There is a worship song that’s chorus goes like this, “I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God, I am a friend of God, He calls me friend🎵” (Israel Houghton, 2004) While it is crucial we see our God as King of Kings and Almighty, we must beware of the Medieval mistake of treating ourselves like vassals and Him the unapproachable Lord. The truth is that though He is God, He is friendly and wants intimacy, not be treated like some overlord like Ghengis Khan. In fact, the Holy Trinity made man and women to have a family. We are His children made in His image (Genesis 1:26-27). There wasn’t suppose to be a fuedalistic distance, for it said “God walked with Adam in the Garden,” (Genesis 3:8) and later God Incarnate, Jesus Christ, walked with His disciples, “That same day two of Jesus' disciples were going to the village of Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. As they were talking and thinking about what had happened, Jesus came near and started walking along beside them. But they did not know who he was.
Jesus asked them, “What were you talking about as you walked along?”
The two of them stood there looking sad and gloomy. Then the one named Cleopas asked Jesus, “Are you the only person from Jerusalem who didn’t know what was happening there these last few days?”
“What do you mean?” Jesus asked.
They answered:
Those things that happened to Jesus from Nazareth. By what he did and said he showed that he was a powerful prophet, who pleased God and all the people. Then the chief priests and our leaders had him arrested and sentenced to die on a cross. We had hoped that he would be the one to set Israel free! But it has already been three days since all this happened.
Some women in our group surprised us. They had gone to the tomb early in the morning, but did not find the body of Jesus. They came back, saying that they had seen a vision of angels who told them that he is alive. Some men from our group went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said. But they didn’t see Jesus either.
Then Jesus asked the two disciples, “Why can’t you understand? How can you be so slow to believe all that the prophets said? Didn’t you know that the Messiah would have to suffer before he was given his glory?” Jesus then explained everything written about himself in the Scriptures, beginning with the Law of Moses and the Books of the Prophets.
When the two of them came near the village where they were going, Jesus seemed to be going farther. They begged him, “Stay with us! It’s already late, and the sun is going down.” So Jesus went into the house to stay with them.
After Jesus sat down to eat, he took some bread. He blessed it and broke it. Then he gave it to them. At once they knew who he was, but he disappeared. They said to each other, “When he talked with us along the road and explained the Scriptures to us, didn’t it warm our hearts?” So they got right up and returned to Jerusalem.
The two disciples found the eleven apostles and the others gathered together.” (Luke 24:13-33 CEV). We love and following a passionate and tender Lord who is our God but also our best friend! He wants to be close to us, walking with us in this wilderness of life. In fact Jesus directly calls us friend, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. 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.” (John 15:13-15). Christ spoke this to His disciples, but the invitation is found in verse 14, “You are my friends if you do all I command,” which His major commands are, “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” And Jesus replied to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself [that is, unselfishly seek the best or higher good for others].’ The whole Law and the [writings of the] Prophets depend on these two commandments,” (Matthew 22:36-40), “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I loved you,” (John 15:12), and “So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35) which comes up again in The Apocalypse, ““But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches.” (Revelation 2:4-5 NLT)
We are called to be God’s friend. Through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ we are christened friend! For only through Him can we approach the Father and the whole Holy Trinity (John 14:6, 26). However, we must beware, the world can seduce us from proper friendship, “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” (James 4:4). A fact that few want to acknowledge in western Christendom is that we are called to forsake the system of the world to be followers of Christ, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore the world hates you. Remember what I told you: 'A servant is not greater than his master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also.” (John 15:18-20). Being a friend of the True God Jesus Christ has a price, it means we become enemies of the world. That it is what is puzzling tome about Christian brothers or sisters going into politics which is the world system. They claim it is “to make a difference”, but I ask how? When you are using the world system God hates and says we must come out of?
