What general principles does the Bible give us about relationships? - Relationships - TouchPoints

Genesis 2:18Then the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper who is just right for him.”

Psalm 127:4Children born to a young man are like arrows in a warrior’s hands.

Proverbs 17:6, 17Grandchildren are the crowning glory of the aged; parents are the pride of their children. . . . A friend is always loyal, and a brother is born to help in time of need.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble.

Isaiah 43:6-7“I will say to the north and south, ‘Bring my sons and daughters back to Israel from the distant corners of the earth. Bring all who claim me as their God, for I have made them for my glory. It was I who created them.’”

Jeremiah 31:3Long ago the Lord said to Israel: “I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.”

2 Corinthians 6:18“I will be your Father, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Revelation 21:3I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, “Look, God’s home is now among his people! He will live with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them.”

We were created as relational beings. God designed us to relate to him and to others.

Psalm 27:4The one thing I ask of the Lord—the thing I seek most—is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, delighting in the Lord’s perfections and meditating in his Temple.

Mark 12:29-31Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’ The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

Our relationship with God is our most important relationship. But this does not mean we should neglect our other relationships. How we love and serve others is very important to God.

John 16:23-24“At that time you won’t need to ask me for anything. I tell you the truth, you will ask the Father directly, and he will grant your request because you use my name. You haven’t done this before. Ask, using my name, and you will receive, and you will have abundant joy.”

Romans 5:11So now we can rejoice in our wonderful new relationship with God because our Lord Jesus Christ has made us friends of God.

Hebrews 10:19-23So, dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. By his death, Jesus opened a new and life-giving way through the curtain into the Most Holy Place. And since we have a great High Priest who rules over God’s house, let us go right into the presence of God with sincere hearts fully trusting him. For our guilty consciences have been sprinkled with Christ’s blood to make us clean, and our bodies have been washed with pure water. Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.

Our relationship with God is made possible through the death and resurrection of Jesus. When we repent of our sins and trust in him alone for salvation, we begin our eternal relationship with him.

Ephesians 2:21-22We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.

1 John 1:7If we are living in the light, as God is in the light, then we have fellowship with each other, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, cleanses us from all sin.

Our relationships with other believers are made possible through Jesus and his work on our behalf.

Romans 12:9-10Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. . . . Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. . . .Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.

All our relationships should be marked by love.

1 Corinthians 5:9-10When I wrote to you before, I told you not to associate with people who indulge in sexual sin. But I wasn’t talking about unbelievers who indulge in sexual sin, or are greedy, or cheat people, or worship idols. You would have to leave this world to avoid people like that.

2 Corinthians 6:14Don’t team up with those who are unbelievers. How can righteousness be a partner with wickedness? How can light live with darkness?

Our relationships with others should not compromise the principles of our faith.