A) CHRISTIANS AND THEIR ASSOCIATES.

B) BIBLE VERSES THAT TEACH WHO NOT TO ASSOCIATE WITH.

C) BY CONTRAST.

 

 

A) CHRISTIANS AND THEIR ASSOCIATES

 

 

We have people come to our Churches in this, our day, who are our friends and associates, whom we establish a relationship with, yet they refuse to quit smoking (as one of many examples we could use), or who will not quit some other kind of habit that does not embrace the belief system that we are aspiring to achieve to.  Yet Paul and others (our Lord) are telling us these instructions, such as in First Corinthians 5:11:  “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.”  The hope is, that when they see how our Lord (we) stands firm on what He has instructed us to do and be, that we will not continue to associate with those who will not conform to His Will (and this is hard to do, they are our friends).  That hope is to bring about this action.  That they will truly see the error of their ways and “turn from their sin, when Thou [we] afflictest them,” First Kings 8:35.  See also Second Chronicles 6:26; Ezekiel 18:21; 33:11 & 19; Daniel 9:13.

 

As with Paul, we are to plead with these brothers and sisters so that we can continue to associate with them.  Else we will have to resort to the action in First Corinthians 5:11.  However, the idea is to bring them to a sense of the true loss of what they are giving up.  Listen to Peter pleading with his brethren in Acts 14:15:  “And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things?  We also are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living God, which made Heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein.”  And then listen to his conclusion of the whole matter should they not heed our Lord’s instructions as found in Second Peter 2:21:  “For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the Holy Commandment delivered unto them.”

 

“But while the servant of Christ should seek with all patience and love to save sinners, he should on no account give license to sin.  He must not allow his perceptions to be dulled by contact with iniquity, or his judgment to be perverted by the world’s opinion.  By excusing and palliating sin, we lose a sense of its heinous character.  Compassion for the erring should not degenerate into indulgence for transgression.  In order to preserve the safe mean, the Christian must add to patience godliness.  Then he will see as God sees.”  RH, December 20, 1881 paragraph 19.

 

“It would be more pleasing to the Lord if lukewarm professors of religion had never named His Name.  They are a continual weight to those who would be faithful followers of Jesus.  They are a stumbling-block to unbelievers, and evil angels exult over them, and taunt the angels of God with their crooked course.  Such are a curse to the cause at home or abroad.  They draw nigh to God with their lips, while their heart is far from Him.”  4bSG:35.

 

 

B) BIBLE VERSES THAT TEACH WHO NOT TO ASSOCIATE WITH

 

 

When Choosing Not To Associate With People, Let Us Use These Verses As Our Instructions:

 

Exodus 23:32:  “Thou shalt make no covenant with them. . .”

 

Exodus 34:12:  “Take heed to thyself, lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land whither thou goest, lest it be for a snare in the midst of thee.”

 

Leviticus 7:21:  “Moreover the soul that shall touch any unclean thing, as the uncleanness of man, or any uncleanbeast, or any abominable unclean thing, and eat of the flesh of the sacrifice of peace offerings, which pertain unto the LORD, even that soul shall be cut off from his people.”

 

Deuteronomy 13:6-10:  “(6) If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, thou, nor thy fathers; (7) Namely, of the gods of the people which are round about you, nigh unto thee, or far off from thee, from the one end of the earth even unto the other end of the earth; (8) Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: (9)But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. (10) And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die; because he hath sought to thrust thee away from the LORD thy God, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage.”

 

Deuteronomy 7:2-4:  “(2) . . . thou shalt make no covenant with them. . . (4) For they will turn away thy son from following Me.”

 

Second Chronicles 19:2:  “Shouldest thou help the ungodly, and love them that hate the Lord?”

 

Ezra 4:2-3:  “(2) Let us build with you. . . (3) Ye have nothing to do with us.”

 

Ezra 9:1:  “The people of Israel, and the priests, and the Levites, have not separated themselves from the people of the lands [meaning they should have].”

 

Ezra 10:11:  “. . . separate yourselves from the people of the land.”

 

Psalm 1:1:  “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful.”

 

Psalm 25:4-5:  “(4) I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. (5) I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked.”

 

Proverbs 1:15:  “My son, walk not thou in the way with them; refrain thy foot from their path:”

 

Psalm 26:4-5:  “(4) I have not sat with vain persons, neither will I go in with dissemblers. (5) I have hated the congregation of evil doers; and will not sit with the wicked.”

 

Psalm 101:4-5:  “(4) A froward heart shall depart from me:  I will not know a wicked person. (5) Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off:  him that hath an high look and a proud heart will not I suffer.”

 

Psalm 101:7:  “He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house:  he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight.”

 

Proverbs 22:24:  “Make no friendship with an angry man; and with a furious man thou shalt not go.”

 

Amos 5:15:  “Hate the evil, and love the good.”

 

Jonah 1:12:  “And he said unto them, Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea; so shall the sea be calm unto you: for I know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you.”  {Note:  Sometimes we need to separate from people for their own good}.

 

Matthew 7:6:  “Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn again and rend you.”

 

Matthew 10:14; Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5; 10:10-11; Acts 13:51:  “. . . whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear you. . . shake off the dust of your feet.”

 

John 17:9:  “I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given Me.”

 

Romans 16:17:  “Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.”

        

First Corinthians 5:2 & 7 & 9 & 11-13:  “(2) . . .that he that hath done this deed might be taken away from among you. (7) Purge out therefore the old leaven [remove this man from the Church] (9) I wrote unto you in an Epistle not to company with fornicators: (11) But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat. (12) For what have I to do to judge them also that are without? do not ye judge them that are within? (13) But them that are without God judgeth.  Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person.”

 

First Corinthians 10:20-21:  “(20) But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God:  and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.  Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils:  ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.”

 

Second Corinthians 6:14-17:  “(14) Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers:  for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?  And what communion hath light with darkness? (15) And what concord hath Christ with Belial? . . . (17) come out from among them, and be ye separate.”

 

Ephesians 5:6-7:  “(6) Let no man deceive you with vain words:  for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience. (7) Be not ye therefore partakers with them.”

 

Ephesians 5:11:  “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.”

 

Second Thessalonians 3:6:  “Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.”

 

Second Thessalonians 3:14:  “And if any man obey not our word by this epistle, note that man, and have no company with him, that he may be ashamed.”

 

First Timothy 6:3-5:  “(3) If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness. . . (5) from such withdraw thyself.”

 

Second Timothy 3:5:  “Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof:  from such turn away.”

 

Titus 3:9-10:  “(9) But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain. (10) A man that is an heretick after the first and second admonition reject.”

 

Hebrews 7:26:  “For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens.”

 

Second John 1:10:  “If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house.”

 

Revelation 2:2:  “how thou canst not bear them which are evil.”

 

Revelation 2:14:  “But I have a few things against thee, because thou hast there [have with you] them that hold the doctrine of Balaam.”

 

Revelation 2:20:  “Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest [let into your midst] that woman Jezebel.”

 

Revelation 18:4:  “Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins.

 

 

C) BY CONTRAST

 

 

By contrast, the only ones we should be associating with are:

 

“I am a companion of all them that fear Thee, and of them that keep Thy Precepts.”  Psalm 119:63.

 

This is a start; I’m sure you can fill in more.