It was early this morning that the Lord put this question in my spirit as I was sleeping. I know it was the Lord because I have been meditating on something else all day yesterday with the intention to preach that this morning. I am reading the book of Judges and just finished the story of Gideon. There is so much more to that story than we learned in Sunday School.
But early this morning the Lord asked me this question. Are you a friend of God? I immediately began to recall the words to the song that we sing: I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God….I am a friend of God he calls me friend…….. I also recall that song, What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear…What a privilege to carry everything to God in Prayer…..
But the longer that I lay there in bed this morning thinking about what it means to be a friend of God I realized I did not understand what it means to be a friend of God.
This morning I began learning what it means to be a friend of God. I want to share with you what I have learned because it is important that we grow in our relationship with God to the fullness of what God has for us.
The first thing that I had to understand is what does it mean to be a friend.
In the Old Testament there is a Hebrew word used for “Friend” that has an expansive meaning.
Transliteration
rēaʿ
Pronunciation
ray'-ah
Strong’s Definitions [?](Strong’s Definitions Legend)
רֵעַ rêaʻ, ray'-ah; or רֵיעַ rêyaʻ; from H7462; an associate (more or less close):—brother, companion, fellow, friend, husband, lover, neighbour, × (an-) other.
One of the places we see this word used in the context of someone being in relationship with God is in Exodus 33. Moses is speaking with the Lord after the Children of Isreal sin in making the Golden Calf and God tells Moses he is not going to go with them anymore but he would send his Angel. Moses pleads for God to change his mind and ultimately is successful and God agrees to continue to go with them.
Exodus 33:9-15
9 And it came to pass, as Moses entered into the tabernacle, the cloudy pillar descended, and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and the Lord talked with Moses.
10 And all the people saw the cloudy pillar stand at the tabernacle door: and all the people rose up and worshipped, every man in his tent door.
11 And the Lord spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp: but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, departed not out of the tabernacle.
12 And Moses said unto the Lord, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight.
13 Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight: and consider that this nation is thy people.
14 And he said, My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest.
15 And he said unto him, If thy presence go not with me, carry us not up hence.
***The first point of the message today: There is confidence and trust that comes with being a friend of God.
**Moses knew where he stood with the Lord. Moses had a relationship with God that was very special for anyone at that time. Before Christ came and died on the cross for our sins to reconcile us to the father God it was only a very few people that experienced any kind o relationship with the Lord beyond shear obedience in the laws of purification and sacrifice.
Hebrews 8:1-11
1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens;
2 A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man.
3 For every high priest is ordained to offer gifts and sacrifices: wherefore it is of necessity that this man have somewhat also to offer.
4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law:
5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern shewed to thee in the mount.
6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent ministry, by how much also he is the mediator of a better covenant, which was established upon better promises.
7 For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second.
8 For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah:
9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord.
10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people:
11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest.
***I want to move ahead to the next chapter in Hebrews: 9:11
Hebrews 9:11-15
11 But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building;
12 Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.
13 For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh:
14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
15 And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.
***The first point of the message today: There is confidence and trust that comes with being a friend of God.
Point #2 of the message today: It is the Blood of Jesus that makes a way for us to be a friend of God.
Romans 5:10-11
10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.
11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.
Colossians 1:19-22
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
20 And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
21 And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath he reconciled
22 In the body of his flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight:
2 Corinthians 5:18-19
18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
****So it is at this point that I am wondering why focus on being a friend of God when the word tells us that through Christ Jesus, we are his sons and daughters.
Listen to these scriptures:
Galatians 3:24-27
24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.
26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.
27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
Romans 8:14-17
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Galatians 4:6-7
6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
***So I have to tell you I struggled with this topic this morning because depending on the kind of relationship you have with your earthly parents being a son and a daughter may not be the highest, deepest and strongest relationship example to you. There is tension on a parent child relationship that takes continuous work.
