What do we expect from other people?
How can we know if they are a good friend?
A complaint from people who’ve achieved success is that they can no longer be certain who their true friends are. Do they love them for who they are or what they’ve achieved?
In the Netflix series The Crown, the Queen Mother visits a castle in Scotland in hopes of one day owning it. The seller doesn’t recognize her, and they spend the day chatting and finally strike up a deal. When he learns her identity, he asks why she didn’t tell him. She enjoyed knowing he was warm and convivial because she was a person, not royalty.
The Bible gives us three examples of a good friend, one we can trust in every situation.
1 Samuel 18:4 tells of the special bond between Jonathan, the son of the king, and David, God’s anointed one.
“And Jonathan stripped himself of the robe that was on him and gave it to David, and his armor, and even his sword and his bow and his belt.”
2 Kings 2:2 reveals Elisha’s dedication to his mentor no matter what path God leads them down.
“And Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Please stay here, for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.’ But Elisha said, ‘As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’ So they went down to Bethel.”
Job 2:11 says our friends will be there for us in our time of trouble.
“Now when Job’s three friends heard of all this evil that had come upon him, they came each from his own place, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the Shuhite, and Zophar the Naamathite. They made an appointment together to come to show him sympathy and comfort him.”
Here’s our examples in a nutshell:
- Good friends wish to help us.
- Good friends stick with us.
- Good friends show up in tough times.
Jesus is that good friend to us. He fits every criterion. Let’s invite him in today.
When we are in need, Jesus is our best friend indeed.
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