TITLE: A Friend of God - 5-28-2015 By Roy Proctor 05/28/15 |
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Proverbs 17:17a. A friend loves at all times.
John 15:15. “I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.”
I am a friend of God. What a bold thing to say. Many would take issue with such a statement. “Well, who do you think you are?” they say. Their mocking words sneer at the very truth that has been built into my heart, or inner man. Such doubters fail to understand that one is humbled to the core when he or she moves into God’s presence.
There is no doubt that every encounter with God is a unique and humbling experience. On the other hand I am satisfied that I am a friend of God. Out of that relationship I stand to receive every blessing He has.
The greatest blessing of God is His love. Proverbs 17:17a informs us that a friend loves at all times. That’s my God. I may become distracted and slip away at times but His love never gives up on me. Like the father in the parable of the prodigal son, He looks down the road every day longing to see me coming back. I can always approach Him and say, “I’m sorry Daddy.” Excitement consumes Him and He celebrates my return to His presence. He always forgives and gently does something that softens my heart and conditions it so I can gain a deeper appreciation of His priceless blessings.
Since God is my friend I can always go to Him and unload everything that’s on my heart. He always responds with solutions that are, at times, so uncanny that my soul stands aghast. Blessings flow that give me fodder for a powerful testimony. Why not boast of Him? His perfect wisdom shines brightly in this fallen world in which we live.
It always blesses me every time I read John 15:15. When the Holy Spirit works in my heart, at some point in time I am no longer a servant. A servant knows little of his master’s business and has no rights at all. Immediate obedience is expected with no questions or reasons given.
Becoming a friend of God is a graduation from merely being a servant. I become a part of what God is doing. He keeps no secrets from me but unfolds the plans of my life and tells me everything I need to know to live victoriously in this fallen world. While it’s for Him to know every detail of the end-times, He gives me confidence when I look to the future. Through the eyes of faith, He will empower me to endure to the very end.
But what about obedience? If I were a servant, I would be commanded to obey and receive some miniscule blessing in the form of money or things. But now that I am God’s friend, I obey His commands out of love for Him because He also loves me. Out of that relationship comes a lifestyle of increasing abundance and the blessings flow.
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