I’ve been thinking more and more about the blessings of God, but it’s been taking on a whole new flavor. One of the greatest blessings we could receive is to be a friend of God. Let’s think about that. The creator of the universe … HE calls us friend. But what does that mean??
In James 2:23, it says that Abraham believed God, and in that God regarded Abraham as righteous, and called him His friend. In John 15:15, Jesus tells the disciples that He doesn’t consider them as servants, but friends, because servants aren’t included in family business, but friends are. They share a common passion, interest, and support one another in deeper things.
All this speaks of relationship, and even if you ask Webster, he’ll say that a friend is someone attached to another by affection and esteem. Mmmm … that’s love AND respect.
Above, we see the affections of God’s people. But if we read the surrounding text, it goes further. Surrounding James 2:23, we see that not only did Abraham believe God, but he applied works to his faith by offering up his son, Isaac. In John 15:14, Jesus says we are His friends if we follow through in His directions. And verse 16 says that we’re ordained by Him to do great works, and that our works would be fruitful. When we believe AND honor God by applying works to our faith, that’s when the blessings come. We can’t expect His blessings otherwise.
It is such a good reminder! It’s as if obedience is imperative to the success of God’s Kingdom in these days. I say that tongue-in-cheek, but it’s real. There is such a heightened level of servitude to God as His friend, one that goes beyond what we’ve known before. We’re unpacking new levels of that friendship, and it’s going to produce fruit we’ve never seen.
Where do you feel you are in your friendship with God? When you consider what it is to be a true friend, is that something you feel you are to Him, or is it hitting you in the pit of your soul like it is me? In the coming days, I’ll be going deeper into what a friendship with God really means. There is so much beauty in this. A whole new dimension we haven’t seen yet. He’s taking us to new levels of serving Him, believing Him … and it all begins with truly knowing Him as FRIEND.