Sermon - Things We Need... Others - Littleby Baptist Church - March 7, 2020
“1 How delightfully good when brothers live together in harmony! 2 It is like fine oil on the head, running down on the beard, running down Aaron’s beard onto his robes. 3 It is like the dew of Hermon falling on the mountains of Zion. For there the Lord has appointed the blessing— life forevermore.” – Psalm 133:1-3
How wonderful it is to be united with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. The imagery in these verses compares the unity of Christ followers with the anointing of Aaron as Chief Priest, which symbolized the uniting of God’s people in worship. The dew in verse three symbolizes the people being refreshed. When the people of God are united as The Church in following our Lord, it is refreshing, renewing, or as David stated, ‘delightfully good’.
There may be days we wish we could live as a hermit in seclusion, but the reality is we Need Other people in more ways than we may realize. The first aspect of The Things We Need… Others is seen before sin entered this world.
“18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper corresponding to him.” 19 The Lord God formed out of the ground every wild animal and every bird of the sky, and brought each to the man to see what he would call it. And whatever the man called a living creature, that was its name. 20 The man gave names to all the livestock, to the birds of the sky, and to every wild animal; but for the man no helper was found corresponding to him. 21 So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to come over the man, and he slept. God took one of his ribs and closed the flesh at that place. 22 Then the Lord God made the rib he had taken from the man into a woman and brought her to the man.” – Genesis 2:18-22
In the beginning God knew that man was not supposed to be alone. He knew that Adam needed Others, so God created Eve. I for one am an introvert and do enjoy down time and alone time, but even I begin to go stir crazy if I spend too much time in isolation. I remember one of the times my wife went back to visit her family and I stayed home with the kids. The first two or three nights were not bad. I cannot remember exactly what I did, but probably watched a movie my wife was not interested in, read a book, or did some sermon preparation. After a couple of nights of the house being quiet and having no adult human interaction the peace and quiet became lonely. In just a couple of days it can become obvious that we Need Others.
God knew what He was doing when He created a partner for Adam. He knew what He was doing when He made us capable of having families. God created us with a desire to fellowship with Him and Others. We were not created to live alone; we were meant to be filled with Love and to share it with Others. We were created with the desire to live with the Things We Need… Others.
“24 And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, 25 not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.” – Hebrews 10:24-25
The author of Hebrews is encouraging all who are following Jesus to gather together. The point here is that fellowshipping together helps us to stay focused on the mission before us, it helps us to grow in love for Others, and can be a source of encouragement when needed.
“9 Two are better than one because they have a good reward for their efforts. 10 For if either falls, his companion can lift him up; but pity the one who falls without another to lift him up. 11 Also, if two lie down together, they can keep warm; but how can one person alone keep warm? 12 And if someone overpowers one person, two can resist him. A cord of three strands is not easily broken.” – Ecclesiastes 4:9-12
If we attempt to accomplish what God has created us for all on our own, chances are we will fall with no one to help us. If we fellowship with other followers of Christ, our individual missions may be different, we are there to help carry the burden for Others as they help to carry ours. The helping will come in many forms. One of our brothers or sisters in Christ might be the sounding board we need when looking at a potential new ministry. They could be a person we go to when we are struggling with something. The fellow believers in our lives are there to pray for us, love us, encourage us, and hold us accountable when needed. They are the Things We Need… Others.
“11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up as you are already doing.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:11
We Need Others in our lives to encourage us as we face the struggles of the day and to climb that mountain that lies before us. We need to surround ourselves with people who will build us up so that we can grow in our Faith.
“17 Iron sharpens iron, and one person sharpens another.” – Proverbs 27:17
As we fellowship with Others, as we study the word of God with Others, as we Pray with Others, we help each other grow. The Things We Need… Others helps each of us to become the person God has created us to be.
“2 Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” – Galatians 6:2
As we care for Others and allow them to care for us, we lift each other up and help to carry the burdens that are too much for one pair of shoulders to handle alone.
We see a great example of this when the Amalekites attacked the Israelites while they were wandering in the wilderness. Moses directed Joshua to select men to go fight the Amalekites while he was going to the top of the hill with the staff of God.
