Christian Community

Bible Reading: Ephesians 4:11-13

“So, what’d you do at Aleah’s this weekend?” Claire’s dad asked while making dinner.

“Well, first we painted each other’s nails, then we watched a movie and talked till we both fell asleep. But by Saturday morning we were bored, so Aleah suggested we help her mom run the food pantry at her church. It was a lot of work, but it was worth it to help people who needed food. I didn’t realize how many people use the food pantry.”

Dad smiled brightly. “Yes, it’s a big help for our community. That was very kind of you two to help out.” He drew out a knife to slice a tomato. But when he pressed down, the tomato was squashed by the knife, and seeds and juice squirted everywhere. Dad jumped back in surprise. “Looks like this knife needs sharpening—it’s pretty dull. Claire, can you grab me the sharpener? It’s in the knife block, but it’s a long rod, not a knife.”

Claire found the rod and handed it to her dad. She watched him rapidly swipe the knife along the rod several times. When he put the knife to the tomato again, it sliced through smoothly. “Claire,” Dad began, “having a good friend like Aleah is sort of like this knife sharpener.”

“How so?” Claire asked.

“The Bible says that just like iron can sharpen iron, people can sharpen each other. God knows life can be difficult, so He has given us a community of other Christians like Aleah to help us through it. He designed us to be part of His body of believers, the church, and puts people in our lives who sharpen us spiritually. He often uses our relationships with Christian friends to help us grow to be more like Jesus. In fact, Jesus Himself had close friends He hung around with called disciples. He spent a lot of time with them and helped them understand who He was—the Son of God who was going to save the world from sin.”

“Aleah is one of my best friends,” said Claire. “She’s always kind to me and encourages me to do the right thing.”

“I’m very glad you’ve found a friend like her,” said Dad, slicing through the next tomato with ease. Naomi Vroegop

How About You?

Do you have Christian friends? What do you do when you’re together? Watch movies? Talk about your lives? How about support each other when you’re upset and encourage each other in your faith? Everyone who knows Jesus is part of His body, the church, and He designed us to have community with one another. Thank Him for the Christian friends He’s put in your life.

Today’s Key Verse:
Proverbs 27:17 As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend. (NLT)

Today’s Key Thought:

God gives us community