Why Friendship is so Important

Good morning summer church. If you would at all of our campuses do me the favor of right now taking out your phone will tell you I just second but if I get everybody who is even remotely connected to the 21st century to pull out your little device called phone and take it out and fueled it for a second.

My want to begin this weekend by calling us as a church.

I want you to join me in my something really important for the entire month of June are directional.

Our team is asked that the body the membership of the summa church have a very special focus time of prayer together. Why, because God has blessed this church of the last couple years and just these incredible exceeding abundant ways given us opportunities in ministry and we were at another time in the life of our church. Will we need real wisdom to know how to follow him in the next two or three years of our churches life when he wisdom we need God to provide for us and so I'm our elder team to say. Can we get the church to pray on during the month of June and I know that when I say that to you deprive the reason that if you are not going to do it. Just be honest has nothing to do with your intentions because when I again this is a great idea.

We should do this is not around.

Remember likewise or the next mile did not write right so I want you to do it every single day. At 320.

Why 3:20 PM not a.m. unless you're super spiritual that you can do it. 3:20 AM, but I want you to do it. 320 because Ephesians 320 is been up a really key verse for our church. God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all we ask or think. I want you to pray that and I are working every day@summitru.com and every form of social media that we have. We are going to be releasing him a specific prayer points are pastors and elders are to put forward what you get those in pray those at this so right now take your phone and I want you to set yourself a reminder every day at 322 it right now set that reminder if you're younger than 30. You know exact what I'm talking about. You're there you like you said reminder in your phone no way understood your alarm function and say everyday recurring for you know the next 30 days or turn it off their days you actually pray more days and 30 at 320 will be a problem but everybody do that someone is to join together to get some of the RTU.com.

We will fill every form of social media that we have with how we want you to pray okay all right well speaking of social media. How many of you have ever had the experience of being unfriended by somebody on social media.

Raise your hand. All of our campuses. You been unfriended that happened to be recently open up one of my social media accounts and noticed that I had lost five friends from the time that I had previously logged on and you know when that happens you always a medial car light wasn't something that I said that I finally post too many acute kidney videos are too many overlook how adorable my kids are hashtag blast poster angry political rants or maybe these are just the reasons why I defriend people on social media, but whatever it in January 2009, Burger King ran an ad campaign where they said if you would unfriend 10 of your friends on Facebook, they would send you a coupon for a free whopper. The way it was supposed to work was you unfriended the person Burger King within that person, I noticed that they had been unfriended for. You know I hamburger and you were supposed to be like oh this murder must really be something if I can lose friends over at well, the New York Times reported New York Times reported that the stock worked a little too well within the first week, six days 233,906 friendships have been terminated and Burger King was obligated to was on the hook for 23,000 whoppers and had to discontinue the ad because you're bankrupt. So how valuable is friendship to you how the word friendship is taken on a skewed meaning in our culture.

It's not entirely social media's fault, but they certainly haven't help. I do not know how many friends that I have on Facebook but I am pretty confident that they would not be what the Bible would call a friend, even if Mark Zuckerberg would refer to them as a friend, so I want to spend our last message in our from the beginning series talking about friendship. Most people in our culture. I would submit to you, do not pursue genuine friendships for many of them it's because they don't value friendships. Or maybe they don't know how to form this kind of friendships. A recent survey by Saul asked the question over the last six months, but how many people have you discussed deeply an important matter. Over half of the respondents could not come up with a single person outside of their family that they had discussed the deep matter within the last six months. Many people just don't think that's important.

I thought I can prove that to you with one question continued name for me, your dad's good friends. Can you name your dad's good friends. If you can. You are in the room where minority of people because most men quit pursuing any kind of friendships after they get married. John chapter 15.

If you have a Bible when you study God's word you will see that there are very few things in life that are as important as friendship for two primary reasons I'm going to explain today.

First of all, because we are made for friendship.