“10 Joshua did as Moses had told him, and fought against Amalek, while Moses, Aaron, and Hur went up to the top of the hill. 11 While Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, but whenever he put his hand down, Amalek prevailed. 12 When Moses’s hands grew heavy, they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat down on it. Then Aaron and Hur supported his hands, one on one side and one on the other so that his hands remained steady until the sun went down. 13 So Joshua defeated Amalek and his army with the sword.” – Exodus 17:10-13
There are several layers of Others helping Others in these verses. Joshua and the guys heading out to battle is a great example of one person depending on another. The brotherhood that is developed between men serving in war together is strong. When your life is on the line you learn to help those around you and to depend on them. You cannot take a hill or defend a bridge without Others. Joshua and the men who battled the Amalekites demonstrated the Need of Others as they charged into battle.
In a way you can say Moses was a middleman in this situation. He went up on the hill and held the staff of God above his head as a sign of worship to and dependence on God. As Moses held that staff above his head he was standing in the gap between God and those fighting. Joshua and the Others were focused on the battle before them and could not be in prayer the whole time, so Moses did it for them. Moses was the Others for the soldiers fighting the Amalekites, but even he needed Others to carry out his task.
As anyone who has had to hold something above their head for even a few minutes knows, your arms will get tired. As Moses held the staff of God over his head, he reached a point where he could no longer do it. Moses needed Others to continue the path before him. Aaron and Hur came along side Moses and helped to carry the burden that he could no longer carry by himself. Aaron and Hur were the Others Moses needed, and indirectly they were Others for Joshua and the guys.
Through Joshua and the other soldiers being there for each Other. With Moses being the conduit of prayer for the soldiers and Aaron and Hur supporting Moses, they were able to carry out the task that God had laid before them. None of them would have been successful without Others. All of them are great examples of the Things We Need… Others.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest command was in the Law, He responded with.
“37 He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. 38 This is the greatest and most important command. 39 The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. 40 All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”” – Matthew 22:37-40
Jesus was asked for THE greatest commandment, but He responded with two. The first is loving God with everything we have. The second is to ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ I am sure you have heard me summarize these as, Love God and Love Others.
If the second of the greatest commandments according to Jesus is to Love Others, we Need Others to carry out that commandment.
“42 Give to the one who asks you, and don’t turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.” – Matthew 5:42
We Need Others if we are to give to those in need.
“35 “‘For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat; I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink; I was a stranger and you took me in; 36 I was naked and you clothed me; I was sick and you took care of me; I was in prison and you visited me.’” – Matthew 25:35-36
We Need Others if we are to feed the hungry, give a drink to the thirsty, welcome a stranger, clothe the naked, take care of the sick, and visit those in prison.
“19 Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” – Mathew 28:19-20
We Need Others if we are to go out and share God’s Love with them, teaching them what the Lord has done, showing them the commands, helping them to grow in knowledge of His Word, we Need Others if we are to carry out the mission God has given us.
To be a faithful servant of the King of Kings… we Need Others. We need them so that we can be found as good and faithful servants, but there is more to it. At one point in our lives, we did not know Jesus. At one time we had not heard the truth that has set us free. Someone had to share the Gospel with us. The Things We Need… Others can be seen in the Holy Spirit using Others to speak into our lives. Without that faithful Other who shared that Jesus died for us, we may still be lost. Without that Other who teaches Sunday School or preaches at church, our lives might be unchanged.
The Things We Need… Others may be seen in our lives because we have been or are the person in need. We may be hungry and thirsty and depend on Others to survive. We may be lost, we may not have a warm coat for the winter, we may be sick, or in need of a visit. We Need Others who are faithful to the commands of Jesus to help us when we are the one in Need.
However, you look at it we Need Others while we spend our lives circling the sun. We were created to Fellowship with Others and to learn and grow together. We need Others to help when we are struggling, and we are to be there for Others in their time of need. We Need Others who are Faithful to God to speak into our lives, and we in turn Need Others so that we can do what our Lord has commanded us to do.
The Things We Need… Others is a vital part of our walk with God.
God Bless,
Robert
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