Friends – Part 2

 

John 15:14-16 “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. 15 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.”

Pastor Obie continued his Sunday sermon message on godly friendships by highlighting the second of Jesus’ models of friendship in “knowing and being known”. John 2:24-25 tells us that “Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.” Jesus knows His disciples (students/followers/friends). The Hebrew word for friend is “soad”, which translates to “those who know”. But, this involve investing time with friends.

1 Corinthians 15:33 “Do not be deceived: Evil company corrupts good habits.”

Yet, choose who you spend time with careful because, good or bad, you become like those are associate with on a regular basis. Proverbs 13:20 tells us, “He who walks [as a companion] with wise men will be wise, but the companions of [conceited, dull-witted] fools [are fools themselves and] will experience harm.” Some people have bad friends that they keep bringing back into their lives. Psalm 1:1-2 states, “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor stands in the path of sinners, nor sits in the seat of the scornful; But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night.” Investing quality and quantity time in friends means being there when needed, having their back and being a faithful confidant. Philippians 2:4 affirms, “Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.”

Proverbs 17:17 “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.”

The Lord modeled that vulnerability is the pathway to intimacy. The key to friendship is to be authentic and real. Intimate relationships are rare and priceless in this superficial world. In our relationships with friends and the church body, 1 Corinthians 12:26 rings true that “if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it.” Do not tell everything to everybody, but do have someone in your life that you can confidently tell anything to. Proverbs 11:13 “A talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.” We are fully known and fully loved by God. Jesus modeled friendship for us and there is no true intimacy without vulnerability. We would be lucky and blessed if we could have five true close friends in our life. They require dedication, devotion and a heart’s desire for loving intimacy and caring discretion. Isn’t that what we are all looking for anyway?

Let’s conclude Pastor Obie message on godly friendship in the next post.

In Christ, Brian