The rude truth is that if we are to be friends of Jesus, we must be enemies of the world or else we become a hypocrite. For the apostle says, “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them,” (1 John 2:15), and Jesus says, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matthew 6:24). There is no middle ground, you cannot love the Wors of God (Jesus, John 1:1-17) and the World (Money and its system of power invented by Satan see Ezekiel 28:11-18). To be a friend of God is to be an enemy of the world, to be a friend of the world is to be an enemy of God. Its a harsh reality, but you must make a choice. Do you want to be with the all loving God who died for you and your sins (John 3:16) or do you want this world and consequently its prince (1 John 5:19, Ephesians 2:2, John 14:30)? Do you desire the Lord Trinity who has made mansions on heaven for you (John 14:2 KJV) and will place you in a New Heaven and Earth without tears, fears, pain, and etc?, “He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death' or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."
(Revelation 21:4). Or do you desire this broken and fallen world (Romans 8:20) and seek to be part of its ruination which will be swept away in fire? (2 Peter 3:6, 10-11).
Jesus said something few altar calls include, that it you must calculate, decide if you really want to be a friend of God with its cost, “The Cost of Being a Disciple, Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? For if you lay the foundation and are not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule you, saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’
“Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples.” (Luke 14:25-34). Christ gave up His privileges, became a slave, and even gave up His life for us so that we may have eternal life (Philippians 2:1-11 NLT). It cost our Lord God His life, we shouldn’t be surprised if keeping our faith in Him will not cost us our life too, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will find it.” (Matthew 16:25). It may not be martyrdom, it may be the life in this world that you’ve been called out of. Are you willing go be called a friend of God and an enemy of this world? For this world will pass away in the wrath of God’s fire (2 Peter 3:6, 10-12, Revelation 21:1-4).
Do you want to be a friend of God? Its easy to become His friend, “because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.” (Romans 10:9-10). But keep in mind you cannot stay a friend of this world, you either will find your love for this world dying as your love for Christ blossoms or you will find the world corrupt your love and devotion to Christ (Revelation 2:4-5 NLT, 2 Corinthians 11:3). The reason I think Jesus asks, “when the Son of Man returns will He find faith on earth,” (Luke 18:8) is because few are all in for the friendship with Him. At one point the world will force us to choose between Christ and the World, when the Antichrist takes over-the world and forces the mark of the beast, “And the beast was allowed to wage war against God’s holy people and to conquer them. And he was given authority to rule over every tribe and people and language and nation. And all the people who belong to this world worshiped the beast. They are the ones whose names were not written in the Book of Life that belongs to the Lamb who was slaughtered before the world was made.
...This means that God’s holy people must endure persecution patiently and remain faithful.
Then I saw another beast come up out of the earth. He had two horns like those of a lamb, but he spoke with the voice of a dragon. He exercised all the authority of the first beast. And he required all the earth and its people to worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. He did astounding miracles, even making fire flash down to earth from the sky while everyone was watching. And with all the miracles he was allowed to perform on behalf of the first beast, he deceived all the people who belong to this world. He ordered the people to make a great statue of the first beast, who was fatally wounded and then came back to life. He was then permitted to give life to this statue so that it could speak. Then the statue of the beast commanded that anyone refusing to worship it must die.
He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man.His number is 666.” (Revelation 13:7-8, 10-18). Yes, you are saved by grace through faith in Jesus (John 6:40, Ephensians 2:8-11, Philippians 3:9), Christ alone can wash you clean of sin not your works (1 John 1:7, 9), but the world will test your love for Jesus, and one day everyone will have to decide do they love God or money, “Then the statue of the beast commanded that anyone refusing to worship it must die,” (Revelation 13:15),
because Satan and his man will control the money and food, “He required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name. Wisdom is needed here. Let the one with understanding solve the meaning of the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man. His number is 666.” (Revelation 13:16-18), through this we must endure and stand firm in Jesus, “This means that God's holy people must endure persecution patiently, obeying his commands and maintaining their faith in Jesus.” (Revelation 14:12). So it is crucial now, before the Beast takes over and forces people to make their choice that you decide to be a friend of God and an enemy of the world, for the time is coming when you will be forced to decide. To quote Joshua, I for one choose Christ the Lord, “Now therefore fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14-15). Amen.
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