They say that “absence makes the heart grow fonder”. This saying describes the human feeling of greater affection between true friends or lovers who are apart for a period of time. It is a phrase that, in on one form or another, can be traced back for thousands of years to poets of the Roman empire. It may be called a proverb but not in the Bible sense of the word because it is of human origin and not always true. The inspired Proverbs in the Holy Bible are always true.
The reason I said it was a human proverb and not always true in the Bible sense is this: Separation or absence only makes the heart grow fonder if that fondness is true friendship or true love. I would venture to say that most “crushes” or infatuations of people when they are very young are forgotten over the years.
I hope that we would not allow the “Present Distress” that I mentioned in my last Pastor’s Pen and the isolation that has been imposed on us because of the corona virus to dampen our love for our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ, or lessen our desire for the fellowship of the family of God. We have publicly used Heb 10:25, “Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, “ as a reason to keep our churches open for worship. Therefore, we had best not allow the continued social distancing to alienate us from the blessed fellowship of our Christian brothers and sisters. In fact, that is the literal contest of the passage. Obviously, the Lord knew that this would be a problem otherwise He wouldn’t have inspired Paul to write this to us.
The apostle Peter gives a list of things that we are to add to our faith in 2 Peter chapter 1 and then states in verse 8-10 For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins. Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:
Jesus Christ warned in Matthew 24:1 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. Don’t let social distancing squash your love for the Saviour or the Saints!
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