Philippians 2:1-4 (The Message)
1-4If you've gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, if you have a heart, if you care— then do me a favor: Agree with each other, love each other, be deep-spirited friends. Don't push your way to the front; don't sweet-talk your way to the top. Put yourself aside, and help others get ahead. Don't be obsessed with getting your own advantage. Forget yourselves long enough to lend a helping hand.
Every once in a while I like to read other versions of the Bible; one that is interesting to me is “The Message”, of course you just have to spit out the seeds as they say, because some of the content just doesn’t line up with the King James. But, when I read this scripture, I just had to share it. It is pretty plain, isn’t it? and pretty true. I like the part of being “deep spirited friends”! and how we are supposed to treat others. Our heart should be like our Fathers heart, ready to reach out to others in love and genuine concern. How many people in your life do you know that really cares about you and what happens to you? Is this part of being a “deep spirited friend”? Please don’t forget Jesus is the best friend we will ever have, but while we are here on this earth, I believe He sends people to us, real friends, that will love us and hold us up in prayer. Friends that are not jealous, or have wrong motives, but really love and care about us. As we go through this week, lets concentrate on what it means to be a friend, and to have friends. Be blessed in Him!
