CHRISTIAN LIVING – “One Another Verses of the Bible” 1
“One Another” Verses of the Bible
INTRODUCTION:
A. The Bible is the Mind of God in Print!
1. Therein God reveals what He wants mankind to know.
2. Therein God reveals what mankind needs to know.
B. In the 27 New Testament Books . . .
1. Four relate the life of Christ
2. One relates the beginning and early history of the church.
3. 21 epistles books, Romans-Jude, pertain to guiding Christians to grow and
live a faithful Christian life after obedience to the Gospel of Christ.
a. Books: 21 of 27 – 78%
b. Chapters: 139 of 260 = 53%
c. Verses: 5,190 of 7,967 = 65%
d. Words: 121,145 of 180,506 = 67%
e. Any way one measures it, (Books, Chapters, Verses, or Words) over
half of the New Testament has to do with how to live after one becomes
a Christian.
4. Listening Friends . . . . . . The Bible, as the Mind of God in Print, tells us:
a. There are right ways and wrong ways to live.
b. There are right things and wrong things to do.
c. There are right beliefs and wrong beliefs.
d. There are right behaviors and wrong behavior.
C. God wants each one of His children to help all other of His children remain
faithful and serve Him to the very best of their abilities.
1. An examination of twelve of the “One another” verses of the New
Testament will admonish and guide us to that end.
2. A profitable study is to be had in the study and application of them.
D. Review the 12 “One Another” verses of the Bible.
PRAY FOR ONE ANOTHER. (1)
A. James 5:16 – “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous
man avails much.
B. Prayer is powerful.
1. We need to pray.
2. We need to pray for others.
3. We need others to pray for us.
4. We need to pray for one another.
5. This is a duty that pertains to all Christians.
C. Prayer benefits the one doing the praying and the one being prayed for.
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ENCOURAGE ONE ANOTHER. (2)
A. Hebrews 3:12-13 – “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart
of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort (ENCOURAGE) one
another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through
the deceitfulness of sin.”
1. This supposes a state of close church fellowship, without which they could
not have had access to each other.
2. Brethren were to encourage one another.
3. Brethren were to encourage one another daily.
4. And so must we encourage and exhort our brethren regularly.
a. We each belong to the same fellowship.
b. We each belong to the same family.
c. We each have a responsibility to help one another.
B. While some may need more encouragement than others, we must be there for
each other and all others who are part of God’s family.
1. A safeguard against believers turning away from God is for them to
encourage one another daily.
2. Brethren should continually remind each other to turn away from sin and to
stay focused on Christ.
3. The Hebrew writer urged Christians to be alert themselves and to
encourage others. A person cannot encourage or be encouraged apart
from fellowship; thus, believers are urged not to give up meeting together
(10:24-25).
4. People cannot live as Christians in a vacuum.
a. They need more than individual vigilance.
b. They need encouragement and correction from their brothers and sisters
in Christ.
c. Allow fellow Christians to encourage you, and also see that you do not
refuse to listen to a fellow Christian who may see sin or a problem in
your life.
d. Don't just wait for a minister or elder to encourage someone else; each
person, you included, has the responsibility
e. Galatians 6:2 – “Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of
Christ.
C. Unfortunately, however, many Christians end up discouraged, rather than
encouraged, by other Christians.
1. Be attentive that you take opportunity to actively encourage others.
2. Without constant self-evaluation and encouragement, a person's sin can
become a deceived mind, a hardened heart, leading to unbelief and
rejection of Christ.
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D. Sin is subtle, and often enjoyable, so we are easily drawn to it.
1. Christians need each other so that they don't become hardened by sin's
deceitfulness.
2. Satan, the author of sin. In fact, Satan is so intelligent that he can and
does deceive people, even intelligent and normally faithful people.
3. We protect against sin's deceitfulness by checking our private intentions
and desires against those of a group of trusted Christian friends, and by
checking our group's intentions and desires against the teachings of the
word of God.
BUILD ONE ANOTHER UP. (3)
A. 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11 – “For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain
salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together
with Him.
Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also
are doing.”
1. Romans 14:19 – “Therefore let us pursue the things which make for peace
and the things by which one may edify another.”
2. Strive to build one another up . . . not tear one another down.
3. As Christians are lively stones built up together a spiritual house, we should
endeavor to promote the good of the whole church by promoting good in
one another.
4. We should:
a. We should communicate our knowledge and experiences one to
another.
b. We should join in prayer and praise one with another.
c. We should set a good example one before another.
B. Christians will never stop needing encouragement or building up.
1. It seems in the school classroom that the students that are encouraged
the most by their teachers are the students that learn the most.
