This made me think of another seeming paradox in our faith journey. We should only be close friends, or work closely, with other believers. And yet we know that one of the most effective forms of telling others about Jesus is to come alongside them, befriend them and show them God's love.
So, how do we apply these verses in our lives today? And yes, I'm asking you, and being deliberately provocative too :)
- How do we avoid working and living in a Christian ghetto?
- Should we leave our jobs if there are non-Christians working there?
- How friendly can we be with non-Christians?
Those are my questions, but what about you? Do you have any good or bad experiences that could shed some light on what Paul says? Leave a comment and let's begin the conversation.
8 comments:
Jesus focuses on spending time with non-believers, not withdrawing from them. We should do the same. You can have close friendships with non believers without giving yourself over to them and losing your own convictions. However we have to be strong in our faith. I think if a relationship develops to the degree you are being influenced in a negative way or feel compromised, it has ceased to be a godly relationship. Otherwise I think its a good thing to mix with all kinds of people.
Thanks for the comment and I couldn't agree more.
Balance in this -- as in so much of Christian life -- would seem to be key. We need strong Christian relationships for accountability, supprt, encouragement, and fellowship. AND relationships with those who are not-yet-believers to live for them the Kingdom of God, to be Jesus' ambassadors to them, and to be sharpened in our faith by their questions and issues.
thanks Bruce, it is so easy to forget about the support of our communities.
This is quite remarkable. For two weeks now, we have been getting into this very subject. We were discussing "where the christian story really begins" and deciding that it really begins in Genesis 1 and 2 where God declares that all he has made is good, rather than in Genesis 3 which may lead you to have a "fall / sin" starting point. The Genesis 1 view leads us to show the unbeliever what they are - loved, made in the image of God, precious and immensly beautiful. This means I can communicate this to them without the fear that their "fallen state" will somehow contaminate me. This approach is having redemptive effect already, without us throwing away any of our convictions about the need to accept Jesus and trust Him as Lord. We drop our judgemental attitudes, our subculture thinking, and find ourselves becoming the very salt and light that the world needs. We see them as their Father in heaven sees them, and we become bread for the world. Last night, a visitor to our meeting cried openly for the second time in 20 years, as God's love overwhelmed him. He is a Freemason and we didnt say one thing to him about that.
Thanks Andy and Linda, I find it all too easy to judge first and show grace later... often at a subconscious level. Great to hear your story.
I think we should try and make close frienships with all people regardless of faith. If we stay in our Christiasn ghettos how on earth are people going to be affected by our lives? Interesting blog. thanks.
thanks for the kind comments Mike, and I agree with you.
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