Rebuilding Our Relationships – Living in the One Anothers
Dear Ones,
Here in America, we are inundated with advertising. It seems there’s no end to books, CD’s, DVD’s, studies, seminars, etc. that are all geared around helping us to have better lives and relationships. Christian book stores have shelf after shelf devoted to the category they call “Christian Living.” And it’s true that some of those things can offer a certain level of help and support. I liken that to the “prepare the way of the Lord” tools, softening the soil before “the planting of the Lord” can take place in the deepest recesses of our hearts. But I think what we often miss is that the greatest Resource available is, and always will be, Yeshua Himself.
As you read in John’s recent post titled “What Follow Me Is and What It Is Not,” it’s clear that our FMM material is based on an entirely different focus than most others. As disciples of Yeshua, our Master and Redeemer, we want to learn from Him. He is our Source; He is our Wisdom; He is our Commander; and He is our very Life. So as we contemplate further how we can best relate with our fellow disciples and those potential disciples with whom we live, work and interact, what better source than the Living Word Himself?
One of the pillars in our relationship study is a reminder of God’s Eternal Covenant and how it works. Put simply, if person A is in covenant with person B, and person A is also in covenant with person C, then for A’s sake, person B is in covenant with person C. Or put another way, if God is in covenant with His disciples through their Covenant Representative, Yeshua, and God is in covenant through humanity’s original Covenant Representative, Adam, with the currently decapitated humans who remain ensnared by the powers of darkness, then for God’s sake, we disciples need to see that we are also in covenant with them as well.
As we embrace the importance of honoring Him and His covenant with others too, we see once again that an ‘us vs. them’ mindset has no place in His Eternal Kingdom. Remember Yeshua’s admonition in Matthew 25:40:
“Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least ofthese brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”
So when we read, study and ponder the Scriptures and look specifically at our Father’s expectations for how we are to treat each another, we need to see that every single other human being created in His image is one of those ‘one anothers’ – without exception. This means we cannot have one standard for how we relate to our fellow believers and a lesser standard for the not-yet-believers in our midst. So let’s look at some of the ‘one anothers’ of Scripture together. And while we do that, we can continue to practice abiding with our indwelling Lord and asking His input on the true state of our hearts in these areas.
So let’s look at some Scriptures and find out what He may want to teach us. According to these Scriptures, there are some very specific things we see.
We are to LOVE one another – John 13:34-35; John 15:12, 17; Romans 13:8, Hebrews 13:1; I Peter 1:22, 4:8; I John 3:11, 23 4:7, 11, 12; II John 5
We are to BE DEVOTED to one another – Romans 12:10
We are to HONOR one another above ourselves – Romans 12:10
We are to BEAR WITH one another – Ephesians 4:2
We are to BE KIND to one another – I Thessalonians 5:15
We are to SHOW MERCY AND COMPASSION to one another – Zechariah 7:9
We are to LIVE IN HARMONY with one another – Romans 12:16
We are to ACCEPT one another – Romans 15:7
We are to ENCOURAGE one another – II Corinthians 13:11
We are to SERVE one another humbly in love – Galatians 5:13
There are others, of course. But we get the point, don’t we? Our Father has a particular way in which we can enjoy healthy, godly relationships with one another, and here’s the beauty of how this all unfolds in our lives… We know that these verses cannot possibly be a “To Do” list. Created humans cannot fulfill those commands. But our Creator certainly can, and He does… each and every time we chose to look to and depend upon His indwelling Life to be exactly what is needed – to us, in us, and through us.
So instead of a ‘task’ to accomplish, the commands serve as beacons of Truth. They encourage and enable us to grow in our ability to reflect the glory, majesty and beauty of Yeshua Himself as we learn to really, truly be one with Him while we interact with everyone whom He weaves into our lives, all for His glory,
I love sharing the discipleship journey with you. May His Word continue to bless and keep you and those you love!
Your sister, Nancy