2. This principle should be applied to the church as well.
CONFESS OUR FAULTS TO ONE ANOTHER. (4)
A. James 5:16 – “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one
another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous
man avails much.”
1. This spiritual truth . . .
a. This spiritual truth is to be used . . . not abused.
b. This spiritual truth is to be applied . . . not misapplied.
c. This spiritual truth is to be rightly taught . . . not wrongly taught.
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2. This passage does not say:
a. Does not say confess your sins to a formally robed priest.
b. Does not say confess your sins to an elder . . . but one can.
c. Does not say confess your sins to a deacon . . . but one can.
d. Does not say confess your sins to a minister . . . but one can.
e. Does not say confess your sins to an evangelist . . . but one can.
f. Does not say confess your sins to a teacher. . . but one can.
3. Confess your sins to one another.
4. Illustration: 1966 – Terry Hughes (Air Force) – Bridgeport Elementary
School.
5. Confessing our sins - such as resentment, a grudge, lack of
forgiveness, etc. - can and often does lead to the healing of physical
ailments because of the stress brought about by these sins.
B. Christ has made it possible for us to go directly to God for forgiveness. But
confessing our sins to one another still has an important place in the life of the
church.
1. If we have sinned against an individual, we must ask that person to
forgive us.
2. If our sin has affected the church, we must confess it publicly.
3. If we need loving support as we struggle with a sin, we should confess
the sin to those who are able to provide that support.
4. If after confessing a private sin to God we still don't feel his forgiveness,
we may wish to confess that sin to a fellow believer and hear him or her
reassure us of God's pardon.
C. Listening friends, it is not God’s plan that His people be alone.
LOVE ONE ANOTHER. (5)
A. John 13:34-35 – “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one
another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one
another."
1. The disciples of Christ were known by this love which they bore to each
other.
2. The primitive Christians were particularly known by this among the
Gentiles.
3. Tertullian, in his Apology, gives us their very words: "See, said they, how
they love one another, and are ready to lay down their lives for each other."
B. Jesus is saying, You shall not be known by special rites or habits; not by a
special form of dress or manner of speech; not by unusual customs, like the
Pharisees, the Essenes, or the scribes, but by deep, genuine, and tender
affection . . . deep, genuine, and tender love.
1. It is an excellent command.
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2. It is a demonstrable command
3. It is an everlasting command.
4. It is new in that before it was “You shall love your neighbor,” but now it is
You shall love one another; it is pressed in a more winning way when it is
thus pressed as mutual duty owing to one another. The newness of Jesus'
command pertains to the new kind of love that Christians have for one
another because they have each experienced the love of Christ.
C. “Of all the instances of Christ's love to his disciples, which they had already
experienced during the time he went in and out among them. He spoke kindly
to them, concerned himself heartily for them, and for their welfare, instructed,
counseled, and comforted them, prayed with them and for them, vindicated
them when they were accused, took their part when they were run down, and
publicly owned them to be dearer to him that his mother, or sister, or brother.
He reproved them for what was amiss, and yet compassionately bore with
their failings, excused them, made the best of them, and passed by many an
oversight” Matthew Henry
D. Jesus said that our Christ-like love will show that we are his disciples.
1. Do people see petty bickering, jealousy, and division among brethren?
2. Or do others know you are Jesus' followers by your love for one another?
3. Love is more than simply warm feelings; it is an attitude that reveals itself in
action.
4. How can we love others as Jesus loves us?
a. By helping when it's not convenient.
b. By giving when it hurts . . . I am not referencing the giving of money, but
of ourselves.
b. By devoting energy to others' welfare rather than our own.
c. By absorbing hurts from others without complaining or fighting back.
5. This kind of loving is hard to do. That is why people notice when you do it
and know you are empowered by a supernatural source.
E. When we love one another with pure hearts, fervently, even unto death, then
shall it fully appear that we are disciples of that person who laid down his life
for his sheep, and who became, by dying, a ransom for all.
F. Jesus would be gone, and His disciples would not be able to join him for a
while. In the meantime, they were to follow this commandment: Love one
another. A command to love one another is not a new commandment; it had
been mandated in the Old Testament).
G. The newness of Jesus' command pertains to the new kind of love that
Christians have for one another because they have each experienced the love
of Christ.
H. Jesus commanded his followers to love one another "as I have loved you."
This was revolutionary, for believers are called to love others based on Jesus'
sacrificial love for them. A love experienced by doing.
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1. Jesus was a living example of God's love, as we are to be living
examples of Jesus' love.
