Our last lesson emphasized the importance of our personal responsibility in our spiritual growth. This lesson examines the strategic role that others play in our spiritual growth. We were not meant to live in isolation, but we were created for community. One of the devil’s strategies is to isolate us from Christian fellowship. The degree to which we are isolated from others is the degree to which the destructive power of sin can gain a foothold in our lives. Just as a coal is removed from a fire will grow cold and die out so it is with God’s people as they are deprived of fellowship. The writer of Hebrews made this observation:

and let us consider how to encourage one another in love and good deeds, not abandoning our own meeting together, as is the habit of some people, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near. (Hebrews 10:24-25)

In the Old Testament, Solomon described the practical benefits of having close friends:

Two are better than one because they have a good return for their labor; for if either of them falls, the one will lift up his companion. But woe to the one who falls when there is not another to lift him up! Furthermore, if two lie down together they keep warm, but how can one be warm alone? And if one can overpower him who is alone, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart. (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12)

Solomon also emphasized the strategic role that other people play in our lives:

As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)

Who plays that sharpening role in your life? We need others with whom we can be vulnerable so we can remove any masks of self-sufficiency and allow our authentic self to be revealed. This may seem frightening, but it is actually liberating. A major problem with wearing a mask is that my mask may receive love, but I don’t. The result is that I live in fear of being found out for who I really am. We must realize that when my fear of the power of sin is greater than my confidence in God’s love for me, then I will attempt to hide my real self.

Some people eschew deep relationships with others because they believe that God is their divine mentor. It is true that God is our divine mentor as He shapes us through His word; but we must also realize that our reluctance to have others speak truth into our lives may be a convenient way to avoid confronting the hard truths that can bring healing to our souls. We need people in our lives who love us enough to tell us not simply what we want to hear, but what we need to hear. Our growth is facilitated as we hold ourselves accountable to others so we can be the person that we’ve always wanted to be. An ancient proverb reminds us, “If you are planning for one year, grow rice. If you are planning for twenty years, grow trees. If you are planning for centuries, grow men.”