Think of Others More Highly than ourselves – Our Friends and Family

“Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility consider one another as more important than yourselves; ”  Philippians 2:3.

This post is the second of a five part series discussing how we should view others in relation to ourselves. I will be starting each with the above verse with a specific relationship added to the end. Also, I am not saying we should be viewing ourselves negatively, for our focus verse is not saying that. We all need to see where our heart is in all our relationships. In this post I will be looking at our focus scripture as,

“With humility consider Our friends and family more important than

Ourselves.”

This can be most difficult at times, especially when it comes to family.  There is an old saying I had heard when I was much younger, “We can choose our friends, but we cannot choose our family.” This is very true. Many times, family members can get on our nerves. They may become very demanding or cantankerous. However, this should not be a statement made by us who call ourselves Christians. It has the idea of not wanting to be around them, desiring to only pick those that make us happy or, at the least, do not make our lives difficult. However, no matter how difficult our friends and family get, we do not have the luxury of saying good riddance.

I shall be looking at this from two different perspectives, those friends and family who are saved, and those who are not. They can be very similar in many ways, but there is a distinct nuance that I believe is important to bring out.

First, let us look at those who are not saved. We probably all have friends and/or family members who do not know Christ and the forgiveness He has offered, or they know of Him and choose not to believe. We all love them, but we should love them so much that we will be a light to them, showing through our lives the truth of the Gospel. We should do this even when they do not wish to hear the words anymore. 

There is a quote that has been attributed to St. Francis of Assisi; however, it has been questioned whether he was actually the one who said it. However, the quote still applies and shows how we are to respond to those who are unsaved. 

“Preach the Gospel always; and if necessary use words.”

We must always show the truth of the gospel by how we live. Sometimes our friends and family members do not wish to hear about the gospel because it was either presented improperly or in a way that did not convince them it was real. Therefore, at these times, we must let our lives do the talking by showing our love to them by just loving them, showing the reality of this Christian walk by how we live it out ourselves. We should take the time to pray for them any chance we get. God can open their hearts and prepare them to hear the words as well as see the actions. We must never give up on them. Remember, God never gave up on us when we were in sin, and we should never give up on those whom we know are unsaved. We should be willing to sacrifice our desires, time and whatever else for them because they are worth everything to God as well. Christ gave up His position in Heaven, became a man, and died a horrific death, because we were worth it to Him. We must live as though there salvation is more important to us than anything else, even our life itself.

As for our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, the focus is somewhat different. However, our passion should be the same. We should love them so much we would sacrifice everything for them if needed. Since they are saved, it will not be to show them the way of salvation. Life is not always easy as a Christian. The enemy does not want our life to be easy. He wants to make it so difficult for us that we turn away from Christ. He will tempt us in areas where we are at our weakest. He will bring troubles and trials our way to discourage us in our faith, ultimately to the point where we could walk away from God. There are times when we will grow weary and stop doing those things God has called us to do. It is good to remember the words of Paul when he said,  

“We urge you, brothers and sisters, admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, be patient with everyone.”  1 Thessalonians  5:14.

We are called to encourage our brothers and sisters in Christ. To help them through the tough times. When a brother is weeping, comfort him. When a sister is mourning, come beside her and mourn with her. We have to do what is needed to lift our brothers and sisters, helping them through their troubling times.

Jesus spoke of this also which was written in the scriptures by Matthew.

“But when the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the angels with Him, then He will sit on His glorious throne. And all the nations will be gathered before Him; and He will separate them from one another, just as the shepherd separates the sheep from the goats; and He will put the sheep on His right, but the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on His right, ‘Come, you who are blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. ‘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 invited Me in;   naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me.’ “Then the righteous will answer Him, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, and feed You, or thirsty, and give You something to drink? ‘And when did we see You as a stranger, and invite You in, or naked, and clothe You? ‘And when did we see You sick, or in prison, and come to You?’ And the King will answer and say to them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it for one of the least of these brothers or sisters of Mine, you did it for Me.’ 

Then He will also say to those on His left, ‘Depart from Me, you accursed people, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry, and you gave Me nothing to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me nothing to drink; I was a stranger, and you did not invite Me in; naked, and you did not clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you did not visit Me.’ 

Then they themselves also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see You hungry, or thirsty, or as a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not take care of You?’ Then He will answer them, ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it for one of the least of these, you did not do it for Me, either.’  “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”  Matthew 25:31-46. 

When we see our brothers and sisters in Christ suffering, it is our responsibility to help them in any way we can, whether it be with food, drink, hospitality, clothing, comfort, company, or any other need they may have. If we see them struggling and while doing nothing to help them, how can we say we really love them?  I would posit the idea that we cannot truly say that.

In conclusion, remember what James said to the Church where he ministered.

“If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?” James 2:15-16. These two verses in James describe the actions of someone who talks the talk but does not walk the walk. He is showing us a picture of a man who does not count his friends and family, as well as those in severe need above himself. We, as Christians, need to strive to put others ahead of ourselves. This is what true love is, a picture of what it is to be truly Christ-like. True love will have us do nothing less. Let’s work to be a witness to the lost and an encourager to the body. Let us all help to meet the needs of all those God places in our path. We have no idea what God will do through us when we give ourselves completely to His work.