2. This love would be the mark of distinction: "By this all will know that you
are My disciples, if you have love for one another."
3. One of the major themes in 1 John is brotherly love
4. Jesus was going to die . . . he was going to be raised again . . . he was
going to return to the Father.
a. The disciples would be left in the world. Jesus gave them this one allencompassing
command -- to love one another.
b. Not only would such love bring unbelievers to Christ; it would also keep
believers strong and united in a world hostile to God.
c. And such love, enabled by Jesus' love for them and by the coming Holy
Spirit's power in them, would allow them to love all those for whom
Christ died, and unite them with Christ spiritually.
BE DEVOTED TO ONE ANOTHER, HONOR ONE ANOTHER. (6)
A. Romans 12:10 – “Be kindly affectionate to one another with brotherly love, in
honor giving preference to one another;
1. The word used here occurs no where else in the New Testament. It
properly denotes tender affection, such as what subsists between parents
and children; and it means that Christians should have similar feelings
toward each other, as belonging to the same family, and as united in the
same principles and interests.
2. Love for the brethren is a badge of discipleship.
3. Not in seeking honor, but in preferring honor for other brethren.
a. Not to see who can receive the most honor, but rather to give honor to
others.
b. To honor means to give a person high value and respect.
1. As Christians, we honor people because:
a. Because they have been created in God's image.
b. Because they are our brothers and sisters in Christ,
c. Because they have a unique contribution to make to Christ's
church
2. In Christianity, others come before self.
B. The meaning appears to be this: Consider all your brethren as more worthy
than yourself; and let neither grief nor envy affect your mind at seeing another
honored and yourself neglected.
C. Instead of contending for superiority, let us be forward to give to others the
pre-eminence. Philippians 2:3 – “Let each esteem others better than
themselves.”
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SERVE ONE ANOTHER. (7)
A. Galatians 5:13 – “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not
use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one
another.”
1. Faith works.
2. Faith helps.
3. Faith serves others.
B. Serving others is a proper manifestation of love.
1. Where there is love there will be servitude.
2. Duty is pleasant.
3. Kindnesses are expected of Christians.
C. It is human nature to want to be:
1. The master rather than the servant.
2. The one being served rather than the one doing the serving.
D. We are His hands to lift others up to help them. Galatians 6:10 – “
E. Jesus was a server of others . . . How can we follow in His steps without being
the same.
BEAR WITH ONE ANOTHER. (8)
A. Colossians 3:12-13 – “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put
on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering;
13 bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a
complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do. “
1. “Forbearing one another” . . . Avoid all occasions of irritating or provoking
each other.
2. “Forgiving one another” If ye receive offence, be instantly ready to forgive
on the first acknowledgment of the fault.
3. “Even as Christ forgave you” Who required no satisfaction, and sought for
nothing in you but the broken, contrite heart, and freely forgave you as
soon as you returned to Him.
4. “If any man have a quarrel against any” - "or complaint." The Greek word
Used here occurs nowhere else in the New Testament.
a. It means, "fault found, blame, censure;" and here denotes occasion of
complaint.
b. The idea is, that if another one has given us just occasion of
complaint, we are to forgive him; that is, we are:
1. To harbor no malice against him;
2. We are to be ready to do him good as if he had not given us
occasion of complaint;
3. We are to be willing to declare that we forgive him when be asks it;
4. We are always afterward to treat him as kindly as if he had not
injured us-as God treats us when he forgives us.
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a. Freely-he did not hesitate or delay when we asked him;
b. Entirely-he pardoned all our offences;
c. Forever-he did it so as to remember our sins no more, and to treat
us ever onward as if we had not sinned. So we should forgive an
offending brother.
B. "Putting on" Christ affects how we treat others.
1. It is only in the outworking of people's relationships with one another that
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience are worked out.
2. The testing ground is when people have grievances . . . against one
another.
a. Paul called for the believers to bear with and forgive one another.
b. "Bear with" means putting up with the "extra grace required" crowd.
This is only possible for those who are clothed with patience.
c. To "forgive" implies continual, mutual forgiveness of the problems,
irritations, and grievances that occur in the congregation.
d. In order to do either one of these actions, a Christian must do both.
e. It takes forbearance to forgive, and forgiveness means putting up with
offensive people.
C. From the human standpoint, there are two alternatives: FORGIVE OR HATE
1. Formerly, when people had a grievance, they could challenge one another
to a duel.
a. That settled it, except when relatives of the loser decided to carry on the
feud, sometimes for generations.
b. Each crime against one side would escalate the motives for revenge.
