Short Thoughts

“Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man
sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.”
~ Proverbs 27:17

“The words of the Preacher” on this occasion have to do primarily with fellowship. Generally, iron in the scripture denotes hardness and solidity. Iron is thought of as strong and unaffected by other materials. Hence, God told the prophet Jeremiah, “For, behold, I have made thee this day a defenced city, and an iron pillar, and brasen walls against the whole land, against the kings of Judah, against the princes thereof, against the priests thereof, and against the people of the land. And they shall fight against thee; but they shall not prevail against thee; for I am with thee, saith the LORD, to deliver thee” (Jeremiah 1:18-19).

However, when the iron file is rubbed on the iron blade, that strong iron blade is shaped and sharpened. And, so it is with man. No man is an island unto himself, independent and unaffected by others. No matter how strong he may seem to be, his fellow man may sharpen him or grind him down to slivers. Now, let us consider our verse to meditate upon and grow thereby.

In the first place, fellowship is necessary for us. Even when man was in a perfect state, with perfect communion with God, God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18). This was uttered before man fell. The man needed a companion, one of his own kind. He needed friendship and fellowship. Solomon observed that “one alone” was a “sore travail” and that “two are better than one” (Ecclesiastes 4:8-9). He goes on to support his claim by giving several evidences from his experience. Man needs fellowship and it is not good to abide alone. We need to be sharpened. The blunt instrument is of little use, and can actually be a hindrance, where a sharp edge is needed.

However, there are two types of fellowship: good and bad. Good fellowship is most profitable to us while bad fellowship is destructive. Realizing that our closest companions will exert a tremendous influence on us, they should be chosen with consummate care. Paul instructed young Timothy to “Flee also youthful lusts: but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22). He told Timothy to choose companions that were godly and spiritual, those that were following righteousness, faith, charity, and peace and calling on the Lord with a pure heart. He was to aim high in his choice of close friends.

Our fellowship should challenge and convict us. Our close friends should bring out the best in us. They should be honest with a sincere love of the Lord. In this way, we should sharpen one another. The writer of Hebrews wrote, “And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another” (Hebrews 10:24-25). We are to provoke one another to love and good works.

Our friends should bring us up to a higher and nobler plane. Solomon wrote, “He that walketh with wise men shall be wise” (Proverbs 13:20). David proclaimed, “I am a companion of all them that fear thee, and of them that keep thy precepts” (Psalm 119:63). The new members of the first church “continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship.” They continued “daily with one accord,” and God blessed them greatly (Acts 2:42, 46).

However, we oftentimes err in our choice of friends by aiming far too low. We do not want someone that is going to challenge us and convict us by their life. We just want a good-time buddy that does not expect much from us. This buddy lives to a much lower standard than we believe we should and keeps our thoughts and affections on things below, not above. We will probably justify this friendship by thinking that we will have a good influence on them and help bring them up. In fact, the very opposite is true. They are going to bring us down. Paul wrote, “Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners” (1 Corinthians 15:33).

In reality, this friendship is enjoyable to the flesh. We do things with them that we would not normally do. We easily allow them to coax us into wrong. We feel like that we have some sort of license with them because they have no conscience. Let us be warned, knowing that God brought judgment upon Jehoshaphat causing his enterprise to fail because of his evil association with Ahaziah (2 Chronicles 20:37). Likewise, our bad friendships will bring us to ruin. Solomon warns us “a companion of fools shall be destroyed” (Proverbs 13:20). Let us then heed his wise counsel when he says, “Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding” (Proverbs 9:6).

In the second place, we see the aspect of accountability in good fellowship. That iron blade left to itself will go dull. God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone” (Genesis 2:18) before the man fell and had evil sinful desires in his flesh. The man needed accountability.

Without accountability in good fellowship, a man will usually go one of two ways. One way is he will begin “to think of himself more highly than he ought to think” (Romans 12:3). He begins to become his own standard of measure. He will look down on others that do not do every little thing the way he does them. He may even begin to dismiss everyone else as not being orthodox or sound enough. He has no respect to cultural differences that are not violations of Scripture and thinks his way is the only way.

The other way is he will run into sin freely. Having no restraints, he will run to excess. That lack of fellowship and maintenance of a high standard will cause deterioration of his moral principles. He will rationalize and justify a loose lifestyle, with no one to check him. This is one reason why we are such undisciplined eaters. We either have no accountability at all, choosing our food foolishly or else when that accountability is momentarily absent, we cheat and either way we fail.

In conclusion Christian, are your friends propelling you to greater heights in your service to God, or are they hindering you and holding you back? Do they provide accountability and help you to live up to a higher standard? If they are hindering you, you need new friends. If they are a true blessing to you, you should thank God for them, cleave to them, and sharpen one another. God help us to find safety in a multitude of wise counselors!

“Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this,
To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction,
and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”
~ James 1:27

James does not here make an all-inclusive statement, as if these were the only duties involved in the Christian religion. He rather sets forth two choice adornments of pure and undefiled religion: namely charity and purity. Possessing the system of faith or body of truth is only one aspect of true religion. Paul told Titus to “adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things” (Titus 2:10). “Adorn” carries the thought of ornamenting, garnishing, or perhaps embellishing. While the word does imply decoration, the good works of a Christian are not only decorative, they are eminently practical.

Paul writes to the Philippians, “Only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ” (Philippians 1:29). Here the believers’ behavior is to become the Gospel of Christ. “Becometh” in this verse is translated from the Greek word axios, which means appropriately, suitably, or worthily. The word occurs six times in the New Testament where it is translated “becometh” twice; “worthy,” three times; and “a godly sort,” once.

