"Ye are
my friends,
if ye do whatsoever I command you."
John
15:14
Our Friend, Jesus
Real loyal friends are
few ~ while keeping friends is
difficult. How truly blessed
is the one who has true
friends! We should value God's
gift of "good friends." Good
friends reduce our sorrows and
multiply the joy we share.
"And the Lord spake unto Moses
face to face, as a man
speaketh unto his friend. And
he turned again into the camp:
but his servant Joshua, the
son of Nun, a young man,
departed not out of the
tabernacle."
Exodus 33:11
God Himself was the best
friend Moses ever had. God
spake with him "face to face."
He chose Moses to represent
Him before Israel; He supplied
him with courage to work a
monumental task! Above all,
God loved and forgave Moses'
sins! ~ Joshua must have been
a great comfort to Moses too.
He was a kindred soul with
whom Moses could share the
privileged moments of
communion with God.
Everyone ready now? I'm going
to let YOU do a little Bible
Search ~ (please note, I'm not
slacking off here, it's just
toooo much to type)! Turn in
your Bible to 1Samuel. Read
chapters 18 through 23 (this
can be your scripture reading
for today!).
Now, consider Jonathan and
David: The world celebrates
theirs as the ultimate
friendship. They show that a
friend is committed in words
and actions (18:4). A best
friend is loyal, putting
everything on the
line to speak on his friend's
behalf (19:1-5). Jonathan was
a faithful friend (23:17), and
he loved David as himself
(18:3). Touching, don't you
agree?
"Greater love hath no man than
this, that a man lay down his
life for his friends." John
15:13
Now, this is the most loving
passage in the Bible! What
greater love for friends could
possibly top this? God
revealed His GREAT love to us
in giving HIS SON, JESUS, who
in love for us, endured utter
friendlessness on the cross at
Calvary, so that we might
enjoy God's peace and
friendship ETERNALLY!
Now, let's look at the type of
friendship the Lord wants us
to avoid:
"Make no friendship with an
angry man; and with a furious
man thou shalt not go."
Proverbs 22:24; "An angry man
stirreth up strife, and a
furious man abundeth in
transgression." Proverbs
29:22; "As coals are to
burning coals, and wood to
fire; so is a contentious man
to kindle strife." Proverbs
26:21; "A wrathful man
stirreth up strife:
but he that is slow to
anger appeaseth strife."
Proverbs 15:18;
"Ye adulterers and
adulteresses, know ye not that
the friendship of the world is
enmity with God?
whosoever therefore
will be a friend of the world
is the enemy of God." James
4:4
Faithful, loyal, committed,
loving ~ this is the kind of
friend Jesus desires and
deserves: Friends who are
faithful and true; He delights
in friends who are loyal to
Him and speak up for Him; He
wants friends
who are committed in more than
words; He wants friends who
love Him even as they love
themselves. What kind of
friend are you to Jesus?
"WHAT A FRIEND WE HAVE
IN JESUS!"
"Lord Dictated
Them"
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