2. Now with duels illegal, we use courts to "make ourselves whole" when
someone has cheated or slandered us. It is a longer process, less bloody,
more public, and civilized.
3. Jesus offers an even better way: forgive and forget.
a. It's the new way of the gospel: let God worry about the wrongs you've
suffered.
b. Don't quench your life in bitter feuding; live renewed in love and joy.
4. Why did Paul call believers to do this?
a. The church had enough enemies and troubles dealing with the outside
world; they didn't need infighting or energy wasted on grievances or
grudges (either held over from pre-Christian days or arising in the
church) that could be worked out with forbearing and forgiving.
b. The key to forgiving others was for the believers to:
1. To remember how much God had forgiven them, and
2. To realize the presumption in refusing to forgive someone God had
already forgiven.
5. Remembering God's infinite love and forgiveness should help the
Colossian Christians, and us, love and forgive one another.
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SUBMIT TO ONE ANOTHER. (9)
A. Ephesians 5:19-21 – “Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and
spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our
Lord Jesus Christ,
21 submitting to one another in the fear of God. “
B. There is a mutual submission that Christians owe one to another,
condescending to bear one another's burdens: not advancing themselves
above others, nor domineering over one another and giving laws to one
another.
1. Paul was an example of this truly Christian temper, for he became all things
to all men.
2. We must be of a yielding and of a submissive spirit, and ready to all the
duties of the respective places and stations that God has allotted to us in
the world.
C. Submissive roles for Christians:
1. To God
2. To government
3. To elders
4. Wives to husbands
5. Children to parents
6. To one another
D. People often misunderstand the concept of submitting to another person.
1. It does not mean becoming totally passive. Christ -- at whose name "every
knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth" (Philippians
2:10 ) -- submitted his will to the Father, and we honor Christ by following
his example.
2. When we submit to God, we become more willing to obey his command to
submit to others, that is, to subordinate our rights to theirs.
3. In Paul's day, women, children, and slaves were to submit to the head of
the family -- slaves would submit until they were freed, male children until
they grew up, and women and girls their whole lives.
4. Paul emphasized the equality of all believers in Christ (Galatians 3:28), but
he counseled all believers to submit to one another by choice.
5. This kind of mutual submission preserves order and harmony.
E. Submission provides evidence that we have Spirit-controlled relationships,
and it requires the Holy Spirit's guidance and restraint (4:2-3).
1. In the church, the believers should be willing to . . . learn from . . . serve,
give to . . . or be corrected by others in the fellowship.
2. Such submission can allow growth both individually and corporately as the
believers seek to follow Christ.
3. Our motives should be "reverence" (literally, "fear") for Christ.
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4. We should not treat one another rightly just because it is expected or
because we will be well regarded but because one day we must give
account to Christ of how we have lived.
5. The principle of submission is not to be abused.
F. Submission often has unpleasant implications for modern Christians, perhaps
because this principle has been abused in the past and has been used to
justify overbearing and self-serving behavior.
1. But Jesus was willing to submit to the will of his Father and to the agonies
of the cross.
2. "Submission" is not a bad word. How do you respond to the idea of
submitting to others?
G. The question becomes . . . “Are you willing to place the interests and desires
of others ahead of your own in Jesus' name?”
SPUR ONE ANOTHER ON. (10)
A. Hebrews 10:24 – “And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and
good work”
B. Matthew Henry writes: “Christians ought to have a tender consideration and
concern for one another; they should affectionately consider what their several
wants, weaknesses, and temptations are; and they should do this, not to
reproach one another, to provoke one another not to anger, but to love and
good works, calling upon themselves and one another to love God and Christ
more, to love duty and holiness more, to love their brethren in Christ more,
and to do all the good offices of Christian affection both to the bodies and the
souls of each other. A good example given to others is the best and most
effectual provocation to love and good works.”
C We are in this Christian life together.
1. Christians need one another on a daily basis.
2. Don’t try to go at it alone . . . you have brethren who will help you.
3. You need brethren . . . and brethren need you.
4. Spur one another on!
BE HOSPITABLE TO ONE ANOTHER. (11)
A. 1 Peter 4:8-9 – “And above all things have fervent love for one another, for
"love will cover a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without
grumbling.”
B. Have warm ardent love toward one another.
C. 1. Love to another shall so cover or hide a great many imperfections in him,
that you will not notice them.
2. This passage is quoted from Proverbs 10:12: - "Love covers all sins."
a. True love to another makes us kind to his imperfections, charitable
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toward his faults, and often blind even to the existence of faults (not
sins, but faults).
b. We would not see the imperfections of those whom we love; and our
attachment for what we esteem their real excellencies, makes us
insensible to their errors.
