“No man (or woman) is an island.” You’ve probably heard this common phrase at least once in your life, and it couldn’t be more true. If you are a human, you are a social and relational being. To be human is to be part of Humanity. In fact, Humans are the only known creatures to rely on assistance from or to have others present, like friends and family, when giving birth. This is significant as it illustrates that from the beginning of our existence we engage in some form of social interaction.
From Genesis on, the Bible tells a story of collaboration and partnership between God and Mankind. The way of God, His laws and commands, reflect right relationships at its core. Look no further than the Ten Commandments; half is concerned with right relationship between the individual and God and the other half is focused on right relationship between people. Marriage is often used to describe the way in which Christ views His Church. There is no deeper relationship than marriage, and this is why it’s used to illustrate God’s connection with His people.
As we look at what Scripture has to say about relationships, we will see that God designed each of us to know and be known -as He too desires this.
This fits well with our aim as a missional movement. The motto of Youth With A Mission is “To Know God and Make Him Known.”
Here we should start at the very beginning of the biblical story, Genesis. From the very start of human history, the Bible tells us God makes more than one human:
The text then goes on to tell us why God creates both Adam (Man) and Eve (Woman).
“ Then the Lord God said: ‘It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for (or corresponding to) him” (Genesis 2:18)
I had to ask myself what the text means that Man was alone. I found the following explanation. In verse 18, the Hebrew word for ‘ALONE’ is ‘BAD’ (nothing to do with the English word), which gets most often translated in the rest of Scripture as ‘APART’; often associated with the concept of a branch cut from its trunk or a sheep separated from its flock. Essentially, what God is saying in Genesis 2:18 is that Adam (Man) cannot exist fully without Eve (Woman).
This is an important illustration as it shows that God is relational.
How so?
Scripture tells us that humans are made in the image (or likeness) of their creator. (Gen.1:26). This is foundational to a right understanding of how scripture views both God and Mankind. Being made in the image of the Creator is a massive thing as it gives inherent value to the lives of all people. This also means that we share attributes with our Creator.
The main attribute that I’ll focus on is that of relationship. Christianity has long held that God is Triune (Three Persons in One Being). Our worship and prayers are equally given to Father, Son, and Holy Spirit- three persons; One God. What this means then is that God is inherently relational. I think this is evident also in the love of God. As 1 John 4 tells us, “God is love.” This means that before God ever created us humans, His love needed an opportunity to be expressed. The fact that God is mysteriously tripartite provides this opportunity for love to have an object. How beautiful it is that God’s essence is love. He created us each to experience this perfect love, expressed in our relational design.
– Key Verses About Building Healthy Relationships
– Often summarized as ‘The Golden Rule’ this is one way in which Jesus summarizes the heart of the OT Law. This sentence is a helpful tool in which
we can measure how we are to treat others. As you’ll see more about how we approach relationships (friendship, mentorship, discipleship, romantic, etc.) later on, this one is key, and I believe at the heart of how we at each YWAM base engage with others.
– Philippians 2:3 “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves.”
– Here Paul is imploring believers to make it their goal to serve others well, using the example of Christ who came as a lowly servant for our sake.
– In each YWAM base, we strive to model these two relational goals of treating others how we would want to be treated, as a start, and going above and beyond to serve others well, preferring them over ourselves. We aim to model the kind of service Jesus showed his disciples, as we believe this is key to effective discipleship.
– Short answer is: Not a whole lot.
At least not in the sense that we would define or understand dating in our time and place.
– Consider the culture of those who wrote the Bible.
– The concept of marriage not only joined a man and a woman, but alsojoined together two families. As a partnership in furthering and providing for future generations.
• The NT again is wrapped up in a cultural context of those in the first century. Paul speaks to some forms of romantic relationships, mostly in the sense of cautioning and correcting. He spends a lot of time addressing inappropriate sexual relations within his churches. He speaks to the idea of dating/ courting in an instructive way in 1 Corinthians 7. Here he suggests those in such relationships not to delay marriage if they find themselves unable to control their sexual desires- seeing it best to get married (assuming they have made that plan in engagement) and keep a healthy sexual ethic versus acting on their desires outside of God’s design for human sexuality.
– Being Relationship-Oriented
– “YWAM is dedicated to being relationship-oriented in our living and working together. We desire to be united through lives of holiness, mutual support, transparency, humility, and open communication,
rather than a dependence on structures or rules. (Lev 19:18; Psa 133:1-3; Pro 17:17; Pro 27:10; Joh 13:34-35; Joh 15:13-17; Joh 17:20-23; Rom 13:8-10; 1Jo 1:7; 1Jo 4:7-12)”
– Christlike Friendships
– Discipleship Based on Authenticity
If any of this has been helpful or you want to learn more about all forms of relationships from a Biblical perspective, consider applying for one of our upcoming Discipleship Training Schools. You can visit ywam.org and discover YWAM DTS USA locations and YWAM DTS locations across the globe! There’s helpful information like YWAM DTS costs, tips for picking the best YWAM DTS locations for you, specific areas of study based on your interests, and more about us as a global missions movement. If you are interested in exploring a DTS, YWAM Asheville is a great location for those in the US and from outside. We are nestled in the heart of the Blue Ridge Mountains and have a specific calling to reach Travelers (see our website for more info on who they are), those who are impacted by human trafficking. Likewise, if you enjoy expressing yourself artistically, the creative and eclectic culture of Asheville might be right for you.