible for us to damage someone else’s faith?

Romans 15:1,2How can we help strengthen those who have a ‘weaker faith’ than we do?