Two of the passages where the word occurs are of particular importance here. The first is found in Paul’s epistle to the Colossians, “That ye might walk worthy [axios] of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Colossians 1:10). The second occurs in his first epistle to the Thessalonians, “That ye would walk worthy [axios] of God, who hath called you unto his kingdom and glory” (1 Thessalonians 2:12). (Greek added by JFS).

From the above cited passages, we learn that there is in fact a way of walking, or living daily, that is in accordance with and worthy of the pure Word of God. It is the way, or manner of life, that is appropriate or suitable to the profession we have made. James gives an example of this in our text. For our purpose in this devotion, let us further consider the adornment of charity as set forth in this passage.

James makes a statement pertaining to charity in our text, “To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction.” The “fatherless and widows” represent a certain class of people. Orphans and widows are sort of weak and helpless. They are also lonely. They are easily oppressed and often neglected. The class is further expanded by adding those that are “in their affliction,” for they may be afflicted temporarily or terminally. “To visit” speaks of a Christian ministering to them in ways that our available to him. Since loneliness is involved, the actual physical act of visiting is certainly included. They often want for fellowship and companionship.

We may consult the ministry of Dorcas to be instructed in the practicality of charity, for “this woman was full of good works and almsdeeds which she did” (Acts 9:36). She did not seem to have an abundance of resources to give alms to the poor. She manifested her charity through “good works and almsdeeds which she did.” Her religion consisted of a lot of doing and her giving was of her time, energy, and humble resources, while her hands ministered to the necessities of the weak. She visited the widows by making “coats and garments” for them (Acts 9:39). Her compassionate work had endeared her to many and there was great weeping at her death.

The works of charity are a test of true religion. Paul the Apostle said, “And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2). The way a man treats the weak and afflicted says a lot about his true character. Christian, how do you treat the weak, needy, poor, and helpless? Do you only help those that are temporarily in need, who have the power to reciprocate? Do you only help when it will be noticed by those of great influence? In his epistle, James condemned showing preference to whom we would choose to serve based on their social standing (James 2:1-10).

Are you willing to serve and minister to others when it will not be noticed and the ones you help are not able to do anything for you? Do you desire to serve and minister to others when it will not directly benefit you in any way? Remember, John wrote in his first epistle, “In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother” (1 John 3:10). The possessor of true religion will show his faith by his works.

“I will run the way of thy commandments,
when thou shalt enlarge my heart.”
~ Psalms 119:32

Having gotten in the way, David is hastening on the way, for running implies being in a hurry. He says, “I will run.” The pace of life on this earth is ever increasing. Yet, despite the speed of life, there are few who are truly hastening toward Heaven. Many claim Heaven as their final destination, but, to all outward appearances, seem to be in no hurry to get there. They seem to want to take their time walking in the By-Path Meadow. They seem to relish the things of earth and wish to tarry here a little longer. Therefore, they move on with snails’ pace toward the Celestial City.

David says, “I will run.” Furthermore, running implies a freedom from hindrance. The writer of Hebrews instructed the Hebrew Christians to “lay aside every weight” and to “run with patience the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). The ancient Greeks would compete naked to eliminate any restriction of movement. They wanted their bodies to be free to perform. The Psalmist here indicates that he has laid aside the old man’s garments to free the new man to “run the way.” We find many Christians today with their bodies bound with the world’s fashions and barely able to walk a little in the way.

Additionally, running implies an expenditure of energy and force and a firm resolve to move deliberately toward the goal. David says, “I will run.” He is bringing his energies to bear upon his task. There is no doubt that the runner with his blood, sweat, and straining muscles is in the race. He is resolved and persevering until he reaches the finish line. David’s striving is a real effort and means that there is a measurable progress in a period of time. David is making tracks and covering ground. There are too many professed Christians today who are pretty much in the same place spiritually they were years ago. For them, the race seems to be mostly a spectator’s sport.

One must also admire here David’s pragmatic approach to God’s Word. He finds a “way” in the truths of Holy Scripture. The legalist runs after the law to “bind heavy burdens and grievous to be borne,” in order to “lay them on men’s shoulders” (Matthew 23:4). The antinomian runs after grace to use his “liberty for a cloke of maliciousness” (1 Peter 2:16). The intellectual runs after knowledge to “reason with unprofitable talk” and “with speeches wherewith he can do no good” (Job 15:3).

Daniel prophesied of the last days saying, “Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall be increased” (Daniel 12:4). We have witnessed this with the religionists of this day. There is much running back and forth. Everyone seems to going in different directions. It would also seem that knowledge has been increased. However, for all this running and increase of knowledge, we find no surge of practical godliness and personal holiness. We find many today that can teach systematic doctrine, who know little to nothing of holy living.

The Psalmist declares, “I will run the way of thy commandments.” All of his struggle and effort is directed and regulated by God’s Word. He finds here no book of mere intellectual stimulation, but rather words “to keep and to do” (Joshua 23:6). He confesses, “I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments” (Psalm 119:60). The Psalmist loves God’s Word and delights to walk in His way. He believes the words of Moses to the children of Israel, “For it is not a vain thing for you; because it is your life” (Deuteronomy 32:47).

Finally, David says, “When thou shalt enlarge my heart.” God would enlarge his heart by shedding abroad His love and grace within it. He would enlarge his heart by filling it with wisdom from on high. He would enlarge his heart by marking in it the “remembrance of his holiness” (Psalm 97:12). For every growth in knowledge, for every growth in grace, the Psalmist would accelerate his pace. He says, “I will run the way of thy commandments, when thou shalt enlarge my heart.” May God give us grace to desire an enlarged heart more than an enlarged head and to get on in the way to Heaven. Amen.