24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
12 See to it, brothers, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. 13 But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin's deceitfulness.
17 As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.
2 We sent Timothy, who is our brother and God's fellow worker in spreading the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith, 3 so that no one would be unsettled by these trials. You know quite well that we were destined for them.
11 Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.
19 I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you soon, that I also may be cheered when I receive news about you. 20 I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. 21 For everyone looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ. 22 But you know that Timothy has proved himself, because as a son with his father he has served with me in the work of the gospel. 23 I hope, therefore, to send him as soon as I see how things go with me. 24 And I am confident in the Lord that I myself will come soon. 25 But I think it is necessary to send back to you Epaphroditus, my brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier, who is also your messenger, whom you sent to take care of my needs. 26 For he longs for all of you and is distressed because you heard he was ill. 27 Indeed he was ill, and almost died. But God had mercy on him, and not on him only but also on me, to spare me sorrow upon sorrow. 28 Therefore I am all the more eager to send him, so that when you see him again you may be glad and I may have less anxiety. 29 Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him, 30 because he almost died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for the help you could not give me.
20 He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a companion of fools suffers harm.
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.
24 A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.
6 Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.
10 Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father.
14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.
“When sin penetrated the hearts of Adam and Eve, they not only became alienated from God, but they also became alienated from each other. When Jesus died on the Cross, He made it possible for all who believe in Him to be in fellowship with God—and also in godly fellowship with one another. Godly friendships are the evidence of our belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ. But godly friendships are not found; they are made. They are built up stone by stone. They are established on biblical principles.” Michael Youssef
“The main business of friendship is to sustain and make bearable each other’s burdens.” Eugene Kennedy
“God employs His people to encourage one another. We should delight that God usually works for human beings with other human beings. It forms a bond of friendship, and being mutually dependent on one another, we are fused more completely into one family. Work to help others, and especially strive to encourage them. Talk cheerily to the young and anxious inquirer, lovingly try to remove obstacles out of his way. When you find a spark of grace in the heart, kneel down and blow it into a flame. Leave the young believer to discover the roughness of the road by degrees, but tell him of the strength which dwells in God, of the sureness of the promise, and of the charms of communion with Christ. Aim to comfort the sorrowful, and to animate the hopeless. Speak a word in season to him who is weary, and encourage those who are fearful to go on their way with gladness. God encourages you by His promises; Christ encourages you as He points to the heaven He has won for you, and the Spirit encourages you as He works in you to will and to do of His own will and pleasure. Imitate divine wisdom, and encourage others according to the Word.” Charles H. Spurgeon
“We are the occupant of His time, the focus of His planning, and the recipient of His companionship.” Michael Youssef
“What can be deeper than His Presence and constant care? In a world in which multitudes feel isolated and alienated, we have the permanent companionship of the most loving and powerful Being in the universe. Nothing could be more important and life shaping than that. Whatever difficulty we go through, He nevertheless holds us by the hand.” Chris Tiegreen
“Be occupied with acquainting yourself with My character and My person. Revel in My fellowship. Your very association with Me, if sufficiently consistent, will bring about changes in your personality that will surprise you when discovered, just as you have so often experienced the joy of finding a new bloom on a cherished plant. Turn your face toward Me, and leave to Me the responsibility of probing your soul. I am the Master Surgeon. I am skilled in all the cures of the soul as well as those of the body. Let Me care for your health. Delight yourself in Me, and I will bring about what you desire to see in your character and personality. Feed upon My Word. It is there you will come to a clearer understanding of my Person. Only as you know Me can you come to be more like Me. In association with others, people take to themselves a measure of the mannerisms and ideologies of these other persons. So will it be for those who spend much time in My company. Silently, and without conscious effort, you will be changed.” Frances J. Roberts
“Biblical love is neither a secondhand emotion nor a sweet, old-fashioned notion. Love is actually a battlefield designed to reshape us into the likeness of the one who first loved us when we were not friends with him, but enemies...We love, not in the sentimental sense, but in the gutsy, costly sense, because He first loved us. We do not have the resources in ourselves to extend such selfless love. We are resourced by another, by Jesus Himself.” Scott Sauls
“The enjoyment of God is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of earthly friends, are but shadows, but God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams. But God is the ocean.” Jonathan Edwards
“They do not go wrong who go in the company of God. Like Enoch, walk with God, and you cannot mistake your road. You have infallible wisdom to direct you, immutable love to comfort you, and eternal power to defend you. ‘The LORD’ – note the word – ‘The LORD will guide you always.” Charles H. Spurgeon
“Emerson once wrote, ‘One of the blessings of old friends is that you can afford to be stupid with them.’ With Jesus, we can afford to be stupid with Him because He has taken our shame away by moving our judgment day from the future to the past. His death, burial, and resurrection have established us as His beloved bride, as those whom He is not ashamed to call his sisters and brothers. We are and forever will be the cherished and kept daughters and sons of his Father, who is also our Father. We are not a consumer good to Jesus; therefore we are not consumed. We are his forever family—fully known and fully loved, completely exposed and never rejected. We can befriend others — because this Jesus is our Friend.” Scott Sauls