"Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals.'" (1 Corinthians 15:33)
Humans are social beings. We live in and thrive in relationship with one another. Simply put, whether you're an introvert who prefers to be left by yourself or an extrovert who loves to be around people, we all interact with others in different ways and in different levels. And by different levels, I mean to say different levels of closeness, openness, community, and intimacy.
Open doors
This Idea brings me to what I want to share to you, dear reader. While we can befriend pretty much anybody and be open to them, not all people are good friends. In fact, we should all learn to choose who to befriend. 1 Corinthians 15:33 tells us,
"Do not be deceived: 'Bad company corrupts good morals.'"
The truth of the matter is that the kinds of friends we have in our lives greatly affect us. And so we must choose our friends wisely.
Being friends with someone is like opening your home's main door widely to another person. That person is welcome and can come in to your home; that person sees your life and how you live; and that person probably knows more things about you than others do.
Friend, think about what I just said. Would you want a gossiper or slanderer to know your secrets? Would you want a bad influence turn that beautiful home into a heap of trash? I'm pretty sure you don't.
Careful to trust
The Lord Jesus Himself didn't trust some people who even looked like they really love Him despite the fact that He was and is loving and welcoming to all. Read this:
"Because of the miraculous signs Jesus did in Jerusalem at the Passover celebration, many began to trust in Him. But Jesus didn't trust them, because He knew all about people. No one needed to tell Him about human nature, for He knew what was in each person's heart." (John 2:23-25 NLT)
Read that again. We see in that passage that Jesus quickly became famous among people, and the crowds wanted to be with Him. It seemed like He was getting a large following, but we read that His response was not to trust them (or entrust Himself to them, according to the NKJV).
Why? It's because the people simply wanted Him for what He can do for them. They wanted the miracles, not the Miracle-Maker.
Careful in choosing friends
Dear reader, I wrote this article to help you become wise in making friends. You don't have to befriend everybody, and it's not a sin not to befriend some people you just can't trust. We need to be careful who to allow into our lives, for whoever our friends are, they will surely influence us one way or another — by benefiting from us, or by influencing our thoughts and behaviors.
