I’ve often heard, in either sermons, Bible studies, or devotionals, how Jesus used only twelve people to help him change the world. This is said in order to emphasize the power of the Holy Spirit working through these men. But sometimes it seems that these twelve are seen as the most important people in Jesus’ life. This tends to give the impression that while Jesus was living on earth, He formed His own clique. Did Jesus’ small group of disciples give today’s Christians the idea that cliques were acceptable?
A simple definition of a clique, according to Merriam-Webster, is “a small group of people who spend time together and who are not friendly to other people.” People involved in a clique are only concerned for the other people within the group, and do not take the time to reach outside of their friend group. This was not Jesus Christ. In fact, He did exactly the opposite of what a clique would do. He showed mercy, grace, and compassion to everyone that he came into contact with. This was not just a privilege for the twelve disciples only; it was something for everyone to experience. But still, we cannot ignore the fact that Jesus spent a very large amount of time with his twelve disciples.
It is completely impossible to know every person in the world. There are always going to be people closer to us that others. That is how we were created to interact with people. Our closest friend group is meant to encourage us, love us, and invest in us. They help us to recharge when we are overwhelmed, and help point us back to God when we feel lost. Jesus set this example for us with the twelve disciples. Jesus invested in them, and they invested in Him. However, the relationship between Jesus and His disciples wasn’t exclusive. They went out together as a team to meet and invest in new people. They were friendly to other people, and saw the worth in them. This is an example that we need to follow.
It is so important to find friends that you share common interests and values with. God created your friend group specifically to compliment one another. We were not created to be islands. We were created to be in community with one another. God created Eve in order for Adam to have a helper and a community. God created you and your friends to help one another and be your own little community. However, God did not intend for those communities to be exclusive. I think this is something that a lot of Christians get very wrong. When we only stay within our friend group, we are deliberately disobeying the Great Commission that Jesus gave to us. We are sinning. Cliques go against the word of God because we are taught this in Romans 12:16: “Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight” (ESV). When we only stay in our groups, we say to others that we are better than them, that they are not worth our attention. The Bible teaches us that everyone is worth our attention. So I challenge you to not be afraid to associate with people outside of your friend group. You’ll be surprised at how much of a blessing that will be.