I'm going to explain today why it is virtually impossible for you to be really happy and fulfilled without friendships and that is by God's design. Number two is because friendship makes us we are made for it and it makes us there is no more formative factor in your life and your friendships.

I am going to suggest quite compellingly I think that if you get your friends right that one single factor may be more than any other is going to set you up for success and on the flipside, if you get your friendships wrong. You're almost guaranteeing significant struggles for yourself and maybe even failure in your future. Here is a phrase I'm going to use a lot and I think I will have convinced you about the time we get done here's a phrase you show me your friends and I will show you your future. You show me your friends and I will show you your future and back so that I can make this really really tangible to you want to take out what you got when you came in. You should've received a nifty summit then I have family spends littered at restaurants all over the triangle. So now you have your very own Summit search panel to take it and want to dig us all posted note. Somebody said was this to take sermon notes on not hardly know Dick like 100 of those, but you take out the slope sticking note, I want you to write down right now I want everybody to write every body I want you write down your five closest friends. By the way everybody at the summit church is a really strange meaning it means every body okay means.

If you have a body I'm talking to you right now if you are a disembodied spirit for right here only to pay attention what I'm saying if you got a body I need you to take this out and write down your five friends now.

This is the part of the program where I put this down and for the next 15 seconds I stayed here in silence and just stare awkwardly at whoever is not doing it thousand 3004 you certainly probably third row second and from the right. I see you North START writing down five friends you got nine seconds left by seconds two seconds pencils down interest to your not getting. I had to your neighbor run integrated his to do this whole thought about putting a Bible verse I have yet to Bible room to show you the two reasons. The principal matters in life and I might tell you how you can pursue the right kind of friendships and become like a friend number one friendship matters because we are made for John chapter 15 verse nine. Want to start in this message. Where I have in every other message in the series with what Jesus says about God's design for these kinds of relationships from the beginning. John 15 verse nine as the father has loved me. Jesus says so. I have loved you abide in my love verse 12 this is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone laid 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.

I called you friends, for all that I heard from my father. I made known to you, you did not choose me to be friends. I choose you when I appointed you these things.

Verse 17 I command you so that you will love one another well in case you can't tell. This passage is all about friendship. The word friend Jesus uses it three times. It's clearly has subject. So when Jesus uses the word love. In this passage, he is talking about friendship, love, that's the kind of love that he's referring to. Why is friendship important well. The short answer is in verse nine from all eternity. The father and the son have existed as friends and being made in the image of God. That means you and I are made for friendship. The doctrine of the Trinity I know is difficult to understand but the doctrine of the Trinity is the foundation for understanding how you and I are wired from all eternity.

The doctrine of the Trinity teaches from all eternity. The one God only one God has existed as father son and Holy Spirit bound together in friendship, love, that means that friendship was never created friendship as part of the eternal nature of God. There has never been a time in all of eternity. When there was not friendship and you and I being created in God's image means that we were ourselves patterned after and created or friendship just like God.

That's why by the way, when God created Adam, the first thing he says of re-creates. Adam is it's not it's not good that man should be alone. The odd statement when you think about God to make that about something he just made right immediately jump and he designed it exactly according to specifications nobody's mess it up. Adam hadn't send yet I why is God looking at what he does made say that's not good was because we're like God. God made us like us and Adam was alone because Adam was like God. God was not alone.

So Adam was different. I got even though God made Adam to like him. You see, Adam was not lonely because he was imperfect. Adam was lonely because he was perfect.

All of our other problems in life arise out of our sin in our imperfections. Loneliness is the one problem in our lives that we have because we are made in the image of God she said well I dislike only need friends and kind of a loner I will best on this fish in her you're working on my car.

That's how I recharge that just means you're not very much like God, God said, let us make man in our image us one member of the Trinity speaking to another one, let us make man in our image, because you are in the image of God, you have a deep need for true friendship. Tim Keller points out that in these verses Jesus gives us a glimpse into what real godlike friendship actually looks like. According to these verses Jesus believes here wasn't a true friend is someone who always let you in, never let you down always let you in the second part of the phrase is always let UNC verse 15 Regina said.

