Proverbs 18:24 "A man with many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."
The past couple years have seen many people come to ruin, like this proverb suggests, and some of those were people with plenty of friends and business partners. They were rich and powerful in their communities, pillars of some communities. But when economic crisis hit, these same pillars began to crumble. Even with friends and family who stuck by them, their sense of self-identity disintegrated as the bank accounts ticked down to zero and debt began to rise uncontrollably. Friends and family lend money, but they're strapped too. Who can be turned to? Who is closer than a brother?
The promise of Christ is this- that we do not exist independently. By the power of the Holy Spirit, Christ lives through us. Closer than a brother, indeed! In the ruins of self-identity and self-worth, Christ sticks closer. Where does our value come from? It comes from the reality that each one of us is created in the Image of God. Even though sin has left a murky stain on each of us, the power of sin is nowhere near the creative (and re-creative) power of God. Christ sticks near, and restores us closer and closer to that original Image. Today, that is good news.
What proverb stuck out to you from Proverbs 18?
No comments:
Post a Comment