Some relationships are good, and some are bad. By bad relationships, I don’t mean the people we share these relationships with are necessarily bad. But they are a liability in our relationship with God. Sometimes, we try holding onto people that we know are taking away from our Christian journey.
The question is how badly do you want to realize God’s best for your life? Are you willing to shun some of the relationships you have with others to do so?
The Lord said to Abraham, “Leave your country, your people and your father’s household and go to the land I will show you” (Gen. 12:1, NIV). “I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great….” (verse 2).
Leaving family and home can be traumatic. It’s reasonable to assume that doing so was a challenge for Abraham. He had been living among his family for seventy-five years when God called on him to leave. I wonder what would have happened if Abraham had not obeyed God in this area.
One reason Abraham’s family members were a liability to his journey with God is that they served other gods (see Joshua 24:2). Accordingly, some of the practices around the home were centered around these false gods. The divine mandate for Abraham to leave his country and his father’s house is a reflection of how serious a problem this was in the eyes of God.
Abraham obeyed God and followed Him. In turn, Abraham experienced God’s best for his life. Perhaps some of you reading this post need to terminate a bad relationship or some bad relationships in your life. These may involve a colleague, the person you are dating, or even a fellow church member. The question is, are you willing to hold onto bad relationships in your life at the expense of maximizing your experience with God?
Following Abraham’s Example
In case you are wondering whether or not what God said to Abraham under the Old Testament also applies to us under the New Testament, consider these words that Paul the apostle wrote to the church at Corinth:
“Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light with darkness? …Or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?”
2 Corinthians 6:14-15, KJV
On the other hand, nothing I have said in this post should be taken to suggest that Christians are to have nothing to do with unbelievers. On the contrary, unbelievers are the ones we are called to reach for Christ. God wants to use us to win the lost. But we are not to yoke ourselves as one with unbelievers or anyone who negatively impacts our relationship with the Lord.
We can’t become all God wants us to be if we entangle ourselves with those who have no desire for God. Or in relationships that cause us to compromise our Christian convictions. God called on Abraham to come out so He could bless him and make his name great.
Perhaps you have heard the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit time and again telling you to do the same. Don’t allow bad relationships to keep you from experiencing God’s best for you.
Copyright © 2023 by Frank King. All rights reserved.