No longer do I call you servants of the servant does not know what his master is doing that I called you friends, because everything for my father made known to you servants don't really know the hearts of their masters.

They just obey writing.

That's what a servants role is a about good masculine share his heart with the servant of the server. This doesn't matter said Jesus says I've always wanted more from you. I created you to share my life with you my joy is my thoughts, my pain. I didn't say merely obeying the acid fellowship with me commune with me walk with me. The Hebrew word for friendship.

Jesus would've used here when he originally said it is the same word for secret Gordon Hebrew for friendship and sinker. The same word sowed in Hebrew a friend or somebody you let into the secret places of your heart.

That is why incidentally, you can have that many true friends.

This is not enough space in your life to tell everybody everything and is not even safe to do that you cannot promise everybody in your life that you could just be there for them whenever I don't know how many friends I have on Facebook but I can't just post on Facebook. All my friends call me anytime night or day you need help moving.

I got a track meets my watch your cat while you're on vacation. Send your cat to me.

By the way, my real friends would never do that because I know I would box the thing up and FedEx it back to the gate to seal where it came from right so. But seriously, you just can't have that many people who show up at your house at 2 AM right at me. I don't have scratch what I love all of you and your my friends and but I don't tell you where I live. So the initial miles to and I have a need and want to know where I live, you know so you know so up, you can know where I live but I'm so you know what I'm saying there is like you. You still have that much space to always let's everybody in a true friend.

That group of friends always let you in, and a true friend never let you down. Greater love.

Jesus says verse 13 is no one than this, that someone laid down his life for his friends.

You are my friend. You are doing what I commanded you Jesus was so committed to not letting his friends down, but he would lay his life down literally for them, he would literally go to hell and back to purchase them. There was nothing that could make him turn away. There was no burden.

He would not bear no offense, he would not forgive.

We used to say when I was a kid. What a friend we have in Jesus all our sins agrees to bear. What a privilege now to carry everything to God in prayer.

By the way, this is one of the most absolutely distinct features of grill Christianity and other religious leaders. Mohammed, Buddha, Confucius, for example, they never related to their followers this way when they died they left behind a body of teaching their followers were to work to obey Jesus did not leave a body of teaching behind Jesus left himself behind in the Holy Spirit.

He said not just obey my teaching.

He said commune with me walk with me fellowship with me. Follow me. So friendship matters because we are made for were made in the image of God. We are made to be friends with God himself.

And then from that to become friends with one another and I will tell you that without any question at all. The quality of your life. You are an extrovert or introvert goes up dramatically when you have the right kind of friends last year. For example, last year, researchers from the University of Virginia, did a study with a bunch of students and they took students and they give them away to backpack really having to put them in the bottom of of a pretty steep hill and they asked them to estimate the steepness of that hill. They put some of them by themselves and they put others of them in groups of two or three and they said it invariably the students that were in groups of two or three unrated the hill less steep than those who were by themselves and the point is that no matter what you encounter in life, it looks less difficult when you are around the right kind of friends. By the way, many marriage researchers say. The single greatest factor that determines the quality of your marriage is the quality of the friendship you have with your spouse in your marriage. One study showed that I quote other wives feel satisfied with the sex romance and passion in their marriage is 70% dependent on the quality of the couples friendship from Indo men were wired differently our way.

For men, whether we are satisfied with our marriage is 70% dependent on the quality of the friendship within the marriage. The researcher says it turns out the men, women are from the same planet. After all, many of us don't think of marriage in terms of friendship. We think mainly as marriage is primarily attraction and romance, spiced with a little friendship maybe. But good marriages are primarily friendship, spiced with a little romance good marriages turn out and back to be friends with benefits you can take that phrase and you can make a Christian, God believes in the friends with benefits concept just within the bonds of monogamous covenant marriage. Of course okay so friendship matters because we are made for because were made.