D. Here is a noble rule in Christianity.
1. Christians ought to love one another, which implies
a. An affection to their persons.
b. desire of their welfare.
c. And a hearty endeavor to promote it.
2. This mutual affection must not be cold, but fervent, that is, sincere, strong,
and lasting.
E. The words above all indicate that love would help these Christians face
suffering. The mutual love, support, and encouragement would be a great
defense. No Christian is an island . . . no one in Christ is alone . . . Never nor
ever!
F. This does not mean that love ignores, overlooks, or tries to hide sin.
1. Instead, Peter probably was thinking back to his words in 1 Peter 4:1-2 that
the believers should live the rest of their lives according to God's will and
not human desires.
2. As believers, they were "finished with sin."
a. The "covering of sins," then, is the ability that believers have to forgive
one another because Christ has forgiven them.
b. Love works as a shock absorber, cushioning and smoothing out the
bumps and irritations caused by fellow believers.
G. Love can be an antidote.
1. Life needs strong soap to wash away the buildup of hurt and grief. What's
the better soap -- love or hate -- when
a. Your friend forgets a breakfast meeting that you lost sleep to get to?
b. Your teenager has a fender bender, distracted by a song on the radio?
c. Your church passes a budget with expenditures you believe are
frivolous?
d. Your spouse is in a cantankerous mood?
e. The neighbor next door above you likes their music loud?
f. some potbellied loudmouth on the first-base side is talking about your
son's pitching?
Your mom is on the phone again?
Your boyfriend is seen with someone else?
H. As Christians, we should forgive the faults in others' lives because we have
experienced God's gracious forgiveness in our own.
I. Karen Burton Mains wrote: “If our hospitality is to minister, to impart to each
who crosses our threshold something of the presence of Christ -- if it is to
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transcend the human and deal with the supernatural -- there must be an
agony of growth, a learning, a tutoring at the hand the of Holy Spirit.”
J. Being hospitable is different from social entertaining.
1. Entertaining focuses on the host -- the home must be spotless; the food
must be well prepared and abundant; the host must appear relaxed and
good-natured.
2. Hospitality, in contrast, focuses on the guests.
a. Their needs -- whether for a place to stay . . . nourishing food . . . a
listening ear . . . or acceptance . . . are the primary concern.
3. Hospitality can happen in a messy home.
a. It can happen around a dinner table where the main dish is canned
soup.
b. It can even happen while the host and the guest are doing chores
together.
4. Believers should not hesitate to offer hospitality just because they are too
tired . . . too busy . . . or not wealthy enough to entertain.
5. Hospitality is a strong expression of love, which Peter already commanded
the believers to show.
GREET ONE ANOTHER. (12)
A. Romans 16:16 – “Greet one another with a holy kiss. The churches of Christ
greet you.”
B. In those early times the kiss on the cheek, as a token of peace, friendship,
and brotherly love, was frequent among all people; and the Christians used it
in their public assemblies, as well as in their occasional meetings. The "holy
kiss" was a common form of greeting, much like the handshake today.
1. This was at last laid aside, not because it was abused, but because, the
church becoming very numerous, the thing was impossible.
2. In some countries the kiss of friendship is still common; and in such
countries it is scarcely ever abused, nor is it an incentive to evil, because it
is customary and common.
a. Israel
b. Jamaica – Large bushy-bearded brother.
3. Shaking hands is now substituted for it in almost all Christian
congregations.
4. The use of the word "holy" here serves to denote that Paul intended it as
an expression of "Christian" affection; and to guard against all improper
familiarity and scandal.
CONCLUSION:
A. You . . . Me . . . We . . . Us-es
1. All of us . . . Excluding none of us
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2. One another . . . one of another.
3. The Pirate cry . . . “All for one and one for all.”
B. Illustration: William C. Schultz, writing in Bits and Pieces, December 1990 –
“People need people. Laurie was about three when one night she requested
my aid in getting undressed. I was downstairs and she was upstairs, and ...
well. ‘You know how to undress yourself,’ I reminded. ‘Yes,’ she explained,
'but sometimes people need people anyway, even if they do know how to do
things by themselves.”
C. Brethren need the fellowship and assistance of other brethren.
1. Let us love one another.
2. Let us help one another.
3. Let us pray for one another.
4. Let us help one another reach Heaven.
God’s Plan for Man’s Salvation
There is a decision to be made . . . Or you going to go UP to Heaven . . . Or are
you going to go DOWN to Hell? It is YOUR choice . . . YOUR CHOICE!
