2025-06-20
Good morning, Dear Ones,
This morning, the Holy Spirit directs me to write about friendship with God. One needs to lean on the Scriptures to fully understand what He has on His mind. There is no reason why we can’t be His friends, but it must always be with the understanding that the relationship is not between equals. JN 15: 13-17, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are My friend if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friend, for everything that I learned from My Father I have made known to you. You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in My name the Father will give you. This is My command: Love each other.” This is a wholly different kind of friendship than that between humans, but it is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit when carried out as described.
Think of a diagram of a cross. The vertical relationship we have with our Creator should be as described above. There is a horizontal relationship possible with other humans. It is supported by the cross but has different parameters. I can be between two equals, as between a parent and adult child, or as a teacher and a student, or take other forms. Friendship with God means there has been reconciliation between them. That reconciliation came as described in RO 5: 10-11 “For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to Him through the dearth of His Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through His life! Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom we have now received reconciliation.”
In the very same chapter of the Lord’s words on His idea of friendship, one finds this prelude to it. JN 15: 5 [Christ’s words], “I am the Vine and you are the branches. If you remain in Me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from Me you can do nothing.” What the Lord means in this metaphor is that we need to have a partnership of friendship with Him that affects every aspect of our lives in order to become the balanced healthy people He wants us to be. We must understand that He wants us to be the best we can be. The power of the goodness He brings to our lives can’t be underestimated. With a true friendship with the Lord, He works through us to bring wisdom, goodness, the gifts of the Holy Spirit [GA 5: 22-23] and the power to do what benefits us and other human beings. Without the Holy Spirit, which we are given by God, we don’t understand what we must be or do to bring God’s goodness into our world [1 COR 2: 14-15].
Sadly, there is an epidemic of greed and materialism in our society. People push others aside in many ways, in their thirst for position, power, and material wealth. Many workplaces are toxic because of people who don’t feel team-building matters more than their ambition. Prestige matters more than fairness and kindness. Consideration and compassion are not practiced. This behavior flies in the face of the Lord’s will and the overall benefit to our society. RO 12: 18 gives us the Lord’s way: “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” When subordinates are given a stake in the action, they are much more likely to do a good job. When they feel respected, they also are loyal to the leadership. No matter where we are, we can keep the Lord’s will for us in mind when interacting with others. It is wise to consider MT 6: 24, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” Of course, we all must make a living for our families, but we must ask ourselves: Which is more important, our money and possessions, or our eternal lives? Understand in the end, we must eventually all give account of ourselves before the Lord [RO 14: 12; HE 4: 13].”
PRAYER: O Lord, we understand that You know everything that is in both our public and our private lives. If we have been obediently faithful to You, we should welcome this truth and be glad for Your intervention in our lives. We welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit and wisdom given to us. If we have rejected and disrespected You, we should be deeply concerned that we are wasting the sacrificial atonement You made for us. You are a loving God, one Who wants what is best for us. Some people severely disappoint You with their refusal to offer You reverence and obey Your teaching. That is because You are a caring, loving God. You want those people to reconcile with You, because You want as many people as possible to grain eternal life in Your Kingdom. PR 1: 7, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” We offer You our utmost praise and thanksgiving for the love You show us and Your will that we should behave in a way that benefits our families, society, and nations. These things we say in the holy/mighty name of Jesus Christ.
NEXT WEEK: As I write about the many ways we can worship God, the Holy Spirit directs me to consider the tasks we do in connection with our places of worship to serve Him. That will be the subject of next week’s devotion. In the meanwhile, Christ’s words in AC 1: 8, come to mind. “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be My witness in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Our God loves us with all His heart, and He deserves the same kind of love and devotion from us. When we give it, we are empowered to bring His goodness to others and return it to Him. That should be sufficient motivation to take advantage of His wisdom and live lives that will be a blessing to Him and to other people. Praise and thanksgiving be to Him!
Grace Be With You Always,
Lynn, JS 24: 15
© Lynn Johnson 2025. All Rights Reserved.
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