Grosey's Messages

Call to Worship Col 1:15-23

Communion  Luke 22:14-23,

Bible reading: John 15:12-17

Doxology  Numbers 6: 24 The LORD bless you, and keep you;

25 The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you;

26 The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.'

 

Wisdom  Facilitate Your Friendship Factor

The Beatles' song "Eleanor Rigby," was released in 1966.. It doesn't contain the pronouns I, me, my, or you. It's the story of two lonely people brought together by fate.

It's a powerful song about loneliness. There's a lonely woman named Eleanor Rigby who picks up the rice from a wedding. Maybe she worked at the church as a cleaning lady. Nobody really knew her because she kept her face in a jar by the door. Most of us are the same way, we have a face we wear at home and another face we wear when we leave the house. Father McKenzie is a lonely catholic priest. His religion has forbidden him to marry; he writes as sermon, but nobody came to hear it. But at her death these two lonely characters come together. Eleanor Rigby has become the matron saint for lonely people. If you visit Liverpool you can see the statue of Eleanor Rigby sitting on a bench. She is faceless. Here bag on one side and a bird on the other side has been placed there intentionally, so you still cannot get close to Eleanor Rigby. The Beatles touched a sensitive nerve by confronting loneliness. It is one of the most painful human conditions.

LONELINESS IS A COMMON FACT 

God looked down at Adam in the Garden of Eden and declared, "It is not good for man to be alone." That's still true. There are many examples of lonely people in the Bible.  Job. God allowed Satan to test Job and soon Job found his life in a mess. Three so-called friends came to comfort Job, but they weren't much help, they just implied that Job must have done something awful to end up in such a painful situation. Job was miserable, and in Job 19:13-19 (CSB) he describes his loneliness: "He has removed my brothers from me; my acquaintances have abandoned me. My relatives stop coming by, and my close friends have forgotten me. My houseguests and female servants regard me as a stranger; I am a foreigner in their sight. I call for my servant, but he does not answer, even if I beg him with my own mouth. My breath is offensive to my wife, and my own family finds me repulsive. Even young boys scorn me. When I stand up, they mock me. All of my best friends despise me, and those I love have turned against me." Job wasn't alone; he was surrounded by people, yet his heart cried out with a sense of loneliness. You don't have to be alone to suffer from loneliness.

LONELINESS IS A CRIPPLING FORCE

Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote  "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner." The main character in this emotional autobiography laments,       Alone, alone, all, all alone;          Alone on a wide, wide sea!

And never a saint took pity on          My soul in agony.

He had managed to ruin 2 marriages and deserted his families, as an opium addict.

And he experienced alienation and loneliness.

The Beatle's song asks two questions about loneliness that they never answer: Look at all the lonely people: Where do they all come from? Easy answer: They come from everywhere—every neighborhood, every city, and every nation. The second question was "Lonely people, where do they all belong? And I'll answer that question in this message.

LONELINESS CAN BE A CONQUERED FOE         

A little girl was being taught to pray the Model Prayer. "Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be your name…" She got a little confused and prayed these words, "Our Father who art in Heaven, how do you know my name?" The Creator of the Universe knows your name and He wants to be your friend. One of the all-time favourite hymns is, "What a friend we have in Jesus." It asks, "Can we find a friend so helpful? Who will all our sorrows share? Jesus knows our every weakness. Take it to the Lord in prayer."

The Bible says there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Jesus is that friend. One day Jesus was dying on a cross and He saw a lonely thief dying with Him. The lonely man said, "Remember me when you come into your kingdom." Jesus said, "You don't have to be lonely anymore. Today you will be with me in paradise." All the lonely people, where do they all belong? They belong in a church with people who will love them. They belong to a God who will love them with an everlasting love!

You are Created for Friendship… with God    We were created to delight God and to be delighted in God .  Abraham was Called God's Friend: Isaiah 41:8 "But you, O Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, you descendants of Abraham my friend

James 2:23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend.

 Abraham's friendship with God consisted very much in his willingness to TRUST God no matter what, and to SACRIFICE whatever God asked of him

So God revealed Himself and His plans to Abraham:  Genesis 18:16-17 When the men got up to leave, they looked down toward Sodom, and Abraham walked along with them to see them on their way. 17 Then the LORD said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do?

Friendship with God implied in many other cases… especially "walking with God" Genesis 5:24 Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. Genesis 6:9 This is the account of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. Abraham was commanded to walk with God… and he did!! Genesis 17:1 When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to him and said, "I am God Almighty; walk before me and be blameless.

God's command us to walk with Him: Micah 6:8 He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.

Jesus Called His Disciples Friends.

John 1:35-39 The next day John was there again with two of his disciples. 36 When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, "Look, the Lamb of God!" 37 When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. 38 Turning around, Jesus saw them following and asked, "What do you want?" They said, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39 "Come," he replied, "and you will see." So they went and saw where he was staying, and spent that day with him. It was about the tenth hour.

