I am intrigued by words. Words are the labels that we use to
understand life. And finding the right word for the moment can make a big
difference. You're saying one thing if you describe someone as very careful.
But what if you were to describe that same person with the word 'obsessive'?
Words are very powerful. They should be used with care.
What words should we use when we talk about Jesus? The Bible
gives us quite a few. There's 'Son of God', 'Lord' or 'the Holy One of God'.
These words have a certain feel to them. They stress the majesty of Jesus. And
because of that they emphasize the distance between Him and us. He is the
exalted One, and we are not. There are times when that distance needs to be in
the forefront.
There is another word to use to talk about Jesus. It's the
word 'friend'. Listen to what Jesus said.
No longer do I call you servants,
for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you
friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to
you.
Jesus announces a change in the relationship that He has
with these men. He has been their Master, and the men understood that that made
them servants. And those words have a certain affect. There is a distance
between Master and servant, the distance of authority. But now Jesus tells
these men, 'We are friends.' And that changes things.
It's important that you remember what I told you about what
Jesus means by the word 'friend'. Remember that there is a great difference
between a friend and an acquaintance. Friends enjoy the intimacy of persons.
The walls are lowered. There is an openness and honesty between friends. Friends
are close. Jesus relates to these men as friends. This morning I'd like to
explore this idea of friendship with Jesus.
The first thing that I'd like to point out is going to sound
odd. It may not fit with what you're used to thinking about Jesus as a friend.
As you consider the Scriptures, you'll find that there are different degrees of
friendship with Jesus. Remember the context of this part of John. Jesus says
these words of friendship not to all of His disciples but only to these men,
His apostles. Jesus has made a distinction among those who follow Him. He
explains this distinction to those men.
I have called you friends, for all
that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
They are His friends for a reason. It's because He has told
them all that the Father wanted Him to tell them. Jesus did not do this with
any of His other disciples. In fact, this distinction goes back to an earlier
point in Jesus' ministry. Out of all of those who were following Him, Jesus
chose twelve to be in a special relationship with Him. He chose twelve to be
His apostles. So, from early on there is a distinction among those who were His
disciples. There was a further distinction even within the Twelve. How many
times are Peter, James and John singled out from the others? And though many
Protestants don't want to admit it, Jesus separated Peter, the Rock, from the
rest.
Now, you have to be careful. This doesn't mean that it was
only the apostles who were friends of Jesus. Remember that Jesus was known as a
friend of sinners and tax collectors. But at the same time we need to say that
Jesus made distinctions among His friends. Because of that some were closer to
Him than others.
That's going to be a problem for lots of folk in our
culture. We have been bombarded with the idea that we are all the same, no
distinctions, no differences. We are all the same, and we are to be treated in
the same way. But Jesus disagrees. There are differences. The problem is that
our culture has confused being equal with being the same. We are all made in
God's image. And for that reason, each one is of equal worth and equal
significance before God. Each of us is loved equally. But that does not mean
that He treats us all in the same way. There are differences among us. And that
speaks to our friendship with Jesus. There are differences. And that should
make sense. There are people whom we know and value. But not all of them are
close to us. Some are really good friends, others less so. There are
differences. The same is true with Jesus.
Now, let's take that to the next step. Why are there these
differences? Some of these differences are because of Jesus' choices. So, while
Jesus loves all of His disciples - they are all His friends - there is
something more going on with the apostles. He told them things He didn't tell
the others. He chose to invest Himself in those apostles. There were
differences because of His choices.
There continue to be these differences. There are those
Christians for whom the friendship of Jesus is more dear. And one reason for
that is Jesus' choices. Consider the saint who has experienced a hard life,
troubles galore, trials day after day. And you know that these difficulties are
sent by Jesus. But why?
The Lord
is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
Jesus sends those troubles which break the heart and crush
the spirit so that He can draw near. Those who suffer well, in hope and in joy
and in faith, experience the nearness of Jesus to a greater degree than others.
