Which city do you live in? Does it contain millions of residents, more people than one could hope to meet in several lifetimes, or is it small enough, what was once called a village, where all who reside there can be together in a single structure. No matter the size of the populace, we tend as individuals to not be individuals, oxymoronic, but true, we will have close, personal relationships with those we have known for many years, some good friends, but not that good, if you will, general acquaintances, and many times we will pass people on a daily basis that we know absolutely nothing about.
We still tend to congregate together though for many reasons, safety in numbers, assistance close by when it is needed, friendships next door or just down the street, we are, in a very loose sense of the word, herd animals. Convenience may be the most attributing factor in the materialistic thought here, you do not see many large grocery markets or hospitals thirty miles away from everyone, but it of course goes much deeper than that. “And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.” (Gen. 11:6) There may of course have been a few who were not in the group that walked together to eventually begin the building of the ziggurat, the tower meant to reach where God sits, led by Nimrod, (Gen. 11:4) a lone straggler, an outcast, the roamer who wanted to go his own way, but from the beginning we have lived in close proximity to each other. The root of the nature of man seems to be that we need human companionship, we need each other emotionally and physiologically.
The proofs of this statement I believe are found in the Scriptures, not in the endless books of psychology and psychiatry, man’s inventiveness can never equal the wisdom of God. When you search for them in the Scriptures, the amount of truths on this subject are staggering, “It is not good that man should be alone,” (Gen. 2:18) “Thy desire shall be to thy husband,” (Gen. 3:16) “and they twain shall be one flesh,” (Mark 10:8) “Forsake not the assembling.” (Heb. 10:25) The verses are scattered throughout the Scriptures that show us that no one has a desire to be alone constantly, we were made with a need to need. Think of it my friends, “and the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil.” (Gen. 3:22) Father, Son, Holy Spirit, our Lord has made us in His image, and I do not believe there is any greater presence of the three in one, God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit. We were all made in the image of God, and this continuing need that every human being experiences is not the need of human companionship, but the need of God.
It goes much deeper than our daily need for food, for “Man shall not live by bread alone,” (Matt. 4:4) It is a stronger pull than the most loving parent or spouse, and to search for that need outside of the fellowship of Christ is to search futilely for a replacement that will never suffice. He is all we need, but far too many times we search for Him in the companionship of those around us, in our churches, our Bible studies, in the relationships of those that we love that also love Him, but these are also shallow misrepresentations of being in the presence of a personal relationship with the Lord Jesus Himself. When we look for the company of fellow believers to sustain us in our walk, when we seek them out for uplifting conversations, we do well, but even in the most godly man, you will not see the fullness of our Lord, my friends, this is why it is called a personal relationship with Christ. “The kingdom of God is within us.” (Luke 17:21)
To seek solace outside of Him, to need others more than Him, to search out human companionship when we should be looking to the Savior will avail you very little, Christ is our need. We have all been made in the image of God, we will find no closer or dearer friend than Jesus, there is no greater comforter than the Holy Spirit, nothing else will satisfy us no matter how large or small our place of residency. Is your greatest entertainment found in your hand-held mobile device, or in the time that you spend in the Word of God, do you relish your time with family and friends, or in the company of the Savior, do you count your loving spouse as your greatest treasure, or the time that you spend in quiet solitude with your Lord, just you and Him. Are you a people person first, or a Christ centered person first.
Think on this for a moment if you would please, when you go to church, are you going there to be in the presence of God, are you going there to meet Him, or does He travel there with you, when you leave do you leave Him there, does He sit patiently in one of the pews waiting for you to return next week, is He a “When I need you” friend, or is the kingdom of God within you. Think of the blessed security my brothers and sisters, always with us, never leaving us, never forsaking us, where we go, He goes. Why do we seek the consolations of men when the Holy Spirit resides within us, why are we constantly seeking the companionship of friends when our greatest friend is always by our side, why can we not comprehend fully and continuously that we have all we need in Christ. If you are accused falsely of a horrendous act and all leave you, He will remain, if everyone you know rejects you, He will remain, if you had been the only human being ever created by God, Jesus Christ would still have died for your sins, just for you. Tell me now my friends, who do you need, who is it that surpasses all other friendships, who will never, ever leave you or forsake you, who is building a mansion for you, preparing an eternity of joy and pleasures for you.
Everything was removed from Job, and he found God was all he needed, Paul was destined to be one of the greatest religious leaders in all Israel, and he counted it all dung for the knowledge of Christ, there are those in the past, present and future who have not even loved their own lives in response to our most dear and trusted Savior. All we need is Christ, all else is sinking sand, all we are searching for we will find only in Him.
