“Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against him.”
Psalm 41:9
Take a moment to remember all the ‘best friends’ you have ever had; the ones you had since childhood, since youth, or the ones you just met in adulthood but feel as though you have known them all your life.
What exactly qualifies them as a friend? What makes them your best friend? Have you had some conflicts in the course of your friendship that threatened the bond shared? Have you gone through tough situations that challenged your value of friendship?
The vulnerability of trust in man lies in the inevitable. The flesh will surely fail for it is weak. The carnal sense of self is not trustworthy because the flesh walks by sight and not by faith. Thus, man will succumb at one point or another to the pressures and circumstances of the world around him.
This is why stability, loyalty, consistency, reliability, integrity, and responsibilities are all traits that are fervently nurtured. It takes building up. And what has been built by man will crumble by chance because man is not God.
Friendship with man is not friendship with God. Friendship with a man of God is still not friendship with God because we have to know God for ourselves and not just through others.
So, would you give your last to a friend?
Would you forgive a friend’s betrayal no matter what it was?
Would you open your arms to a friend who walks away from your friendship over and over again?
Would you bless a friend that curses you?
Would you comfort a friend who dwells amidst those who hate your name?
Would you give your life for your friend?
That is the kind of friend that Christ is to us.
What A Friend We have In Jesus is truly one of my favorite sacred hymns.
The beauty of this friendship with Christ is that it is ours eternally. No matter how unkind we are to it, no matter how much of a stranger we are to our Great friend, Christ abides with us through it all.
There is indeed no friend like Jesus Christ.
Think about it, Who comforted you in your most broken times? Who intercedes with God on your behalf? Who blesses you continually no matter how unfriendly you are or can be? Who forgives you endlessly? Whose Spirit guides you in a world of chaos and confusion? Nobody but Jesus.
The love of Christ the Lord is more than enough.
Don’t you ever forget that this is the same Love that graced us with salvation when He came to the world solely to die for your sins. Christ is the friend who took all your burdens and bondage and carried it with him to the cross to die.
Friend, the enemy will continue to test the bonds of this divine friendship but God the Father has washed us thoroughly with the Blood. May we be given the grace to trust wholly in our friendship with His Only Holy Son in Jesus name. Amen.