The ADVANTAGES of MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
July 10
Bible Reading: Ecclesiastes Chapters 4-6
The ADVANTAGES of MUTUAL ASSISTANCE
"Two are better than one, because they
have a good reward for their labor. For if they fall, one will lift up his
companion. But woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help
him up. Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm; but how can one
be warm alone? Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.
And a threefold cord is not quickly
broken." (Eccl 4:9-12)
When God
made man and placed him in the Garden of Eden, God himself noticed that it was
not good for man to be alone. And the
Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a
helper comparable to him." (Gen 2:18) We need to understand and
realize that the ties of union, marriage, friendship and religious communion
are better than a person to be alone. There are advantages that accrue from
efforts that being conjoined. The Talmud says, "A man without a companion is like a left hand without the right.”
Verses 9-11 speaks
to us that two are far better than one. It is good to have someone with us to
share our life’s burdens. Then in verse 12b, it mentions that a threefold cord
is not quickly broken. The clear meaning is that there is strength in numbers,
and if two are better than one, then three are even better. Perhaps this is an
echo of the Trinity - the ultimate strength – or even the union of man and a
woman in marriage where God is right at the center of the marriage.
In all
things union tends to success and safety. Above all, the union of Christians assists
each other by encouragement or friendly reproof. They warm each other's hearts
while they converse together of the love of Christ, or join in singing his
praises. Then let us improve our opportunities of Christian fellowship. Where
two are closely joined in holy love and fellowship, Christ will by his Spirit
come to them; then there is a threefold cord!
"Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." (1 Cor 1:10)
