As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
Read the series.
It’s time to look a little more closely at what we’re actually doing as we minister our gifts to one another in the church.
A passage I find helpful in this regard is the opening paragraph of Ephesians 5, which is just one sentence with two main verbs that point us to how we conduct our relationships in the church.
Last time we noted that from the beginning we’ve been designed for fellowship, for interpersonal relationships—and that for our time in history, the church is a significant part of God’s plan for that. He even commands us to keep at it.
OK, if God says I’m supposed to fellowship, then I will.
As this year began I started a series on spiritual growth, which I called “On Building Spiritual Muscle.” The series focused on the key spiritual exercises that the Bible prescribes for spiritual health, exercises that Christians have generally called “the means of grace”: Scripture, prayer, and fellowship. The next series, “On Devotions,” focused on the first two of those means of grace, and particularly on our private practice of them.
“Those with a close personal relationship to someone who is transgender are only slightly more comfortable with learning that a friend is transgender (62%) than those who know an acquaintance who is transgender (57%)… one-third of those who don’t know anybody who is transgender say they would be comfortable learning that a friend is transgender (32%).” - PRRI
“Bilbo’s most courageous act wasn’t creeping down into the dragon’s lair, but walking off alone to incense (and perhaps save) a friend who had gone astray.” - Desiring God
“Introduce yourself to one person each Sunday…. I feel squeamish thinking about walking over and sticking out my hand to a stranger or, even worse, to somebody I’ve seen regularly and haven’t yet greeted. But what’s the worst that could happen?” - TGC
“Lost people know when we’re treating them as “projects” over against just loving them as people created in God’s image.” - Chuck Lawless
“From a list of possible steps individuals could take to improve racial dynamics in the country, building diverse relationships is the most popular response (67% all U.S. adults, 70% practicing Christians).” - Barna
“…the root of loneliness often results from the inability (often unintentionally) of pastors and congregants to separate the person from the position. This reality manifests in the life of the pastor’s wife as well.” - TGC
Discussion