The image of God. Number two friendship matters because it makes us say bye-bye to John and go all the way to the book of Proverbs Proverbs 713. It's to your left in your Bible, or if you panic when I say that this was on the screen writer below my feet ill be there. Proverbs 1320 private problems written by the wise men never live Solomon and Solomon says this he that walks with wise men will be wise, but a companion of fools will be destroyed. Not that other people destroy and help destroy himself. According to that verse listen what one factor. One factor determines how your life is going to turn out. One thing I know there are other verses that talk about other things but according to back what is the one factor that will determine how your life turns out, the quality of the people that you choose to walk with in life you show me your friends. Proverbs 1320 says, and I will show you your future. Or as Craig Rochelle says it.

Your friends are your future. You, your friends are the future you Craig Rochelle says you are usually the average of your five closest friends that I want to take back out that little Post-it note that had to fill out and I want to take a look at it. You show your friends and I'm going to show you your future.

Look at your you're the average of your five closest Franken's rights are cut out like the extremes you want to know this awesome and one that the gods are take out the extremes. Just look at the meeting. The average if you were stoned last night you were drunk last night, chances are three or 40) were to if you're following hard after God.

There's a real good chance that three or four of your closest friends are as well. Your friends show you the future you you will become the average of your five closest friends about this one.

Researchers figured out that the friend relationship is the most significant relationship when it comes to determining how much weight you're going to get in the future if your spouse gains weight. You're a 37% chance of also gaining weight, 37%. If your sibling gains weight, you have a 40% chance of gaining weight in the future. My cousin is a major genetic but if your friend gains weight, you have a 57% chance of gaining weight in the future what your friends are reading is actually more of an indicator for health habits in your closest family members tonnage of your best. He all of a sudden decides that everyday is Golden corral day and every night is ice cream night you probably have a talk. Craig Rochelle says we all have something that we would like to become something different.

Many of us want to be better parents are to be a better worker better student. You want to be a more solid Christian Rochelle says. What if the decision to become.

That was actually the decision of the people that you chose to most closely align yourself with, because according Proverbs 313, 20, that's exactly what it is. What if he often tell you guys is not the dreams you dreams the decisions you make with the dream of being whatever it is you want to become. What if the decision that got you from here to there was actually the people that you chose to align your self most closely with the says you are one friend away being a better parent. One friend away from being a better spouse. You're also one friend away from being a worse one of those you show me your friends and I'll show you your future. I know that raises questions for you as you like more reasons to be friends with everybody and have people in our lives it.

Yes, you are but here's way harder to explain.

And I think it's really really helpful. Our friends, I'm really way that you could kind of classify them in three concentric circles. Your concentric circles are. It looks like this.

There is an intimacy influence and tear on the circle of intimacy are three or four people that are the closest to you. You just don't have space for more people than that you do not have mice. You are your noggin have more than three or four in that circle of intimacy that the neck circle. The circle of influence are people that influence you and you influence them. The circle outside of that is the circle of care and these are people you spend time with you. Talk to you care about your pray for what really.

Proverbs 1320 is saying is that the circle of intimacy ought to be people who have the same convictions and values that love God like you do because you're going to become just like them insisted I know you well know, it's just the way God designed you. God designed you to become like the people you are you can work that in your DNA.

Prove it to you from the animal kingdom and were not animals like animals or animals.

But you know there's always a similars. The abatement a bunch of scientists were studying fish. This is awesome and I'm no fish travel in schools using the fish that like altogether and then they'll be this went over that way. Just like how you how to communicate what they want to figure out what part of the brain made that happen so they identify the part of the fish's brain that made it always want to be in schools and then they took one officious, cruel, and they are important for want of partial lobotomy and took out the part of the brain.

