Friday, May 24, 2013
Last week my message focused
on being friends in Christ. In Romans 16, Paul lists a lot of names that
represented his deep connection with people in the Lord. Friends in Christ are people that accept you
for who you are but love you too much to leave you that way. Friends in Christ
are people who serve you and people who you can serve Jesus with.
The Barna Research Group
reported that adults identified the church as a place to meet new friends more
often than they named any other place. I believe that is what Romans 16 is all
about; proof that the church is the best place to find great friends.
The Proverbs teach us a lot about
friendships. Let me share a few insights:
· 1. A friend loves at
all times, and a brother is born for adversity – Proverbs 17:17. Real friends will love us no matter what is
going on in our life. Real friends will sacrificially love us. Christian
friends will love us like Jesus loves us – “greater love has no one that this,
that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13).
· 2. A man of many companions may come to ruin, but
there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother – Proverbs 18:24. Over time, our Christian friends will prove
to be trustworthy and stick with us like a brother or sister.
· 3. Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy
multiplies kisses – Proverbs 27:6.
Christian friends will exhort us. They love us so much that they are
willing to say the difficult things that will help us, strengthen us and build
us up. One of my friends tells me, “If
you have something stuck in your teeth, I will tell you.”
· 4. He who walks with the wise grows wise, but a
companion of fools suffers harm – Proverbs 13:20. What a great proverb. I need to be careful with whom I walk. My closest friends should be in Christ. If I walk with people who
love the wisdom of God, it rubs off on me. I get more divine wisdom. If I associate with fools I don’t become a
fool; I suffer harm. It’s a choice that seems so simple.
Do you have friends like
this? Friends who will love you at all times? Friends who will stick with you
through thick and thin? Friends who accept you just like you are and love you
too much to leave you that way? Friends who love godly wisdom and it rubs off
on you? The best place to find friends
like this is in church. These are friends in Christ.
Make God the Lord of your
friendships. If you do, you’re life will be blessed beyond measure.
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