Bible Verses about Friendship and Community

Looking for Bible verses about friendship and community? If so, this article is for you.

Lack of friendship and a sense of community produces loneliness which is currently one of the greatest crises on both a national and international level. “The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared loneliness to be a pressing global health threat, with the US surgeon general saying that its mortality effects are equivalent to smoking 15 cigarettes a day.”

As people become more transitory in their lives, work for large corporations from their dining rooms, and their social lives consist of scrolling social media, a life of loneliness is easy to slip into. However, both medical and psychological science have done a great deal of research on the importance of relationships in human beings.

This is not just in terms of marital and familial relationships. A community of friends and neighbors supporting and caring for one another is vital in the truest sense of the word, life-giving.

Not all relationships and friendships are equally intimate, but they should all offer something of value, whether it be a neighbor to watch your pets when you are away, weekly small groups or book clubs, or the larger community of a church.

Bible Verses About Friendship and Community

What Jesus said

Jesus created a group of intimate friends to share in the work of the kingdom of God. And the identifying marker of that kingdom is loving one another.

A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another. – John 13:34-35, NIV

Your brothers and sisters in Christ are the people with whom you should cultivate caring and supportive relationships. The earliest churches were not people who met in a building once a week for an hour. It was men and women caring for the sick, the cast out, and each other. They created a family beyond the tribal and hierarchical roles of their society.

They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. They sold property and possessions to give to anyone who had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. – Acts 2:42-47, NIV

Wise instructions about friendship and community

A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity. – Proverbs 17:17, NIV

Life is hard, there is grief, pain, sickness, and fear. No one wants to face any of these difficulties by themselves, even if we are the type of person who says that we can. When things are hard, we feel more able to handle it when people come alongside us with prayer, food, or any other practical means of care. For many of us, adversity reveals the true friends from fair-weather friends.

The righteous choose their friends carefully, but the way of the wicked leads them astray. – Proverbs 12:26, NIV

The fair-weather friend is one who only wants to be around for the fun times, or maybe from what they gain from you. A wicked friend is someone who wants to have power over you, and not only do they not act in your best interest, but they may deliberately try to sabotage your life in the name of friendship. Be alert to such manipulative and toxic people, knowing that when push comes to shove, they are not truly your friends.

Long-lasting ties

Jonathan said to David, “Go in peace, for we have sworn friendship with each other in the name of the Lord, saying, ‘The Lord is witness between you and me, and between your descendants and my descendants forever.’” – 1 Samuel 20:42, NIV

In marriage, some vows bind a husband and wife in faithful loyalty to one another. Becoming a parent is a commitment to care for the duration of childhood to adulthood. There is no such ceremony binding friends, no demand for long-term care, and no witnesses, paperwork, or promises, at least not in modern society.

We can still commit to being there for our friends, showing up when things are hard for them, and asking for help with things are tough for us. We can rejoice when our friends rejoice and weep with them when they are weeping. In so doing, we build friendships of lasting love.

Would you like the counsel of a faith-based professional in Valencia to learn more about being a faithful friend? Give us a call today at Valencia Christian Counseling.