So now this fish has no more compelling reason to stay with the herd or the school. Whatever answer they brought it back and sure enough, this fish leaves the school window swims out by itself. Researcher said them the most unbelievable thing happen that we were expecting and that is the entire school started to follow that one fish that is now partially lobotomized and I read that I thought that is a perfect explanation of what happens in our high schools right because you get one kid who is like brainless Ruth establishes the fact it wasn't all true that a railroad through this every year because God just designed us to stay together and so you become like the people that are most around you and what God is saying is second Caribbean Stepper six. Don't be unequally yoked with an unbeliever. What that means is not that you want friends who are believers. It just means that the closer circle of intimacy are people that you were going to become like as your friends are your future.

You which means that some of you if you really want to make a decision about becoming something in the future. That decision change is that circle of intimacy.

That's what that meets, but that's the decision were talking about because that's going to determine what happens over here is any sense meet some of you ought to move some of the circle of intimacy in the circle of influence people influence you and and and there in the circle of influence can be. There's a lot of believers in there there's got to be people that don't share your faith because you know their work with them. You can store them. They influence you. You influence them about the circle at some of you need to move them into the circle of care between judgment within your friends with them or they're just not in the circle.

You don't send them an official notification that you're moving them okay this is a mental taxonomy. It's not you like hey just got upgraded influence you have on someone talk about, but under saying that if you understand what proper 13 this and you understand how key and important these things are in your life.

Parents listen.

Your friend, your kids are going to become like the five people that they would put down that list. You can bring Jacob and bring them here every week. I could be the greatest preacher in America. I give you the registry tomorrow. I can be the greatest preacher that ever lived, and it would not make as much difference as the five people that are the closest to them. That is what they are going to become. Which is why I tell you and not being self interested in this. Are you pastors not pay in the product placement when I say this you if you love your kids and you care about their walk with God in the future will make sure that you prioritize godly community in their lives. You will make sure that's what we had to get them involved here, because their community needs to be otherwise. Boys and girls, men and women who are pointing them to the place is a God wants them to go. Your friends are your future you. Proverbs 1226. Solomon says it this way, the righteous man is cautious, cautious, by the way, in Hebrew means spies out because the wise man righteous man is very spies out. We can be friends with his. He knows how important it is so typical Proverbs written by Solomon Jewish rabbis believe that a lot of what Solomon wrote was actually things that his daddy King David taught him what makes it interesting when it comes to the friendship passages in Proverbs is when you really, really, when you realize that King David's life can really be told the story of three friendships he had King. They had three friends and I will suggest to you that these three friends of David's represent hyper friends that we all should have in a very important. The first friend is named Samuel and I will call him the crown bestower the crown bestower. Samuel was a prophet that would David was a shepherd.

God told Samuel David supposed to be king and senior went to David and says I know you feel like you're just a shepherd and you thought you were the least of your seven brothers but God has appointed you to be king and Dave and Samuel use a cliché put a crown above David's head helped encourage David to grow up into it, you have friends that do that for you. I do, and they been some of the most influential people in my lives because they are friends who have seen what God was doing even when I couldn't see it when I was discouraged when I feel like I just really didn't have a great future.

These friend said no we see God's hand on your life.

We see these counties put in you. This is what God called you to.

Don't forfeit it with unbelief. Don't walk away.

Don't get distracted what God wants you to become Unita's annual crown bestower in your life because your identity.

How you think about yourself is always based on what the most important people in your life. Think about you. You will become what they think you are so you need Samuel to say, I see separate God says take you say Jennifer and Jonathan. Jonathan was on the call him the unfaithful companion Jonathan was David's best friend when he was a teenager. Jonathan Valdez was King Saul's son.

