GOOD MORNING BELOVED!
Welcome to another edition of the SJMBC Podcast:
“HOW IMPORTANT IS THE WORD OF GOD TO YOU WHEN IT COMES TO . . . ?”
I am your host Brother Henry Cotton, Jr. and I am also the Pastor of the SJMBC. Welcome to our Podcast. The topic for our Podcast today is:
“HOW IMPORTANT IS THE WORD OF GOD TO YOU WHEN IT COMES TO . . . BEING A FRIEND?”
People say a lot of things simply out of habit, and I wonder how many of them do we really mean? For example: “Have a Blessed Day!” “Call me anytime!” “He/She is my friend!” and the list goes on and on. I want us to think about how easily we use the term “Friend.”
I don’t think we consider how a lot of the things we say affect the people we say them to. When we as Believers of the Lord Jesus Christ say things to a person, we need to understand the ramifications of those words. When we say that we are a friend to someone, there are at least three (3) different expectations: (1) from the person who said it, (2) from the person it was said to, (3) and from the LORD.
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- “A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.” Proverbs 17:17 (KJV) – A friend and a brother are given equal status here; a friend has enough care, concern, and commitment to be there for their friend no matter what adversity comes along! (Expound).
- “A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” Proverbs 18:24 (KJV) – When you find that you have someone who is willing to stand by you through “thick and thin,” you need to shew that you are willing to do the same for them. It is expected for brothers to treat each other that way; a friend will do that . . . and more!
- “Greater love hath no man than this that a man lay down his life for his friends.” – Jesus is letting us know that there is no greater way to show your love for your friend/brother than to lay down your life for theirs. Jesus is letting us know that by laying down His life for ours, He was showing us that there is no greater expression of love He could have shown .
- “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you.” – Don’t miss this! Jesus is telling His disciples (Believers) that if we want to be Jesus’ friend we will do what He commands us to do.
- “This is my command: Love each other.” – Jesus is telling us that the love we have for each other as brothers/friends should be enough to have us WILLING to die for one another .
CONCLUSION –
We need to understand what we are saying to someone when we tell them we are their friend, or that we are their brother/sister. I think the example of the “Good Samaritan” is an excellent example of how being a friend to someone is shown (Luke 10: 30-37). Because we are followers and representatives of the Lord, it doesn’t matter what WE think; we need to understand that the Lord has expectations for us when we put our word out there, because we are HIS representatives.
Remember, our ZOOM Podcast airs live on Tuesdays at 7:00am:
Pastor Cotton is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82997714213
Meeting ID: 829 9771 4213
You can always reach me through our website and our email:
Website: https://stjamesmbcphilly.com
Email: pastor@stjamesmbcphilly.com
