Friend Ephesians 3:14-21, NIV “For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom his whole family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge - that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.” Introduction Today I would like to share the grace of God under the title “Friend.” We live standing shoulder to shoulder with parents, neighbors, co-workers, competitors and those who are indifferent to us. Not every one of these people becomes your friend. A friend is a neighbor who shows understanding, compassion and love towards you, and is of great comfort and help when you are facing difficulties, hardships and sufferings. The fellowship of a friend grants us understanding, comfort and love when we find ourselves in the middle of difficulties. Therefore a man who has good friends can expect a healthy and happy life emotionally and physically. A man of many friends is a happy person. However if you are too often in debt to a friend; you may make him feel heavy burdened and he may turn away from you. As well as receiving friendship, we are also to be good friends to others. Throughout our life we may sometimes feel that ‘my strength indeed is small.’ If we have friends we can find new strength and power, comfort and help when we are weary. We should always be thankful for having good friends around us. 1. God becomes our friend Surprisingly the Bible tells us that God is our friend. God, my friend! We may ask ourselves: ‘Is not this an imprudent utterance?’ But the Bible clearly states that Jesus presented Himself as our friend. John 15:13-15 says, “Greater love has no one than this; that he lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends…” Jesus looks into your eyes and tells you that “you are my friend.” The Lord is our friend. Our friendship with God moves our relationship with Him into a new dimension. God and I are friends. In Matthew 11:19 Jesus was even called “… a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and ‘sinners.’ ” And in Luke 12:4 Jesus called his disciples as “my friends.” When Jesus mentioned Lazarus he called him “our friend” (John 11:11). And God called Abraham “my friend.” James 2:23 says: “‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,’ and he was called God's friend.” We are not only beloved children of God but also His friends. God has covered us with the wonderful grace of His five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessing. We are wonderfully blessed. Let me tell you how much we are blessed! We received His five-fold gospel and three-fold blessings as soon as Jesus declared on the cross “it is done!” They were all granted to us. Above all of his blessings; the Gospel of salvation was given through the cross. Our sins were forgiven and we became righteous without cost. Secondly, the Gospel of the fullness of the Holy Spirit was given to us. Through the cross, we received sanctification; and the channel of the grace of the Holy Spirit was opened to us. Thirdly, when the Lord proclaimed ‘It is done!’ the Lord exchanged our sickness and disease with healing. The fourth aspect of the five-fold Gospel that we received through the Cross was the blessing of Abraham. Through the cross God broke curses and granted us Abraham’s blessing. Fifth, we have got the good news of the second coming of Jesus Christ. We expect resurrection, eternal life and the kingdom of heaven which is our final, ultimate residence. Through the work of the Cross wherein Jesus said, “It is finished;” Christians also have access to the three-fold blessings, which were freely given to them. Our Lord wants us to enjoy “good health and abundant life even as our souls are getting along well.” God grants us the well-being of our body and soul as soon as our soul is restored to Him. He answers our prayers and gives us favor so that everything will go well with us. However God wants the priority of our well-being to begin with our soul. All things cannot go well with us and our body will easily get sick when our soul is not well. Each one of us, without exception, has already received the five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessings through what Jesus has done for us on the Cross. We have received the blessing of salvation. We have received the blessing of the fullness of the Holy Spirit. We have received the blessing of God’s healing power through Jesus. We are exceedingly blessed by the Gospel. We have received the blessing of the second coming of the Lord Jesus. We have been given this promise which will never change even if heaven and earth disappear; not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from this promise of abundant life to us. God’s hand will move on our behalf if we recognize this promise and pray to Him holding on to it. Let us say, “Lord! I believe you have given me the well-being of my body and soul to enjoy. You let everything go well with me. Now you have shown me your threefold blessing.” The blessing is already promised to us. “I thank You for fulfilling this promise for me.” We could not ask our Lord for abundant life if He had not promised it. But He has promised it to us. He has granted this blessing to His friends and we are to cherish this in our hearts. God has poured His Holy Spirit upon us and He now resides within our hearts. We are especially blessed people because of this. We are the temple of God. Romans 8:26 says: “the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express.” In our weakness, we pray with the help of the Holy Spirit. We may not even know what to pray for. We may not know how to pray. We may not know where to go. But we can ask Him, “Holy Spirit! Help me to pray. I cannot do this by myself. Do it for me.” Then the Holy Spirit will come to you and create a heart of prayer. He will give you wisdom and prudence. We may consider calling Father God our friend imprudent but He is indeed our friend. In fact God is not only our friend but He is also our well-spring of life. God made us. He is our creator. God is