2 Samuel 13:3
“But Amnon had a friend, whose name was Jonadab, the son of Shimeah David’s brother: and Jonadab was a very subtil man.”
The story of Amnon is a very tragic story. Here was a young man who was the king’s son; who had everything going for him that a young person could have. He certainly didn’t lack when it came to positive influences, for David, his father, was called a man after God’s own heart. There is no doubt in my mind that Amnon regularly went to the house of God. He most likely had the best educators to help him get a good education. He most likely had the best clothing and food a young person could have. He even lived on the best side of town. Yet, with everything he had, he ruined his life.
What was it that caused Amnon to go the wrong way? Two words in the verse above show us what destroyed Amnon, and those two words are, “a friend.” It was not the group of friends he had, but it was the one friend he had. It wasn’t that he had many bad friends, but it was that he had one friend who was a bad influence. Most likely, most of Amnon’s friends were good people, but it was the one bad influence in his life that caused him to make a tragic decision that eventually cost him his life.
A while back I talked to a parent whose child had gone wayward, and they told me the tragic story of their child. Their child grew up in church. They had some of the best youth activities a young person could have. This young person heard some of the greatest preachers of his time. Yet, the parents lamented that they allowed one person in their child’s life. They told me that on the whole their child had good friends, but they allowed one person in their child’s life who influenced them for wrong. Today, that child is completely out of church and living a worldly life. It was the one bad influence in that child’s life that destroyed them.
You must never underestimate the influence of one person. You may think that the majority of your friends are good people, and they may be, but if you have one bad influence, then you are highly likely to make one bad decision. Many preachers have gone astray because of one bad friend. Many adults have ruined their life because of one bad friend. Many marriages have been destroyed because of one bad friend. The illustrations and stories could go on and on to tell how people who had so much potential ruined their lives because of one bad friend.
As a Christian, you need to look at your realm of friends. If all of your friends are good Christians but one, then the one needs to be taken out of your realm of friends. It is not the many good friends with whom you should be concerned, it is the one bad friend who will destroy you. You are only as strong as your weakest friend.
Furthermore, every parent should look at the realm of friends their children have. If they find in that realm of friends one bad person, then they need to tell their child not to spend time with that person. Your child may not like you telling them that, and they may fight against you for a while, but in the long run you will be thankful that you pulled them away from the one bad influence.
Friend, it doesn’t matter how many good influences or friends you have in your life, what matters is if you have one bad influence or friend. The one bad influence or friend is influencing you, and they are not influencing you for good. I encourage you today to look at your realm of friends and influences to see if you have one bad friend or influence in your life. If you do, then remove them so your story will not end like Amnon’s, for it will if you don’t remove that bad friend or influence.