Throughout God’s word and throughout our lived experience we see this tension between Fathers and Children. As a father I love my Children more than life itself. I want what is best for them and for them to be successful in life, love, family, but most importantly I want them to be in relationship with God. The only thing that matters is if they hear those words. Well done. Well done. Enter into the joy of the Lord.
I believe I have a good relationship with my children but it is not as close as it could be and certainly not as close as the relationship that they have with some of their friends.
You see being a child of God we walk in the full authority given to us as heir and joint heir with Jesus Christ:
Look at Romans 8 again:
Romans 8:14-17
14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
16 The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
17 And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.
Do not forget the last prophecy of the Old Testament:
Malachi 4:5-6
5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord:
6 And he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse.
***The first point of the message today: There is confidence and trust that comes with being a friend of God.
Point #2 of the message today: It is the Blood of Jesus that makes a way for us to be a friend of God.
Point #3 of the Message today: Through Christ Jesus we are the Children of God and can be as close in relationship as we desire to be.
That my friend is where the conversation gets real. How close do you want to be with your father God? Christ has reconciled you to the father God and you are in relationship with him as a son and a daughter but how close are you to him?
There is a song I hope the worship team can sing at the end of the message when we are closing. The Song goes like this: Show me your face God, Show me your face….then gird up my legs that I might stand in the Holy place. Show me your face God. With power and grace. I can make it to the end. If I can just see your face.
If you go back to Exodus 33 we will see Moses in that setting of talking to God Face to Face but in a cloud for Moses’ protection. We see him ask to know God more. We see Moses say God I want more of you!
Exodus 33:17-23
17 And the Lord said unto Moses, I will do this thing also that thou hast spoken: for thou hast found grace in my sight, and I know thee by name.
18 And he said, I beseech thee, shew me thy glory.
19 And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before thee, and I will proclaim the name of the Lord before thee; and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.
20 And he said, Thou canst not see my face: for there shall no man see me, and live.
21 And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me, and thou shalt stand upon a rock:
22 And it shall come to pass, while my glory passeth by, that I will put thee in a clift of the rock, and will cover thee with my hand while I pass by:
23 And I will take away mine hand, and thou shalt see my back parts: but my face shall not be seen.
1 Corinthians 10:4
4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
***Speaking of Christ Jesus. Turn with me to John 15 and let see what Jesus said about being a friend of God:
Turn with me in your bibles to John Chapter 15.
John 15
King James Version
1 I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman.
2 Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.
3 Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.
4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.
5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.
6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.
10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
11 These things have I spoken unto you, that my joy might remain in you, and that your joy might be full.
12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
15 Henceforth 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.
*** I want to pause here and highlight what Jesus is saying. He is saying to this point with his disciples they were servants, but something is changing now. You see servants do not know what their lord does. Jesus says but I have called you friends because all the things I have heard of my father I am telling you.
Point #4 of the message today: Jesus calls you and I his friends and teaches us how to know the father and the will of the father.
All of a sudden I see it so much more clearly now. What Jesus said in John 14:6
John 14:6
6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.
***Continue on in John 15:16
16 Ye 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.
17 These things I command you, that ye love one another.
***What did verse 14 say? 14 Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.
Point #5 of the message: Jesus says if you want to be my friend you have to love each other.
*** In closing I want you to turn with me to 1 john 4:20
1 John 4:7-21
King James Version
7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.
9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him.
10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.
11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.
12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.
13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.
14 And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world.
15 Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.
16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
17 Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect in love.
19 We love him, because he first loved us.
20 If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?
21 And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.
***The first point of the message today: There is confidence and trust that comes with being a friend of God.
Point #2 of the message today: It is the Blood of Jesus that makes a way for us to be a friend of God.
Point #3 of the Message today: Through Christ Jesus we are the Children of God and can be as close in relationship as we desire to be.
Point #4 of the message today: Jesus calls you and I his friends and teaches us how to know the father and the will of the father.
Point #5 of the message: Jesus says if you want to be my friend you have to love each other.