for us as our fountain of life. The fountain of life itself has become our friend. The Son of God, Jesus Christ, has become our friend. He is the friend of our salvation and the Holy Spirit is always with us as our friend. Hallelujah! Acts 17:24-25 says: “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth… He himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.” God who became our friend has made it possible for us to live, breath, and think. Father God has allowed me breathe, life and everything in between heaven and earth. Ephesians 3:20 says: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us.” God, who is already working among us, is able to do immeasurably more than we can all ask or imagine. Our God is not short. Our God always provides us with more than enough. Please repeat after me. “My God answers me all the time with more than enough.” God does not answer us with insufficiency. God is broad-minded. His hands supply us with more than enough. When we rely on our Savior and live with Him as our friend; we will continually be abundantly filled with His five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessing. Our Lord died on the Cross, was torn and shed His blood to grant us His five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessing. Our Lord has done this and He has done this for us! Jesus calls to us “mon ami! mon ami! Take it! I have done it!” My package of grace is given to you. Therefore when we think upon Jesus; we must never fail to remember His Gospel and blessings that were granted to us through Him because He paid for them with His blood. We can therefore pray boldly because the Holy Spirit desires us to experience this holy package of God’s five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessings granted to us through Jesus’ death on the cross. We have the most wonderful friend in this world. We have Father God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Our Mon Ami, our God! 2. We become like God, who is our friend What happens when God becomes our Friend? It is precious when even another person becomes our friend. We come to have a strong belief and confidence in our lives when God becomes our friend. God is neither incompetent nor powerless. He is a most faithful and capable friend who abundantly helps us. If God becomes our spouse’s friend as well, our house is exceedingly blessed. This is a great blessing! We can be confident because Jesus Christ is our friend to whom all glory and power of heaven and earth are given. We can pray and ask Him to help us no matter what happens in our lives. Hebrews 13:5-8 says: “God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?’… Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” Does the Lord exaggerate in His Word? No. He said: “I will never leave you. I will never forsake you.” The Lord will not ever forsake us anywhere in our lives. Through all our days on earth, through all troubles and times of weariness, whether all things are going well with us or not; Jesus will not ever leave us. The Lord is with you. He is there for you no matter what happens in life. God’s five-fold Gospel and three-fold blessings follows directly behind where the Lord is. You are then well able to become a pioneer wherever you may go or whatever you may do. You can be an architect of a new world where people can live happily because Jesus is with you. Amen! We will have hopes and dreams when the Lord becomes our friend. God is a God who puts dreams in us. God brings us change. We will not ever be the same because God comes with all kinds of dreams for us. When a man has a dream in his heart; he will look forward to fulfilling his dream. God promises to fulfill his dream. Philippians 2:13 says: “for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” God puts a dream in your heart according to His good purpose. You receive a dream from God and it becomes yours and stays in your heart. What do you wish for? You wish to fulfill your dream. God always gives us both small and big hopes. Who is without hope? A man without a dream or a hope is found maybe in a cemetery. We all have wishes and hopes. Look forward to fulfilling your hope. It is your dream. When the Lord becomes your Friend; you not only are saved and are able to enter into the kingdom of heaven, but you also receive hope and a dream to press on. Romans 15:13 says: “May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.” Our God overfills you with hope so that you will have a joy and peace as you continue to trust in Him to fulfill that which He has promised to you. Therefore living a life of faith in Jesus means living a life of overflowing hope given by Father God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit! The Father God of hope, the Son of hope, and the Holy Spirit of hope is in your heart. Tomorrow will be better than today. We believe with the fullness of hope that next month will be better than this month and next year will be better than this year. Even if you are looking at an empty space right now; you it will be filled with hope if God is with you. Your God is a God of hope. If God is our Friend we will come to be like him. Friends are bound to resemble one another. I admonish you to be very careful of the crowd your children hang out with. Our indifference may cause them to follow the bad behavior of their group. Children are strongly influenced by their friends. We want our children to have good friends because they will take after them and do right things. I am sure we have all experienced this with our children, haven’t we? If we are around good friends, we will be influenced to do good deeds; but if we are around bad friend, we will be influenced to do bad deeds. The more we get to know God as our friend, the more wonderful things will happen to us. Can we find a more wonderful friend than God in this world? Ephesians 5:1-2 says: “Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us…” God became our Friend and we became imitators of God. Now we live a life with Father God, His Son, and the Holy Spirit. “For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light, for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.” (Ephesians 5:8-9) Our lives will certainly move towards goodness, righteousness and truth if we live with our Lord. We will not bear fruit of darkness. Because we live in the light we will bear fruit of the light. Please repeat after me. “The fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.” Christians who put their hope in Jesus are children of the light and will never be the same but changed to bear fruit of light. 