Foolish (moronic, ignorant, immature) friends will not only damage our reputation but over time they will affect a change in us. Our paradigms will begin to change over time. We will begin to take on their points of view. We too will become foolish, moronic, ignorant and immature.
Have you heard the saying, "Birds of a feather flock together" Initially I thought that it meant that birds seek out other similar birds, but over time I realized it means something else. Birds begin to look like the birds around them.
The youth today claim that they want to be different, but what they mean is that they want to be different from those people who are not in their group. If you put a “Goth” kid in a rural-farmer high school, (and take away all exterior stimuli from the city and the Goth culture) the kid will begin to transform himself into the "birds" that are around him. (He may not like it but its human nature.) He /she will begin to find pleasure in horse-back riding, nature, and wearing jeans with boots.
Jesus carefully chose those with whom he was to be around. His closest friends (the Disciples) were not chosen randomly. In Proverbs 13:20 we read
“He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm"It doesn’t say that the person who walks with the wise does it because he is wise…It says that he grows wise.
It is time to reflect on the people we call "friends or acquaintances," and ask the question "Who am I hanging out with?” Let’s chose our friends wisely.
Your Friend, Your Brother
Gabriel G
1 comment:
But there's an important line here. Like everything in life, balance is key.
The line is "the world." As Christians we can be on one extreme of the line, embracing everything the world has to offer without thought of consequence. We would become "spotted" by the world and lose our effectiveness.
On the other hand, we can completely seperate ourselves from the world, shunning its culture, and refusing to associate with anyone who doesn't believe what we do. In doing so we still lose our effectiveness.
We must be in the world but not of it. This means we have to be friends to sinners -- it doesn't mean our only friends are sinners, but it does mean that we have to live along-side them so we can reach them.
When Jesus walked up to Jacob's well in Samaria, he sat down next to a Samaritan woman of loose morals, and immediately offered her grace. Had he taken your stance, he might have walked around her or away from her, but certainly she would not have had the opportunity for living water.
Christians are called to be salt and light. You don't leave your salt in the cupboard, and you don't hide your light under a bush. Nor do you need to saturate things with salt, or set-ablaze every injustice you find. Simply live out Christ's love and let God do the judging when that time comes.
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