Ecclesiastes 4:1 states a very simple truth: “Two are better than one…”
It’s not a new truth; in fact, it’s one of the first things we hear from the Lord in the Bible:
“It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” (Gen. 2:18)
As human beings, we were not meant to live in isolation; we are meant for each other. That “each other” includes all kinds of relationships: marriages, church groups, and just basic friendships included. In all these cases, two are better than one.
While that seems obvious, it’s a truth that needs to be re-embraced today. After all, we live in a culture that has never been more connected and yet never more isolated. We might have hundreds or thousands of virtual connections without any of those connections ever moving into a genuine, deep relationship. Now, more than ever, we need to deeply believe and live out this reality of relationship.
Here, Then, Are 3 Reasons Why 2 Are Better Than 1:
1. Because We Have Different Gifts.
Ecclesiastes 4 continues like this:
Two are better than one,
because they have a good return for their labor…
This is, of course true in most any general sense: two people working at the same time are most often going to produce more and better things than just one. But in the church, this truth takes on another meaning.
We are all gifted differently, and each of those gifts plays a part in serving the church. I can’t do everything, and neither can you; and we shouldn’t try. It’s only when each person understands their own gifts and is willing to give those gifts to the service of the church that the entire body of Christ grows together.
2. Because We Can Help Each Other Grow.
More from Ecclesiastes 4:
If either of them falls down,
one can help the other up.
But pity anyone who falls
and has no one to help them up.
(Ecc. 4:10)
This next section certainly tells us about how people help each other in practical ways, but again in the context of the church, these verses help us see how we can specifically help each other. Surely growing in Christ seems very much like these verses; we walk with Jesus, we trip and stumble, and then we get up and have to keep going in obedience. It’s this process of walking, tripping, and then continuing on that we engage in as we try and follow Jesus.