This year's monthly blog will explore an important New Testament word that holds great significance for a healthy church (body of believers). It is the word translated as “one another.”
Overall, there are thirty-three distinct ways in which members of the body of Christ are accountable for each other's spiritual well-being.
When exploring the words "one another" in the New Testament, two significant truths are revealed.
Firstly, "loving one another" is the most frequently mentioned "one another" phrase. It appears thirteen times in the New Testament, which is three times more than the next most cited phrase, "Greet one another," which is mentioned four times in the New Testament.
Second, "loving one another" encompasses the other thirty-two "one anothers." In essence, they represent different facets of loving one another. Galatians 6:2 illustrates this point: "Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ [NASB]."
The law of Christ is described in John 13:34, where Jesus instructs His disciples, “I give you a new commandment [law]: love one another as I have loved you, so you also love one another.”
Throughout every era of human history, the concept of loving others has been a constant. From the dawn of time, God has instructed every person to love one another (1 John 3:11). Cain broke this commandment by killing his brother, Abel (1 John 3:11). The essence of the Mosaic Law is summarized as “Love God…and love your neighbor as yourself [emphasis mine, NASB].”
Although the principle of loving another person is timeless, its application has varied slightly across different historical periods. The criteria for whom to love and how to love—the standard of love—have changed over time. For instance, the Mosaic Law includes “loving one’s neighbor as oneself,” while the law of Christ for the New Testament church era is “loving one another as I have loved you.”
Members of the body of Christ are called to love all people, but Christ emphasized the importance of believers loving each other and loving as He loved the disciples (John 13:34). Christ serves as the ultimate standard and example of loving one another. Believers learn to love each other by studying how Christ loved the disciples.
In conclusion, the phrase “one another” in the New Testament holds great importance for the well-being and vitality of a local congregation (church). The most crucial and paramount of all the “one anothers” is love. Christ not only commanded it, but He also exemplified it.
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