There is an old saying, “Be careful who you trust, the devil was once an angel.” This saying comes from the interpretation by some scholars that Satan was once an angel or cherub in the Garden of Eden-Ezekiel 28:1-19. Although this is an interesting subject, I’d like to focus on the meaning of the saying rather than the theology of that passage. This saying carries a heavy weight with it. If an angel would betray God, how much more likely is it that an earthly “friend” would betray you?
After spending the weekend with about 50 teens for a Winter Retreat, I noticed how they tend to flock toward one person. If the “chosen leader” is disrespectful, the “followers” tend to be as well. If the “chosen leader” is a servant, the “followers” tend to become helpers as well. This brings one to realize that it is very important in identifying which friends we can trust to do what’s right in our group.
The common thinking of the young society is that there are born followers and born leaders. The popular, edgy, sexy and “undisciplined” must be natural born leaders and therefore you should trust their leadership. The unpopular, quiet, meek, unattractive and “disciplined” are supposed to be followers. They have no value. This simply isn’t true and it’s a dangerous model for the future Church.
Christians are part of one body and the leader/head is Christ and His Word. In Matthew 20:25-28, Jesus states that whoever wants to be great must become a servant of others. Proverbs 27:17 says that iron sharpens iron, meaning a friend should focus on strengthening those around, not just themselves. Again, in Proverbs 27:6 we see that a trustworthy friend will hold those around to a moral standard and an enemy lets one believe that they are doing nothing wrong.
As our teens grow into the next leaders of God’s Church, we must teach them how to be friends to one another. Out of friendships, the future Body will select its trustworthy preachers and teachers. We as the Body now must teach them to trust Jesus and His leadership. In turn, our teens will become servants to one another and those they come in contact with. They will be able to trust that their youth group is one body lead by Christ. The most important things God gave us on this earth (other than the Bible) are friends that hold the same values in Christ that we do. When we hold those same values, we become brothers and sisters; a bond that is not easily broken. When we trust friends who do not hold themselves and others to Christ’s standards, those “friends” betray us and themselves. So, I ask you and our teens, “Who do you trust?”