Series: Things God Wants Us To Have In Life
Part 3 – Friendship and Support
INTRO: Two weeks ago we started a series on things God wants us to have in our lives. May think God wants us to be zombie-like robots that have no fun or happiness in life. The Christian life is often portrayed by Satan and enemies as a life of boredom, sadness, drudgery, and undesirable. But I tell you today, they are wrong. God has great plans and desires for our lives if we will but allow Him to help us.
The first week we looked at Faith And Practice, and last week we looked at Family And Stability. Today, continuing in our series, I want to look at Friendship And Support. God does not want us to be friendless. He desires for our lives something special which we call a friend. It has been said that an average person develops in their lifetime about five (5) really close friends.
Did you catch the key word there? Develop! We must develop friendship. Yes I know some are easier than others, but they need nurturing and help to blossom into a full-blown friendship. Friendship does not just develop on it’s own. It needs help.
Let’s get into the message. Yesterday, I was helping keep score – by the way, thanks for those that helped with our volleyball and those that came and watched and cheered my team… and the other teams –So, I was a helping keep score and I went to the window and asked for a worker’s discount. They remarked that I could have a free hotdog if I took ten minutes off my message today. Well, you’ll be glad to know that I have trimmed my message down from 62 minutes to 51! That is even better than they could have dreamed.
Let us read from…
Jn 15:13-21 13Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
14Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
15Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
16Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
17These things I command you, that ye love one another.
18If the world hate you, ye know that it hated me before it hated you.
19If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
20Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also.
21But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me.
First we need to understand…
John 14:18 I will not leave you comfortless: I will come to you.
Hebrews 13:5 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
He fellowship with us
He communes with us
He helps us
Friendship is not one-sided
Friendship gives, gives, gives and gives
But it also takes - it works both ways
2 Tim 1:16 The Lord give mercy unto the house of Onesiphorus; for he oft refreshed me, and was not ashamed of my chain:
Support
Have you ever had trouble with a “friend,” you just could not tell if he/she was on your side?
Sacrifice –
Ruth 1:16-17 And Ruth said, Entreat me not to leave thee, or to return from following after thee: for whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge: thy people shall be my people, and thy God my God: {17} Where thou diest, will I die, and there will I be buried: the LORD do so to me, and more also, if ought but death part thee and me.
Stands the test of time
Solid, without destructive weaknesses
Strengthening
Challenges us to excel
Challenges us to holiness (true friendship points to God)
Prov 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.
“Specialness”
Brings things money will not supply
Changes to meet the needs and situation
It will stretch itself to meet the need, even when we do not think it possible
Spandex is not always a pretty sight- but friendship is
Prov 18:24 A man that hath friends must show himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.
We must seek friendship
We must offer friendship
People are looking for true friends, yet they do not know where to look, nor how to find it
We must cultivate friendship
Just like a garden or a beautiful rosebush we must spend time with our friends
They must feel important
They must now we value their friendship in all aspects of our life
Prov 27:10 Thine own friend, and thy father's friend, forsake not; neither go into thy brother's house in the day of thy calamity: for better is a neighbour that is near than a brother far off.
So, we know God wants us to have Friendship And Support in our lives
He wants to be our friend – He gave His only Son, Jesus as our sacrifice and means of eternal life
He wants us to have other friends – they give us support we need in life
He wants us to find and make more friends – it takes an effort on our part
Gary Marcum – New Beginnings Church – 020308am