Are you a “friend” of Jesus?

Good morning, everyone,

Our theme for this month: “You are not alone”

Our Bible verse for today: “You are My friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you slaves anymore, because a slave doesn’t know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from the Father. You did not choose Me, but I chose you. I appointed you that you should go out and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.” John 15:14-16 (CSB)

Our thought for today: “Are you a “friend” of Jesus?”

In John 20:21 Jesus gave us an excellent summary statement of how God the Father goes about accomplishing His mission here on earth. There Jesus said, “As the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” God the Father sent His Son Jesus into the world to pay the penalty for the sins of mankind and to get the ball rolling to spread God’s Kingdom on earth. Once Jesus had accomplished His part, He then handed it off to His followers to continue the work. We read about that hand-off in John 20:21, Matthew 28:18-20, and Acts 1:8, among other passages.

In John 15:14-16 (above) Jesus explained that if we will accept the task and join Him in His work, He considers us to be His friends. Not a slave serving a Master, but a friend working together to achieve a common goal. Now, I do look upon Jesus as my Master. But He chooses to see me as His friend. Not a slave obeying out of compulsion, and not even just a follower seeking to please a leader, but a friend! The dictionary says that a friend is “One you know, like, and trust. One towards whom you are favorably disposed; someone you are comfortable with; someone you have warm and loving feelings for.” Wow! What a privilege to be thought of in that way by Jesus.

But please don’t miss the point that that friendship is not automatic, it’s conditional. Jesus said you are my friends “if” you do what I command you. That friendship – that close relationship that is warm, loving, comfortable, and trusting – is reserved for those who are intentional about actively joining Him in His mission.

As Christians we have been called to be “on-mission” with Jesus. We are to be actively involved in helping to build and spread His kingdom on earth. Our greatest sense of identity as Christians, our deepest point of connection with our Lord, and our most heightened state of being aware of His presence with us, comes when we are walking side-by-side with Him helping to accomplish His mission here on earth.

The more we join Jesus in His work, the better we will know Him and the closer our relationship with Him will be. That’s true of relationships in general. One of the reasons I love church workdays and group projects is because when church members work together side-by-side to accomplish a task, they get to know each other better and they grow closer.

Very often, people who had simply been members of the same church end up developing close friendships because they worked together on a church project. It’s the same with Jesus. When we join Him in His work, we come to know Him better. So much so, that He considers you to be His friend. I encourage you to join Jesus in His work today!

God bless,
Pastor Jim

(If you like what you are reading in these daily devotionals and if you would like more content from Oak Hill Baptist Church, join us on Sundays at 10:00 – in-person if you are nearby or, if you are geographically distant or if you just can’t make it, online at www.YouTube.com/@oakhillbaptistcrossville

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