Keeping One Another Strong in the Lord

None of us is alone as a Christian. Each of us is a member of a congregation, a family, a support system, and this is how God arranged life in Him. Consider biblical passages that teach the ways in which fellow Christians help one another to be spiritually strong:

  • Galatians 6:2. Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ (emp. added).
  • Titus 3:8. I want you to speak confidently, so that those who have believed God will be careful to engage in good deeds.
  • Hebrews 3:12-13. Take care, brethren, that there not be in any one of you an evil, unbelieving heart that falls away from the living God. But encourage one another day after day, as long as it is still called “Today,” so that none of you will be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin (emp. added).
  • Hebrews 10:24-25. [L]et us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near (emp. added).
  • James 5:16. Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another. . . . The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much (emp. added).

Sometimes we may tend to think that our obligation to other Christians is limited to meeting with them for worship. But these passages make it obvious that the Christians of a local congregation do much more for one another than merely getting together in the same room a few times each week. Rather, dedicated Christians focus on how to help one another to be faithful in the Lord. We get to know one another and think carefully about how to draw one another closer to God, each with his or her own unique interests and abilities. We sympathize and empathize with one another. We invite one another to participate in good works with us. We pray for one another. We do not choose to absent ourselves from the assembly.

If we will do these things, we will be more likely to keep one another from falling away (Hebrews 3:12). And if one does fall away, then the faithful will eagerly try to bring him back to Christ (Galatians 6:1; James 5:19-20).