3. A good neighbor is to be a good friend Third, a good neighbor is to be a good friend. A good neighbor is to be a good friend and a good friend is to be a good neighbor. In Luke 10:30-34 we read a story about a man who fell into the hands of robbers on route to Jericho from Jerusalem. The robbers beat this man, took everything he had, and left him half-dead on the side of the road. Two man, one a religious leader, the other a priest and Levite passed this man who was laying half-dead on the side of the road. The title of these two men indicates that each was to have shown friendship to the needy; but both the religious leader and priest were serious hypocrites. Today in church a pastor, an elder or a deacon can be a hypocrite. Then a Samaritan came to the place where this dying man laid. Samaritan people were despised at that time. People would pass by the Samaritans and call them “very vulgar.” A Samaritan came to this place on the road to Jericho and found this very needy man. He took pity on him and got off his donkey. I am sure he said: “Oh my! A man has been beaten and robbed. He is bleeding. I have to rescue him.” This Samaritan man took action. He poured oil and wine and bandaged the man’s wounds. Near-eastern country sojourners at that time would carry oil and wine to protect their skin from the hot climate. This Samaritan man did not spare his oil and wine but used them to cleanse and sooth the man’s wounds before bandaging them. He further put the man on his donkey, took him to an inn and took care of him. Jesus asked: “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” In other words: “who was a friend to the man?” Yes, the Samaritan was the friend. A husband should be a friend to his wife and his wife to him. They should be the closest friends in the world. Our God is a friend like the Samaritan. I beg you to not consider God as if He is like the religious leader or Levite priest who were both indifferent to the needy. God is a good friend to us as the Samaritan man was to the man left half-dead on the side of the road. No matter what people say about God; it is He who is there to rescue us at anytime, at all costs to Himself. We bear witness of God who shares love and happiness with us. Do you know someone who shares the love and happiness of God? He is the one who truly takes after God. God’s love can be seen through him. Since God has become our friend; we should not only love with the words from our tongue, but we should love with our actions and with truth. We should witness God’s love and obey the words of Jesus, who is our coming bridegroom. Today you should be God’s friends. God has been our friend since we were born into this world. God is our Friend. “God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God did not withhold His one and only Son. God is giving you His Son even now. God is your friend. Why don’t you become his friend? Jesus showed his love by sacrificing his life on the cross for us. Through his torn body and the shedding of his blood; He paid the penalty for all eternity of our indelible sins. On the cross Jesus gave us His Gospel of forgiveness, sanctification, healing, blessing resurrection and eternal life. On the cross Jesus granted us His three-fold blessing that “we may enjoy good health and that all may go well with us, even as our soul is getting along well.” He is our friend. There is no better friend than Jesus. God’s Holy Spirit, your counselor abides in your heart as your friend. Through the Holy Spirit, God has granted you wisdom, and power, talents and strength, inspiration and discernment to recognize the spiritual world. Wow! You indeed have a great friend! He is a wonderful friend to you. There is no one richer than a person who has faith in Jesus. You should then never step backwards with feelings of inferiority or frustration. You are people who are not to go backward but are to go forward. Conclusion We go to church on Sunday to meet God who is our best friend in the whole universe. Right now at this time you are meeting with your most wonderful friend. With Jesus, even a person like me can be a friend to others. A church is a place where people can make a lot of friends. A church is also a place where people can be a friend to a lot of people. Christians are all my friends. A church is full of friends. There is no place other than a church wherein all people are friends. We learn to be friendly in church so that we will go back home to become friends with our family. In our community if we learn to become friends with each other; our world can be more peaceful. I therefore urge you, in the name of Jesus, to learn that God is your friend. Be proud of this and learn to enjoy your heavenly friendship. Let us pray together! Our heavenly Father who is full of love! Without exception, as our best friend, you will not ever leave nor forsake anyone who is here today at this worship service. Father God, Your son Jesus, and Your Holy Spirit want to be here as our friend for all of us. God take hold of us so we not fall. Help us to share love and grace with others. Help us to spend our life sharing love and happiness with others. Thank God that you allow us to be your friends. There are still many people who do not know how to make you as their heavenly friend. Let them open their hearts and accept Jesus as their Savior and become God’s friends. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen. 1