Things always drinking. King Saul hated David because David was no brightening the ambiguous always jealous of them. Jonathan would end up risking his own life several times to warn David to encourage him to protect him. What's really remarkable about that is when you consider the fact that Jonathan was encouraging David into being King at the expense of Jonathan being king. Jonathan should've been the next king of Israel, who Saul's son Jonathan knew that God had chosen David and Jonathan said well even that's not good for me this is what got us at dominant herds preeminent help you become that even if it's a great cursor personal cost to me. You have friends like that friends you don't treat you with jealousy friends who were selfless, listen to the first about Jonathan. I love this first 2318 Jonathan here is that David is discouraged and Jonathan Saul son rose and went to David at Hall rash which was 30 miles away all away any stricken David's hand in God, which is annoyed by passive friends who won't like text you back generally ticks me off.

I only need like three or four friends that when I know when I have any plan there on these people close to me.

Jonathan is the opposite of a pastor friend Jonathan gets in his version of the text message about David being discouraged and the dude walked 30 miles to answer the text message because he wants to encourage David a faithful companion like Jonathan is the person who walks and when everybody else walks out. These are the friends who say I'm not just gonna pray for you. I'm to pray with you because all the things you care about are the things I now care about you need these kinds of friends. My favorite place were Solomon talks about this is in another book that he wrote the book of Ecclesiastes whichever forgive this to are better than one. Why is one false one who looked up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls for he has no one to help him up again to lie down together, they will keep warm. What but how can one be warm alone translation when you lie down in life scold you need somebody to spend with that's what Solomon says. Proverbs 18 verse 24, a man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. If you have your Hebrew Old Testament open and I know that many of you do you just notice that the word for sticks in that verse is the same Hebrew word for Cleves in Genesis chapter 2 when God says, a man will leave his father and mother and cleave to his wife. In other words, there are things about a friendship relationship that mimic even the loyalty and the faithfulness in a marriage relationship. There is a loyalty and friendship that rivals even married you say I want these kinds of friends I want these kinds of rental. We provide a vehicle for developing those kinds of relationships here at the summit church, not for spooning for friendships is a little small groups small groups don't equal friendships but small groups or at least a place for these things can begin to develop. Which is why I'm always up here yelling at you that you need to get out of just the rows and get into the circles at the summit church because that's where these formative relationships begin to happen. Friend type number three is will call him Nathan because that's his name and then also call him the loyal wound or the loyal wound or later David's life if you knew the story he got in the print pretty bad said he slept with his best friend's wife and try to cover it up. Try to cover it up. And God sent Nathan who essentially puts his finger in his face and said, you have sinned against God, and it's destroying your life you'll complain about it. You need people in your life who put their finger in your face and say you are making a stupid decision. Do you have this card to friends.

How do you treat them when they say that to you.

A lot of us get mad right and that terminates our friendship because it hurts it's embarrassing, it hurts. Here's our Proverbs would say it was 27, six faithful are the wounds of a friend profuse of the kisses of an enemy with a some kisses always feel better than one center who's doing what kisses always feel better than wounds and your friend wound you it hurts but of all you have around you is people who give you kisses.

Life is gonna feel good for a while but then you're going to destroy yourself.

Which means you gotta deputize a few of your friends. You gotta give them a hunting license and a weapon in your life and you say I need you to point out the blind spots in my life blot you got blind spots in the definition of a blind spot is you don't know it's there. That's what we call it a blind spot if you know it's their call weakness. You got blind spots as means you can't see them but everybody else can see them in your last person to know that some of these things and you gotta have a friend who says you are destroying your family, your destroying your career destroying what would God your destroying your kids for God sake, stop it, and you will have friends like this and you surround yourself with people who give you kisses all the time. It feels good for a while but into destruction. David Tollison, the Christian counselor things in a secret garden inevitably grow mutant. I don't care if you're 62 years old and you're a guy, this is what you highlighted a fish and work on my car and upon that's what I'm happiest your life has grown.

