TWO ARE BETTER THAN ONE:

Clearing Up A Little Confusion

Victor M. Eskew

 

            In one of last week’s sermons, we discussed “How to Overcome Temptation” in one of the points of the lesson.  The final point was:  We overcome temptation by “Having an Accountability Partner.”  An accountability partner is a caring and trusted friend who is willing to assist you when you are facing times extreme temptation.  This individual can be contacted and will try to help you through the temptation.  Often just a few words of encouragement over a very short period of time will enable you to have victory over the temptation. 

            One of the verses used to show that an accountability partner can be of great benefit was Ecclesiastes 4:9.  The wise Solomon began the verse with these words:  “Two are better than one…”  This is a very general teaching.  It certainly applies to the idea of an accountability partner.  Instead of one person having to overcome temptation all by himself, he now has another upon which to rely who can assist him in his time of need.  Two people, the person being tempted and the accountability partner, are better than one, just the individual who is being tempted.

            Some thought that this verse does not really apply to an accountability partner.  Let’s continue this study by looking at the entire context of Solomon’s discussion.  “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward for their labor.  For if they fall, the one will lift up his fellow:  but woe to him that is alone when he falleth; for he hath not another to help him up.  Again, if two lie together, then they have heat:  but how can one warm alone?  And if one prevail against him, two shall withstand him; and a threefold cord is not quickly broken” (Eccl. 4:9-12).

            After Solomon sets forth is basic principle that “two are better than one,” he gives some illustrations to prove the principle.  First, he says that two have a good reward for their labors.  Most of the time when two people work together, they will be much more productive than just one individual working by himself.  They can share heavy burdens.  One can rest while the other continues to work.  At the end of the day, two will usually produce more than one person can produce.

            Second, Solomon says that if two are together and one falls, the other can help him up.  This is often why we do not want seniors to live by themselves.  There have been many of them who have been by themselves and have fallen only to lay on the floor or in the yard for long periods of time before someone discoveres them.  Had they had someone with them, they could have been helped up and taken quickly to the doctor or emergency room.  Like Solomon said, two are better than one. 

            Third, Solomon tells us that if two lie together, they have heat.  When the temperatures are extremely cold the body heat of one person can raise the body temperature of another person.  When this writer was working with the Children’s Home in Paragould, he often went on hiking trips in the wilderness.  In time, we went from one-man tents to two-man tents for overnight sleeping.  Having two individuals in a tent made for much more warmth on nights when the temperatures fell below the freezing mark.  Two were definitely better than one.

            Fourth, Solomon’s last illustration involved being attacked by an enemy.  If a person has an adversary to come against him, two are better than one.  Solomon says:  “…two shall withstand him.”  Two against one is better than one against one.  In football, this tactic is used often when the line is blocking.  They will double team a tackle or an end in order to provide a hole for one of the backs to slip through. 

            Note, Solomon uses four examples to prove his point that two are better than one.  In the sermon, we simply applied another illustration, having an accountability partner, to Solomon’s principle.  Many recovery programs use this principle.  A person who is seeking to recover from alcohol addiction will have a partner assigned to him.  When the recovering addict is in the throes of temptation, he can call his partner.  That individual will listen, will give advice, will encourage, and may even go to where the person is in order to assist him through the temptation.  Many times accountability partners have been valuable in the recovery process.  Why?  Because two are always better than one, especially if one is being attacked by the adversary known as Satan.  As Solomon said:  “Two shall withstand him.”

            A second passage that was used to promote the concept of having an accountability partner when temptation arises is Proverbs 27:17.  This passage was also written by a very wise sage.  He writes:  “Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.”  The edge of a knife is sharpened by pressing it properly against a whetstone.  The rubbing of the two together makes the knife sharper.  Having good friends can be a blessing to all of us.  They can make us better in numerous ways.  We can run ideas by them.  They can help us solve our problems.  Too, they can encourage us in times of temptation.  If they had not been there, we might have yielded to the temptation, but because they were there we came out on the other side of temptation victorious. 

            Bible principles can have application to many areas of life.  They are broad.  God intended for them to be used broadly.  The concept of two being better than one is very broad.  It can be applied to hundreds of things in our lives.  In the sermon we presented, we simply applied it to one person having an accountability partner in order to overcome temptation.