THE IMPORTANCE OF GOOD FRIENDS PROVERBS 13:20


“Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” By Rev. Jon Oliphant


ended up leaving a sinful lifestyle behind. This idea of the importance of good friends is exactly what Proverbs 13:20 addresses. Remember, Proverbs is an entire book of short sayings that are intended to give wisdom to those who need


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it. While young people especially need wisdom, none of us come to a point where we no longer need to grow in wisdom. The people with whom we surround ourselves will impact how we think, what we say, and how we act. This proverb really is two: the wisdom of walking with the wise and the harm of walking with the fools.


Let’s think about the latter statement first. Solomon declares that the companion of fools with suffer harm. If we have foolish people around us, we are prone to act think and like them. Well what makes someone foolish? Solomon has already addressed this in a detail in Proverbs 9:13-18 that


we looked at last week. Moreover, as Psalm 14:1 says, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God.’” Ultimately, the foolish person is the one who denies God’s existence or lives his life as if God doesn’t exist. Most people in the South believe in some kind of God. However, many


deny His existence by they way they live. In fact, some of these folks are members of churches and seem to be good people. Yet they do not live as if Jesus is king. Are there any foolish people that you have around you? Maybe it’s a


friend from high school that you know is not a good influence, but you somehow can’t leave them alone. Perhaps it’s the people you follow on social media. I’m not saying we cannot be around unbelievers. No, we should be so that we can share the hope of Christ with them. At the same time, we need to be careful that those people aren’t bringing us down and leading us away from God and influencing the way we live. On the contrary, the person who walks with the wise becomes wise.


True wisdom begins with the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 1:7). Therefore, if we surround ourselves with godly people, more than likely the Lord will grow us to be more godly. This means we need godly people our age and older who can help us grow. Proverbs 27:17 says, “Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” When we have wise and godly friends, we will become more wise and more godly. So with whom do you spend the majority of your time? Are you around


wise people who are making you wiser, or foolish ones who are bringing you harm? Perhaps there is someone you need to cut out of your life or unfollow on social media. Maybe you need to find someone who is wiser than you and spend time with him/ her. Whatever it takes, I pray you take this proverb to heart. Prayer - “Almighty God, I confess that I am not always a wise person and I do not always surround myself


with wise and godly people. Help me see if there is anyone in my life who is negatively influencing my faith. And help me have godly friends you will spur me on to love and good deeds. In Jesus’ name. Amen.”?


Rev. Jon Oliphant is the Associate Pastor at First ARP Church in Rock Hill, SC. You can receive daily devotionals from First ARP Rock Hill here https://firstarp.org/home.


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hether we like to admit it or not, the people we surround ourselves with have an impact on us. We can probably all think of someone we know who got caught up with the wrong crowd and ended up making horrible decisions. On the flip side, there are those who found positive influences and


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