You if mutant and the sad thing is you can even see God can see about things in a secret garden. They always grow mutant because God is not designed to live that way. Those are the two reasons that friendship matters because your mate for him because it makes you so you ought to follow Solomon's advice and spy out. Proverbs 1226, 30 friendships because of how important they are now before I in this message and really in this whole series I want to do what I've done every single week of the amount I want to show you how to power for these kinds of relationships the power friendships ultimately comes from friendship with Jesus sort of theme of this series is that every horizontal relationship we have is preconditioned on the quality of our vertical relationship with Jesus. You see, Jesus is the best and the ultimate friend that we could ever have you think about it.

Jesus is the combination of Samuel Jonathan and Nathan, Jesus is Samuel because he spoke courage into our life and we held a crown up when we did not deserve it. He said you're a sinner but I'm going to change her name to St. your dad, declared to be alive. You are not my people but I'm in the clear that you are my people. Your name was wrath your name was failure.

Your name was judgment, start calling you mercy new creation more than a conqueror and useful for my service and he declared what God wanted to do in us before God even started it, and he held a crown up above her head and grows into a Jesus is Jonathan. He served us a great personal cost to himself. When David was in the Jonathan wall 30 miles to her rash to meet his need. Jesus will more than 30 miles across the gap between deity and humanity. Jonathan gave up his right to the palace to help David get in.

Jesus did more than give up his right to it. He shed his blood so that we could be included in the palace Jesus like Jonathan would make his cause or sees me.

Our cause is because he took our sins and our sorrows Penny made them his very own what we felt he felt was told my kids in the night on the end of our family devotions about John chapter 11 where on Jesus weeps of the tomb of Lazarus. Lazarus and Mary and Martha are there three siblings. Lazarus dies, Jesus shows up to Mary is weeping and Jesus. John 1135 sort of person the Bible Jesus is weeping to. I asked my kids is like no what is it that it doesn't make sense to me, at least at first. Why Jesus would start crying their because Jesus knows he's about raise Lazarus from the dead and like less than three minutes Lazarus ago to be alive.

If I had been Jesus. What I would do it is a bit Mary quick Ryan, raising the dead right up. You know what is at that's what I would which is why my Jesus what Jesus does is he begins to. Why would he weep if he knows he's about raise ladder from the dead. That's what friends do. Friends can't watch you goodly motion and not go to the same emotion.

What that means is that when you walk through your divorce when you walk through your betrayal means when you walk to your bereavement when you were in pain when you got stabbed in the back.

He does what in heaven say, not shut off exit. He was there in that moment, weeping with you what a friend we have in Jesus all our sins and griefs to bear. What a privilege now to carry everything to God in prayer. Jesus is Jonathan Jesus is Nathan.

He loved us enough to confront us.

He could've just ignored us and then annihilated us, but instead he came to us he told the truth and he wouldn't shut up even when we despised him and reviled him and murdered him.

Jesus is the best friend that he describes in John 15. He is a friend who always let us in and vacuumed have his body ripped open so that we could come into his presence. He's the one who never let us down is that I will give up my life and I literally go to hell and back before I will let you down that friendship with Jesus enables us to become the right kind of friends because it does two things for his friendship with Jesus. First of all, gives us the ability to be vulnerable. You're the reason you can't really open up and let people in your life is because you're afraid that when they see the secret parts of you know you're gonna walk away and let the fear, but I hate you look pretty. Also the outside but now that I get the maintenance on your cheek in a boring and predictable, and then also Susan's office was screwed up and I'll have room alive or screwed up people so different.

No yarn or walk away what friendship Jesus does is it gives you safety is found in John 1516. My favorite verse in the whole passage, Jesus, and you can choose me I chose you know Jesus was telling them there.

One saying hey dudes on Calvinist that that wasn't his main point is main point was when I chose you. You were nothing, and she's usually the popular kids that it wasn't even listen foot fungus.

