One theme I have noticed in the readings lately is the importance of building each other up.
Going back to Romans, Paul discusses this towards the end of the book. In Rom. 14, when talking about eating meat and observing days, he says "therefore let us not judge one another anymore, but rather determine this -- not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother's way" (14:13). He goes on to say "For if because of food your brother is hurt, you are no longer walking according to love. Do not destroy with your food him for whom Christ died." (14:15) Finally, he says in 14:19, "So then we pursue the things which make for peace and the building up of one another."
In Rom. 15, he continues this idea, saying we should focus less on pleasing ourselves and instead follow Christ's example: "Each of us is to please his neighbor for his good, to his edification." (15:2). In Rom. 16, Paul lists several people who have helped him, helped other Christians, and helped the church in general.
He comes back to this in 1 Cor. 8, where he again stresses that we should not do anything that would make someone else stumble, but instead ought to live in way that edifies others. Today we don't have the problem of eating meat sacrificed to idols, but the same issue arises in other ways. I know there have been times where I was convinced it was okay to do something and could not understand why others did not agree. That is the wrong attitude to have. It would be better to do whatever is necessary to help the other person. As Paul explains, it is more important to have love than to know what's right in every argument. (1 Cor. 8:1-2).
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