Jesus is a Friend

Robert Louis Stephenson once wrote, “So long as we are loved by others, I would almost say that we are indispensable; and no man is useless while he has a friend.”  Friendship is invaluable.  Just look at all the people who became great because of their friends.  Where would Ruth be without her mother-in-law, Naomi?  Where would David be without his best friend, Jonathan?  What would Paul have done without Barnabas, Silas, and Timothy?

For some, friendship comes easily.  Unfortunately, this is not the case with everyone.  But there is good news.  Friendship is at least possible for everyone.  Not only that, but there is no reason why every person cannot have the greatest man who ever lived for their friend.

I am speaking, of course, about Jesus.  The Bible tells us that Jesus is, in one sense or another, everyone’s friend.  However, the benefits that a person may derive from him differ according to his spiritual situation.

Jesus is a friend to every soul. He demonstrated this friendship by dying on the cross for our sins, making salvation possible for every man and woman.  John said, “He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 Jn. 2:2).  This does not spell salvation for every soul, just the possibility.  The way each individual responds to this sacrifice makes the difference between the saved and those who remain lost.

Jesus is a friend to every sinner. As you read through the gospel accounts, you stumble upon a number of expressions of Jesus’ friendship towards sinners.  He came to the aid of a woman who had been caught in adultery (Jn. 8:3-11); he showed kindness to a sinful woman who washed his feet with her tears (Lk. 7:36-50); on the cross, he looked down at the cruel mob below and prayed, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Lk. 23:34).Many of these sinners responded to his kindness favorably and became followers of Christ.  His enemies hated him for this and gave him the title “the friend of sinners” (Mt. 11:19).  They let their jealousy cloud their judgment.  We must never substitute empty rivalry for a love for lost souls.

Jesus is a friend to sufferers. The American Indians had a word for friend that meant “one who carries my sorrows on his back.”  This is what Jesus is willing to do for others.  He himself was called a “man of sorrows” (Isa. 53:3), so he knows the hardships of life.  Hebrews 2:18 tells us, “For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.”

Jesus is a friend to saints. Aristotle thought there could be no friendship between a god and a man, any more than a man could be a friend to his tools, because they were too dissimilar.  The Bible takes a radically different point of view, telling the story of how man alienated himself from God, and God, not wishing for him to perish, initiated an act of reconciliation (Col. 1:19-22; 2 Cor. 5:18-20; Rom. 5:10).

In John 15, Jesus tells his disciples how this highest level of friendship with God is possible: “You are my friends, if you do what I command you” (v. 14).  What is the case with you?  Can you say you are a close friend with Jesus?