Having the Same Attitude

Romans 15:1-33

Thursday, 13 August 2026

“May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had…” Romans 15:5 

Apostle Paul’s letter to the Romans was addressed to a group that was diverse in race and culture. Chapters 1-11 focus on the foundation of our faith and chapters 12-16 deal with the practical ways to live out this faith.

Since the church in Rome had a diverse congregation, they faced differences, division and dissensionvery similar to what churches face in the 21^st century. They had a few areas of contention. But were these problems ignored? No! One of the pleas of Jesus in His High Priestly prayer in John 17 was that His disciples may all be one just as He and the Father were one. So, Paul makes every effort to teach the church how to overcome their disunity so that the work of God wouldn’t be destroyed- Romans 14:19: “Let us therefore make every effort to do what leads to peace and to mutual edification.”

This is same call to today’s church. Differences are bound to surface when people come together. But how we handle those differences is important. The first step towards unity is mentioned in the key verse—“having the same attitude of mind that was in Christ Jesus.” 

Let’s note a few characteristics of Jesus to practice, for maintaining peace and harmony.

• Bear with the Weak (V.1): Phil 2: 7 says “When the time came, he set aside the privileges of deity and took on the status of a slave, became human!” Jesus being God set aside His heavenly privileges and identified Himself with weak people like you and me. ThroughoutHis earthly ministry, we can never ever see Him stepping over the weak but constantly supporting and helping the weak overcome their weakness. Isn’t that the same way He has dealt with each of us? How often have we failed Him. Yet he has not turned His back on us. May He give us the grace to do likewise!

• Please & Build (V.2): We live currently in a world that is self-seeking -a world where “I, ME, MYSELF,”  is the norm. This was no different in the first century church. Some people thought what they believed and understood, is what needed to be practiced in the church. This only led to division and not into construction. V.3 is the point of reference for us if we are taking such a path – it reads – “For even Christ did not please himself” Is not this statement very humbling? The Creator, the sustainer, the giver of life when He became man did not do what pleased Him; rather thought of each of us and our growth, thus laid down His life so that we could live – John 12:24. Is this not reason enough for us to follow this example? Let’s make every effort to see that we would be a source to help build a fellow believer, and not someone who tears them down.

• Accepted to Accept (V.7): This is the foundational principle for any relationship to work. We can politely bear with people, and to a certain extent do things that please them, but if we haven’t accepted them as they are, we will never be able to love them at all. Here is what God did for us in Christ – Eph 1:6: “…to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.” When we first came to God we had nothing on the outside to make us acceptable to God. But what changed it? In the inside of our hearts, we put our trust in Christ, and then God began to look at us through Christ, making us acceptable to Him. Have we forgotten this great work done in our lives? May this truth remain fresh in our minds as we fellowship with fellow believers, also accepted in the Beloved just as we are, giving us the ground to accept them into the family of God.

Let’s Remember: “The Christian's new life is a life of love, forgiveness, and kindness, modeled after the example of Christ.” -F.F.Bruce

Listen: 'Loving God Loving each other'