A
FRIEND IN JESUS
Memorise:
Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. John 15:14
A friend is someone who you share your heart with and
who you can trust. A friend is also a person you like a lot. There are
different categories of friends. There is a friend in need who is a friend
indeed. This is a friend who helps you when you really need help. Ideally,
friendship is reciprocal and the Bible enjoins those who have friends to
reciprocate with a friendly attitude. Proverbs 18:24 says:
“A man that hath friends must
shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a
brother.”
Jonathan was a friend indeed to David. He could
perceive that David would succeed his father – Saul as king. Although this was
a threat to his own personal ambition of becoming the king of Israel,
nevertheless he loved David as his own soul. Are you a friend indeed? There are
many so called friends who will always scheme to frustrate and destroy the
destinies of others. Such people cannot be described as friends indeed. With
such friends, who needs enemies? There are people who say they are your friends
but will treat you badly. One of such person is Judas Iscariot the betrayer. In
Matthew 26:14-16, Judas Iscariot sold out the Lord Jesus Christ for thirty
pieces of silver. What type of friend are you, Jonathan or Judas Iscariot?
Friends, no matter how sincere, can change. There have
been cases of people who started as friends indeed but later became betrayers.
There are also those who started as betrayers but later became friends indeed.
The greatest issue is not who you are presently but who you will eventually
turn out to be. Will you turn out to be a friend indeed or a betrayer? There
are also situations where friends who are friends indeed disappoint. This might
not be because such people are betrayers but because they are human. As human
beings, we have our limitations, and there is an extent to which the most
sincere of men can help. Who then is the best friend indeed? Jesus! He is the
only one who will never disappoint. He knows the worst about you yet He loves
you all the same. He is the best friend indeed. Since friendship should be
reciprocal, who are the friends of Jesus? The Lord explains this in John 15:14,
He said his friends are the ones that obey His commandments. Have you been
doing whatever Christ commands? Such commandments include the injunction to
live holy. Are you living holy? Do you follow peace with your fellow men?
Everyone who claims to be a friend of Jesus should pay their tithes and
offerings and also witness for Him. Are you His friend indeed?
Key
point
The
sincerity of our friendship with Christ hinges on obedience to His
commandments.