verse4today: "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer" (Romans 12:12).
Posted on 2010-07-29 via Twitter
The creation stories in Genesis 1 & 2 of the Bible teach us many basic truths, including this one: we were created to live as communal, not solitary, creatures. Created in the image of a Triune God who enjoys eternal fellowship, we were created to enjoy relationships with other human beings. Toward that end, God has graced our lives with a variety of relationships, including friendships.
Years ago author James Sparks, in his book Friendship After Forty, identified four types of friendships. First, he identified those friends we may call acquaintances. If you were to throw a stone into the water, he suggested, and watch the multitude of ripples flow out from its impact, the outer ring of ripples would represent the large circle of acquaintances that touch our lives. He noted that our relationships with these people are often superficial and momentary.
Second, he noticed that there are many people we may call situational friends. These are the people with whom we interact at work, at the health club, at church, and in the neighborhood. This group is smaller than that of our acquaintances. We generally know these people by name. A handful our relationships with situational friends may develop into something deeper. But, for the most part, if it were not for the situation that brings us together, we would not go out of our way to see these people.
Third, there are sentimental friends, those close associates of years long past. These friends usually last forever. We write them every Christmas. From time to time we talk by phone or communicate by mail - and, if they are on Facebook, we have befriended them. We see these friends on special occasions, such as a weddings, funerals, or annual reunions.
Finally, there is a small but special group of individuals who are closest to our hearts: our special or true friends. Such people are one of the sweetest blessings in life. They know everything about us - all our faults and shortcomings - and they still love us. They accept us as we are but don't let us settle for being anything less than everything we can possibly be.
I thought about Spark's four types of friendships while reading John 15. In that chapter we read these words by Jesus to his beloved apostles: "I no longer call you servants.... I have called you friends!" Those words prompted this question: What kind of friend is Jesus? Of the four categories offered by Sparks, only one, it seems, fits the Lord: a true friend. That conclusion seems even more appropriate after reading Jesus' description of his friendship with the apostles. He identifies at least four qualities of his special friendship with them:
1. Sacrifice - Jesus said, "Greater love has no one than this: that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).
2. Intimacy - Jesus said, ""I have called you friends for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you" (John 15:15).
3. Initiative - Jesus said, "You did not choose me, but I chose you" (John 15:16).
4. Productivity - Jesus said, "You are my friends if you do what I command" (John 15:14).
In a sermon I develop this further and explore our vocation of friendship, suggesting that if we hope to befriend Christ, as well as others, then our relationships with Christ and those we consider our true friends will reflect the qualities of Christ’s friendship with us. (If you want to listen to it, you will find it here under the header "Living Hope Sermons 'General'"). But here and now, I thank the Lord that he came to this earth, not just to be my Savior and Lord, but my friend. As the old hymn writer put it, "What a friend we have in Jesus."
Hi Pastor Sam! I have been waiting to see an new blog entry from you… glad to have stopped by to read a new one today! How are things going? I pray all is well with you, your family and with Living Hope Church! I think of you often and always wonder how you are doing!
Becky