Proverbs 27:17: “As iron sharpens iron, So one person sharpens another.”
I often sharpen my knives before cooking. Sharp knives are useful – blunt knives are a pain – they slip, they make the job harder, and they’re actually more likely to injure you.
If we’re living to serve Jesus, it fits that we would likewise want to stay ‘sharp’, and one of the main ways that we keep that cutting edge is to spend time with other believers. Hear what the Proverb is saying: you can’t stay sharp without them, and they can’t stay sharp without you. I won’t always see where I’m weak – my ‘blunt edges’ – but God has created a community where we can watch out for each other.
By way of example, I have friends who keep me accountable with how I treat my kids. When I’m loving and gracious towards them they encourage me; when I’m harsh with them they pull me up on it, pray for me and show me grace. I’m a sharper Christian for their friendship, and who knows what pitfalls they have helped me avoid.
Our Father’s heart is not just for us to jump in when things go wrong, but to be in one another’s lives daily – calling each other into all that God has for us, keeping each other accountable, and dealing with those blunt edges before they cause us an injury. It’s with continually sharpened brothers and sisters that we’ll see God’s kingdom come, the lost brought home, and rewards stored up in Heaven.
That’s why dinner table discipleship groups are so key – when you’re in regular relationship with others, it’s hard to wear a mask. We need people who know how we’re doing, who can celebrate with us in the victories and help us in the pressures. If you’d like to find out about joining a group, get in touch through the email below.
We have an enemy who loves blunt Christians – but the Lord has better things in mind. Let’s keep one another sharp.
by Dan Jones