Out of the pain comes a deeper friendship. Not everyone knows God like Job did.
There are differences because of Jesus' choices.
However, these differences are not just because of the
choices that Jesus makes. There are differences because of choices that we
make. And a good example of this would be Judas. The things that Jesus heard
from the Father He made known to Judas as one of the Twelve. So, friendship of a
deeper sort was offered to Judas. But he declined that offer. Instead of being
a friend to Jesus, Judas became a friend of the world. And one of the doctrines
of the world is that money is more important than people. Thirty pieces of
silver is better than friendship with Jesus.
It's Jesus' choice to offer you whatever level of friendship
He wants. But how you respond to that is your choice. It's like a marriage. The
quality of a marriage is affected by things that were not chosen by the husband
or the wife. That would include things like how they were trained when they
were children, the influence of the Gospel in their homes as they grew up, the
examples of their parents. But so much of the quality of any marriage has to do
with the choices that those two people make within the context of things they
did not choose. As Christians we have choices to make when it comes to enjoying
the friendship that Jesus offers.
I recently was reminded of a verse that can be helpful here.
And without faith it is impossible
to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists
and that he rewards those who seek him.
God rewards His people. But, He does not reward equally. And
this verse highlights one way God distinguishes how He rewards. It is those who
seek God who are rewarded. Let me suggest this as a working definition of
'seeking God': doing what is necessary, according to your calling, to know who
God is more and more completely, and responding appropriately to what you
discover about Him. And that would go a long way to explaining why some
Christians enjoy Jesus as a dear friend more than other Christians. Some
Christians seek Him more.
This seeking isn't some drivenness to do all the right
things. This seeking is simply getting to know a friend better as you deal with
life. The blessing of that reward will be given to those who are willing to pay
the price of seeking Jesus. It might cost you a broken heart and a crushed
spirit.
The need of the day in this dying culture is for Christians
who have a deeper friendship with Jesus. Our culture needs to see people who
live well and die well because of the depth of their friendship with Him. There
is so much superficiality these days, in the culture and in the churches. And
that has to go. But the only way that the culture will change is if the
churches change.
What I have said will apply to you in one of two ways. For
some of you this is a challenge. Developing a deepening friendship with Jesus
isn't a priority for you. When you consider what is important, how you will
invest yourself, seeking Jesus doesn't make the top ten. If any of you fall
into this category I hope that you will change your mind and that you will make
seeking Jesus a priority not just for your own sake but also for the sake of
others. People need to see the Gospel played out in the lives of those who
profess to believe in Him.
For others of you I want this to be an encouragement. You
are working at seeking Jesus. You are working at developing the friendship that
you have with Him. You may not have thought of it in terms of friendship, but
that makes sense to you. The reward of a deeper friendship with Jesus is worth
the difficulties that you face as you work on this, and that is true even if
your heart is broken or your spirit crushed. Pray that you would be able to
keep at it so that you will enjoy the reward.
I'm going to close by reading the words to one of the hymns
that we sing.
Jesus! what a Friend for sinners!
Jesus! Lover of my soul;
Friends may fail me, foes assail me,
He, my Saviour, makes me whole.
Jesus! what a strength in weakness!
Let me hide myself in him;
Tempted, tried, and sometimes failing,
He, my strength, my vict'ry wins.
Jesus! what a help in sorrow!
While the billows o'er me roll,
Even when my heart is breaking,
He, my comfort, helps my soul.
Jesus! what a guide and keeper!
While the tempest still is high,
Storms about me, night o'ertakes me,
He, my pilot, hears my cry.
Jesus! I do now receive him,
More than all in him I find,
He hath granted me forgiveness,
I am his, and he is mine.
And out of that comes this:
Hallelujah! what a Saviour!
Hallelujah, what a Friend!
Saving, helping, keeping, loving,
He is with me to the end.