4. TRAGIC ENDS AND FAITHFUL FRIENDS

4. TRAGIC ENDS AND FAITHFUL FRIENDS

1 Samuel 30:1-6 –the tenderness of men. In his isolation and complete aloneness David found strength; he encouraged himself in the LORD.

FIVE PRIORITY RELATIONSHIPS IN CHRIST’S EXAMPLE

1. Christ interacted with the multitudes. Key word: WITNESS (Matthew 14:13-14). We are to be an example to the power of Christ (Acts 1:8). Christ does not want our churches to become monasteries. He wants us to stay connected with the people out there in the lost world. By our changed lives they will see that Christ lives, and His Word is alive and powerful (John 17:15). Christ wants us to relate to the multitudes.

2. Christ interacted with the 72. Key word: SERVICE (Luke 10:1). These were His followers – which are today, the present Body of Believers (1 Corinthians 12). We are to remain connected to the Body. All of us have been given different gifts, and if we are serving in the place that God has ordained for us, we are going to bring the gifts that they might have been lacking in that area. This is so that we can minister in the Body of Christ (Hebrews 10:24-25). Stay connected to the Body of Christ in safety.

3. Christ interacted with the 12. Key word: DISCIPLESHIP (Matthew 20:17). In the Greek, it means to be a learner or pupil. It is a time when we are pulled apart to be disciple in the Word – discipleship group.

4. Christ interacted with the 3. Key word: TRANSPARENCY (Matthew 26:36-38). They got to go into the innermost places with the Savior. Our 3 represents an accountability group. These are the ones that really know you; people who know what our greatest temptations are, and people who we can trust. We must also exercise great caution, because they have the greatest influence on our lives, on this earth. Make sure that they have your same basic goals in mind; that they are pursuing godliness, so that they can hold you accountable to that exact same thing – people who love us enough to speak the truth in love.

5. Christ interacted with the 1. Key word: INTIMACY (Matthew 26:38). It is the intimate relationship that we share with God alone (Matthew 26:39-44). It is the place that God beckons us to go all by ourselves. These are times of intensive care.

THE PLACE OF FURTHER STILL

A. A place you can go when you are overwhelmed; surrounded by grief. It is unforgettable. We will all experience this at one time or another. When we are overtaken with grief, it is a threat to our heart.

B. A place of honesty where you may wrestle with the will of God. Christ went to the place crawling further, and brought His absolute honesty. You have biblical permission first of all, to ask for your thorn to be removed. It’s only after that, and then if God says “no” – of deciding how you’re going to live with that in Christ.

C. It is a place where your 2 or 3 cannot go; they must remain close by and pray. You are going to have to work this one out with God. Sometimes, there are things we cannot do for someone who is overtaken with grief. When we force ourselves to come up with the answers, we get in a lot of difficulty. They have to know that we are close by; to have the reminder that we are praying for them.

D. A place where the most serious matters in your life are settled. As Jesus continued in that place, He finally had to come to a place of acceptance. That is the end result of one of the works that God is trying to accomplish in your life. We have to stay there, or keep going back there, until the matter is settled and we have come to a place of acceptance – spiritual health.

E. It is a place from where you must emerge changed. There are things in our lives that we cannot change, so we ask God to show us His glory (Exodus 33:18). Then we can say “I was alone with Him and I know Him better.” We come out of that place a little closer to the image of the Lord Jesus. It is where His mark of eternity is stamped on us; when God does something only God can do.