It was even a Disneyesque kind of choosing using the Disney movies as you gotta be a princess who was really rough on the outside but she's beautiful on the inside and we see through the rough exterior because in the inside she's beautiful and right, that's the opposite of Jesus using uses like I looked through the rough exterior outside and I found even rougher stuff on the inside. The prettiest part of you is the outside, the inside is really screwed up you know Cinderella on the inside or outside and back like a whitewash to the best part of the team is the outside with them inside his rot and decay and I chose you anyway. Which means there's nothing on the Discover now the text, you surprise me, and what happens is when I feel safe with Jesus and raffle safe. If you because I know that when you discover that broken part of my life or somebody more important was already discovered it and he's only declared my acceptance and I feel safe with him and he's ready declared that he's going to change it so I can be open enough to let you see the broken parts of me because I'm not afraid of you discovered something he hasn't already discovered his promise to change and what happens when that happens you suddenly develop the ability to be friends because true friendships.

True friendships are formed around shared weaknesses is governed. You can impress people, your strengths, you cannot connect with them over weaknesses to true friendship is connecting over weaknesses and some of you on the ability to be friends because you've never learned to be vulnerable enough that you let people in your weaknesses. Here's the other thing friendship. Jesus teaches you to be gracious there's anything I learned about friendship after having a number of good friends over the years. True friendship is hard like friendship is easy why friendship is hey I like you.

You make me laugh. Let's hang out but what happens is inevitably to go the distance with somebody if you can get close to them there to disappoint you there.

To be self-centered there to be inflexible.

They're going to look at them and see just how can you be so blind to what I need because you're so self-centered to what you need. How can you let me down this way. What's wrong with you that is going to happen with any human being that you choose to be friends with and unless you've learned to treat other people graciously. You'll never be able to have good friends the way that that begins is by beginning to treat others as you have been treated by Jesus which is why ultimately all this comes back to a vertical relationship that gives you the capacity to have these horizontal relationships. That's the question that I will and not just this message with this whole series on are you a friend of Jesus. Do you have friendship.

Jesus, I am asking if you're religious, a lot of you are very religious, are you friend of Jesus because Jesus yes he's the Lord, and you submit to him. But Jesus came in not just not just to get you to obey. He came into share his life with you. I give you couple test to tell you know if Jesus is your friend how you pray. If Jesus is your friend. Prayer is not a duty prayer is your natural response when something goes wrong, why because you know that he shares he weeps with you in it and he's the first place you want to go. What a friend we have in Jesus all our sins agrees to bear. What a privilege now to carry everything to God in prayer. Listen if you are not the kind of person who daily craves to seek with God seat seeks to be with God, then you probably have never really experienced the friendship of Jesus is anything that changes your attitude toward sensors to change before you know Jesus is a friend. God is like. This ruler that you're trying to avoid like oh you not want to crush me for my bad stuff but we Jesus becomes a friend. You begin to want to not sin against him. And when Judas betrayed Jesus. Jesus looked at him and he said friend.

In other words, if you are an enemy, I would get this, but your friend you betrayed me when I sin against Jesus. It's like I hear his voice saying I would get this if you are an enemy, but I'm a friend who let you win. And I never let you down and suddenly I don't want to let down the one who is never let me down. You see the judgment of God can curb your behavior but the friendship of Jesus will change your heart if you want to be transformed from the heart, which is what God wants for you and me you won't come by the demands of the law to encumber the friendship of Jesus.

So are you friends with Jesus. Have you ever received him as a friend, is a gift that he offers to you as the foundation of everything else want to bow your heads all of our campuses known as friend you receive them as friend. This means you acknowledge that he is the Lord you receive his love and his gift of salvation.

You can do that to a simple prayer Jesus I surrender, and I receive greater love has no man than this, that he laid on his life for you. He loves you he loves you because it shows you as friend. He lay down his life for you because you wanted you eternally as friend just receded.

If you have received and you know that in this moment, I would invite you just to re-embrace the beautiful friendship of Jesus Lord Jesus, what a friend we have in you make it new.

Make it real so the prayer becomes a privilege so the burdens become light, so that sin becomes horrific so that the mission becomes passion with the God and Jesus