Slices
Prepare
Jesus, friend of sinners, chose you for a loving relationship with him while you were lost in unlovely sin. That’s a friendship worth nurturing! It’s your one essential meeting today (Luke 10:42).
Bible passage
27 Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.
2 Let someone else praise you, and not your own mouth;
an outsider, and not your own lips.
3 Stone is heavy and sand a burden,
but a fool’s provocation is heavier than both.
4 Anger is cruel and fury overwhelming,
but who can stand before jealousy?
5 Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.
6 Wounds from a friend can be trusted,
but an enemy multiplies kisses.
7 One who is full loathes honey from the comb,
but to the hungry even what is bitter tastes sweet.
8 Like a bird that flees its nest
is anyone who flees from home.
9 Perfume and incense bring joy to the heart,
and the pleasantness of a friend
springs from their heartfelt advice.
10 Do not forsake your friend or a friend of your family,
and do not go to your relative’s house when disaster strikes you –
better a neighbour nearby than a relative far away.
11 Be wise, my son, and bring joy to my heart;
then I can answer anyone who treats me with contempt.
12 The prudent see danger and take refuge,
but the simple keep going and pay the penalty.
13 Take the garment of one who puts up security for a stranger;
hold it in pledge if it is done for an outsider.
14 If anyone loudly blesses their neighbour early in the morning,
it will be taken as a curse.
15 A quarrelsome wife is like the dripping
of a leaky roof in a rainstorm;
16 restraining her is like restraining the wind
or grasping oil with the hand.
17 As iron sharpens iron,
so one person sharpens another.
Explore
Recently I met with a man whose midlife crisis had cost him his marriage and involvement in church leadership. What saddened me most was that he’d not felt able to trust anyone sufficiently to ask for help during the five years he’d been feeling tormented. It’s tragic when Christians are afraid to be vulnerable in church. How safe is it to be authentic in your fellowship? How have you experienced what it is to ‘carry each other’s burdens’ (Galatians 6:2) and to ‘be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you’ (Ephesians 4:32)?
‘Heartfelt advice’ (v 9) is pleasant for it comes from a place of loving compassion towards the person to whom it’s offered. If our speaking the truth in love could wound someone, we’d better demonstrate that we’re their faithful friend who’ll be there to help them walk through the implications of it (v 6). Metal scraping against metal (v 17) does not suggest a comfortable process of refinement, but represents God’s discipline, which comes from a heart that longs to see us free and flourishing. Ultimately, it’s so the metal produced in us is gold!
Respond
To whom could you become a spiritual brother, sister, mother or father? Your wisdom could be vital to help the less mature and they might sharpen you up too (vs 12,17)!
Deeper Bible study
‘We love him now because we see his loveliness. We adore him now because we see his majesty. We obey him now because his Holy Spirit dwells within us.’1
Friendship is one of the themes emphasised in this section. Verses 1 and 2 concern praising and boasting. The Hebrew verb hallēl is a standout word, meaning either ‘boast’ (v 1) or ‘praise’ (v 2). The sages warn against boasting about future accomplishments because no one knows what a new day may bring (v 1). The future is in God’s hands.2 The assessment of one’s achievements by another person has greater value than self-praise (v 2). A true friend praises the other – building up others with genuine, appreciative words.
Verses 5 and 6 advocate ‘tough love’ in friendship, which calls for courage and honesty. Interestingly, the Hebrew words for ‘love’ (v 5) and ‘friend’ (v 6) share the same root (’hb) – another standout word in this passage. A true friend will not be afraid to offer or receive reproof (v 5a), even if it is painful and wounding (v 6a). These wounds are faithful and yet profitable (v 6a). To remain silent is to hide true love (v 5b). An enemy multiplies kisses; holding back from needed correction is instead a sign of deception and betrayal (v 6b). To offer or receive rebuke demonstrates how friends sharpen each other as iron sharpens iron (v 17).
Friendship sometimes brings praise, sometimes wounds. Are we too reserved to give praise to friends in need of our encouragement? May the Spirit prompt us to give sincere appreciation. Likewise, are we afraid of offering reproof to friends in need of loving correction? May the Spirit grant us courage and wisdom in doing so.
‘Friendship is one of the greatest gifts a human being can receive … Friendship makes all of life shine brightly. Blessed are those who lay down their lives for their friends.’3
1 RC Sproul, The Holiness of God, Tyndale House, 1985, p234 2 Cf Prov 16:1,3,9 3 Henri Nouwen, ‘The Gift of Friendship’, Daily Meditation
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Jonah 1,2; Revelation 10
Pray for Scripture Union
Local mission partner Lighthouse has Christmas Explored workshops taking place in primary schools in Crawley. Pray that these fun, engaging workshops will help children to discover what happened on the first Christmas and see what it means for them.
