Submitted by
David Miller
And let us consider
how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet
together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the
more as you see the Day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25 ESV)
How many of us remember the television show, “The Lone
Ranger”? Yes, I can hear the theme song
running through my mind by just the mere mention of the show. You may be asking at this point, what does an
old black and white TV show have to do with the Hebrews 10 reference?
The truth is there are many people who are determined to be the
Lone Ranger when it comes to their faith.
How many times have you heard someone say, “I can do this on my
own? I don’t need anybody else.”
I’ve heard it and I’m sure you’ve heard it, too:
“You don’t have to go to church to be a Christian.” Let’s say I ask
a guy (a professed Christian) where he went to church, and he told me he had
church every Sunday on the first tee of a golf course. Now, there’s
nothing wrong with being out on a golf course, but if you look at the Bible,
Christianity is not just about me and God, it’s about us and God. That is, it’s about relationship with God, but
it’s also about a relationship one to another.
“Maybe you’re
not being constantly tempted sin, however, maybe you do have this lone ranger
mentality that says, “I don’t need people…I don’t need church…I can do it on my
own.”
The Bible says in Romans 12:4-5, “Just as our bodies have many parts and each
part has a special function, so it is with Christ’s body. We are many parts of
one body, and we all belong to each other” (NLT).
God wired the universe in such a way that we need each other. I need you,
and you need me. The phrase “one another” is used 58 times in the New
Testament: Love one another, care for one another, encourage one another,
support one another, pray for one another, greet one another, share with one
another. God never meant for you to go through life as a lone ranger. You’re
not meant to go through life by yourself. Whether you ever marry or not is
irrelevant. Whether you are in a large or small family is irrelevant. You need a spiritual family, and you need to
be in a small group or bible study class.
It is in these settings that relationships are forged.
You need me, and
I need you. You need the people around you, and they need you. We belong to
each other. We need the fellowship with other believers. Believers that we can share our hurts, our
burdens, our joys, our testimonies, and our prayers with, together. Don’t forsake assembling together. It is the way God designed His family. There are a lot of good books that will tell
you the right thing to do, but they don’t provide the two things the Bible says
you must have: God’s power and community.
Rick Warren puts it this way, “You need each other to really
change. Change requires community.” We are all in this together. We do not need to walk our faith walk
alone. Even the Lone Ranger had Tonto!
