what does the bible say?
The Bible shows that believers can support each other through prayer, fellowship, and encouragement. Scripture instructs us to pray for one another (James 5:16). The apostle Paul’s prayers for fellow believers are examples of this (Ephesians 1:15–23; Philippians 1:9–11; Colossians 1:9–12). Fellowshipping with new Christians is also crucial, as they may feel the pull of the world, so they need to also feel the support of mature believers. The book of Acts presents examples of the solidarity and support of the early church (Acts 2:42, 46–47). Scripture also teaches that new believers need encouragement (1 Corinthians 12:25–26; Hebrews 3:13; 10:23–25). While we support those new in the faith, we must keep this in mind: Growth occurs by God’s grace, not our efforts (Ephesians 2:8–10; Hebrews 12:2). This is true even of our own growth. Believers do not earn God's love by what we do; rather, we choose what to do—including supporting new Christians—because of God's love for us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8; 1 John 4:10). God has ordained the means (our actions), but the ends are up to Him. Believers, new and old, are on a long journey together. One day at a time, we’re learning to stop believing in the world’s ways and, instead, to discover and love God’s ways (Romans 12:2).