There are times in our lives when we feel the most alone even though we know that God is always there. Don't deny it. I know I'm not going to, but what's awesome about God is that He shows how much He loves us through the people that are in our lives: our brothers and sisters--the Body of Christ.
This is the crucial part of our relationship with Christ. Once we make the decision to accept that Christ is Savior and sincerely believe that God is the Creator of the universe, that is just the beginning. There are stumbling points along the way, and the great part is that we don't have to struggle alone "because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings" (1 Peter 5:9b). What an encouragement to have! Yesterday, today, and forever, there will be believers going through the same struggles that we are personally experiencing, and you can read yourself how the story ends. God wins!
We are created by God to be social beings, and by creating relationships with other believers, we build each other up:
"I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong--that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith" (Romans 1:11-12).No one person's walk with Christ is the same as another's. They're just as different as our gifts are that God has given us; however, we do not want to boast about the strengths that we have! Do not feed your ego by putting other people down. When they are weak, show them Christ and encourage them to make them strong, for "your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8b).
While looking for Scripture to suit this sort of topic, I was looking on Bible Gateway, in particular, for verses that had the words "encourage" and/or "companion" in them. What I found that was interesting was that Isaiah 41 came up for both:
"[T]hey help each other and say to their companions, 'Be strong!' The metalworker encourages the goldsmith and the one who smooths with the hammer spurs the one who strikes the anvil. One says of the welding, 'It is good.' The other nails down the idol so it will not topple" (Isaiah 41:6-7, emphasis added).What is going on here? These people are making idols to worship! Alright, so people that turn their backs away from God also encourage each other, so how are we to show society that we are different from everyone else? We ought to act better than pagans do, but how? Matthew 5 helps a lot with the answer to this question. Let's break it down:
How do we stand out from the rest in regards to our relationships with people?
"But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous" (vv. 44-45).Why should we love those who persecute us? They persecuted us!
"If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that?" (vv. 46-47).I don't want to be a tax collector or pagan. What do I do?
"Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect" (v. 48).
Let's encourage the Body! Let's love like Jesus and encourage the world!
God bless!
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