Walk of Life – Day 27 – July 2020 – Thoughts from the Book of Proverbs
Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend. (Proverbs 27:17)
The famous saying goes ” Tell me your friend and I will tell you who you are” Friendship is a very important term to most of us. All of us invariably have acquaintances, friends, close friends, and best friends. The numbers are generally in the descending order. Best friends are normally just one or two. Someone you consider as you best friend will be one in whose presence you can be yourself…there is nothing to hide, you do not try to put on a show. You know each other pretty well and mostly there are no secrets between you. The choice of this level of friendship needs to be very carefully done. That is because you are shaped by your friend and your friend is shaped by you.
This verse says that as iron sharpeneth iron, you are a very special influence in the life of your best friend just as he/she is in your life. It is not wrong to have unbelieving friends but when it comes to really close relationships it is always better that you have a believing friend who can mold you and shape you. If you have friends with diverse ideas, someone who is highly philosophical, someone who is an atheist, they may influence you wrongly so be careful.
Always notice, close friends, after a period of time, they begin imitating each other. The accents will seem to match, their dressing sense will become similar, they will only talk about each other to others. The Lord Jesus said ” You are my friends if you do whatsoever I command you.” Always strive to have spiritual friends but men may let you down. Only the Lord Jesus can be the best friend that you can have and who can sharpen and mold your life into His image. Christ will never let you down, He will never leave you nor forsake you, He is the perfect example, the perfect hero, the perfect friend. You can safely try to imitate Him and follow in His footsteps and you will never be disappointed.
Be very careful about your choice of friends and may the Lord Jesus always be your best friend.
