Faithful Friends

“You are who you hang around!” “Lay with dogs and you will get fleas.” I am sure most of us have heard these sayings. I’ll bet many of us were warned by our parents about being selective when it comes to making friendships. Even scripture tells us to be very wise when it comes to the friends, company and associates we keep. Proverbs 13:20 (NKJV) says, “He who walks with wise men will be wise, But the companion of fools will be destroyed.” When studying Mark chapter two, I really began thinking about the importance of the company we keep. The story begins with Jesus visiting the city of Capernaum. Word quickly got out that Jesus was in a particular house in the city. Needless to say as soon as word spread, “er-body and their mama,” high-tailed it over to see, hear from and touch The Savior! The house filled up and there was standing room only. Verse three tells us how four men came to the house carrying their paralyzed friend on a bed. Let me stop right here for a moment and ask, “How many of us have a friend who will stop and carry us?” I don’t mean just carry you physically…I mean do you have a friend that can and will carry you spiritually? Sometimes we go through things in life and need someone to carry us in prayer, fasting etc. Do you have friends like that; are YOU a friend like that? These friends in Mark went above and beyond just carrying their buddy. In verse four when they realized there was no room in the house, they climbed to the roof, ripped it open and lowered him down to Jesus. NOTE: they were careful friends, we know this because the Bible says they “let him down,” not the dropped him! Are you a careful friend, do you have them? I also want to note that not once do we see the paralyzed friend “asking” his comrades to do any of this for him, this speaks volumes to me. Finally in verse five the Bible says that when Jesus saw “their faith,” meaning the friends He said to the paralyzed, “Your sins are forgiven you.” Now, he was still paralyzed but he had just been given something much better than the ability to walk…eternal life! The story does go on and the paralyzed man ends up leaving with new life, promise of heaven and complete healing. All of this took place because he was smart enough to surround himself with faithful friends. Are you that smart? THINK ABOUT IT!