Over and over again, the Bible encourages believers to live a connected life – or, to use a more familiar phrase, to live in community. Let’s face it: we need others –we can’t make it on our own – and others need us as well.
As I have studied the Scriptures, I have seen that the passages that encourage believers to live a life well connected contain several common qualities. Here they are:
1. Love
o John 15:12-13 HCSB This is My command: Love one another as I have loved you. (13) No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends.
o Romans 12:10a NASB Be devoted to one another in brotherly love.
o Matthew 22:39 NLT A second [commandment] is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
o 1 John 4:11 HCSB Dear friends, if God loved us in this way, we also must love one another.
2. Confession, forgiveness and acceptance
o Colossians 3:12-13 HCSB Therefore, God's chosen ones, holy and loved, put on heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, (13) accepting one another and forgiving one another if anyone has a complaint against another. Just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive.
o Matthew 5:23-24 NIV84 "Therefore, if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, (24) leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.
o 1 Peter 4:8 ISV Above all, continue to love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of sins.
3. Humility
o Philippians 2:3-5 NIV84 (3) Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. (4) Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. (5) Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus.
o Romans 12:16 AMP Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty (snobbish, high-minded, exclusive), but readily adjust yourself to [people and things] and give yourselves to humble tasks. Never overestimate yourself or be wise in your own conceits.
4. Comfort, encouragement, and service
o 1 Peter 3:8 AMP Finally, all [of you] should be of one and the same mind (united in spirit), sympathizing [with one another], loving [each other] as brethren [of one household], compassionate and courteous (tenderhearted and humble).
o 1 Peter 4:9-10 ISV Show hospitality to one another without complaining. (10) As good servant managers of God's grace in its various forms, serve one another with the gift each of you has received.
o 1 Thessalonians 5:14b HCSB And we exhort you, brothers… comfort the discouraged, help the weak, be patient with everyone.
o Galatians 6:2 HCSB Carry one another's burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.
5. Accountability
o Proverbs 27:17 NLT As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.
o 1 Thessalonians 5:14a HCSB And we exhort you, brothers: warn those who are irresponsible…
o Hebrews 10:24 NET And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works.
6. Mutual dependence
o Romans 12:5 AMP So we, numerous as we are, are one body in Christ (the Messiah) and individually we are parts one of another [mutually dependent on one another].
7. Friendship and unity
o Proverbs 17:17 HCSB A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a difficult time.
o Hebrews 10:25 NIV84 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching. [Application: the importance of spending time with followers of Jesus, to develop these friendships.]
o Colossians 3:14 HCSB Above all, put on love—the perfect bond of unity.
Let me state these qualities again. As I list them, would you ask God to show you some ways to incorporate each of them into your relationships with your spouse, your children, your co-workers, your classmates, your church friends, and everyone else in your sphere of influence?
1. Love
2. Confession, forgiveness and acceptance
3. Humility
4. Comfort, encouragement, and service
5. Accountability
6. Mutual dependence
7. Friendship and unity
O God, would You help us to deepen our connections with fellow followers of Jesus, by incorporating these biblical qualities into our lives?
Today, I encourage you to “Reflect on This.”