So, we have the privilege of being Jesus' friends:  John 15:13-15 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 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.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE FRIENDS WITH GOD?

It is Elevating To Be A Friend of God.     We are Transformed from Enemies to Friends.

The most amazing part of this world is that we, even we sinners, should be called God's friends

This is the power of the BLOOD OF Christ… to make ENEMIES into FRIENDS

Colossians 1:21-22 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. 22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation

This means that we have the power to walk with God in this world as His friends: He likes us, delights in us, and works in us to be better friends to Him.

It is Enduring To Be A Friend of God.       Eternal Friendship with God  John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

It is Enriching To Be A Friend of God.

With the unshakeable foundation of a reconciled VERTICAL friendship with God, we are then led into HORIZONTAL friendships with others.      The Gospel Makes Friendships

The Gospel is the power of God for salvation from sin… it reconciles us vertically toward

God BUT it is also the power of God for reconciliation HORIZONTALLY with brothers and sisters in Christ… we are brought into a marvelous fellowship with friends we haven't met yet from every nation on earth.

The Beauty of the Church. John 17:22-23 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one: 23 I in them and you in me. May they be brought to complete unity.  John 13:35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.

HOW DO YOU FACILITATE YOUR FRIENDSHIP FACTOR

1. The Selection of Your Friendships

Proverbs 12:26a (ESV) One who is righteous is a guide to his neighbor … literally "Spies out" 

Proverbs 12:26 (NIV) The righteous choose their friends carefully …

Your friends influence you.

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."

Carefully  .. a house.. a car.. a piece of furniture.  But often we don't choose our friendships carefully

Proverbs 1:10-16 My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them. 11 If they say, "Come along with us; let's lie in wait for someone's blood, let's waylay some harmless soul; 12 let's swallow them alive, like the grave, and whole, like those who go down to the pit; 13 we will get all sorts of valuable things and fill our houses with plunder; 14 throw in your lot with us, and we will share a common purse"-- 15 my son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths; 16 for their feet rush into sin, they are swift to shed blood.

Proverbs 14:20 The poor are shunned even by their neighbors, but the rich have many friends.

Proverbs 19: 4 Wealth brings many new friends, but a poor man is deserted by his friend.

6 Many seek the favor of a generous man, and everyone is a friend to a man who gives gifts.

7 All a poor man's brothers hate him; how much more do his friends go far from him! He pursues them with words, but does not have them.

Proverbs also warns about bad people to befriend.. Criminals

Angry men     Proverbs 22:24-25 Do not make friends with a hot-tempered man, do not associate with one easily angered, 25 or you may learn his ways and get yourself ensnared.

Proverbs teaches us the danger of false friends who lead us astray:

1 Corinthians 15:33 Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."

Therefore Proverbs encourages us and encourages our children, to make good friends.

Proverbs 12:26 A righteous man is cautious in friendship, but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

Proverbs 18:24 A man of too many friends comes to ruin, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

2. The Direction of Your Friendships

Proverbs 12:26b (ESV) … but the way of the wicked leads them astray.

A good friend will shelter you.

Proverbs 17:17 (ESV) A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Walter Winchell: "A true friend is one who walks in when others walk out."

Lew Wein: "A friend is someone who is there for you when he'd rather be anywhere else."

Sacrifice  Proverbs 17:17 A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Loyalty  Proverbs 18:24 A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Proverbs 27:10 Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father, and do not go to your brother's house when disaster strikes you-- better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away.

A true friend is loyal, sticking by you and upholding your cause. Jesus' friends all deserted him when he was arrested. But Jesus has made us this promise:

Hebrews 13:5 "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you."

So also a true friend makes a similar promise to his friend.  Perhaps the friend is sick, perhaps, the friend is unpopular after saying something stupid or even some gross sin… a true friend remains loyal f. A true friend is someone who knows the deepest parts of you, a likes you anyway!!

A good friend will straighten you out.

Honesty  Proverbs 27:6 (ESV) Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

Wise Counsel    Proverbs 27:9 (ESV) Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.

A good friend will sharpen you up.

Proverbs 27:17 (ESV) Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.

Proverbs 18:24 (ESV) A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.

Forgiveness  Proverbs 10:12 Hatred stirs up dissension, but love covers over all wrongs.

Trustworthiness  Proverbs 16:28 A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends.

John 15:13 (ESV) Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. Jesus is the friend who can transform you forever!

A. Are You Friends with God?

Let's start with the GOSPEL… have you trusted in Christ?  If so, are you walking in friendship with God moment by moment?

When you sin, does the fact that Jesus was HURT by what you did cause you the most pain?

When you arise, does the idea of walking with Jesus throughout the day bring you the greatest anticipation?

B. Do You Have Any Close Friends?

Men: generally men avoid close relationships… we keep our distance, talk about sports, hang out without revealing ourselves. Do you have anyone who is a trusted friend, who can give you godly advice, who will make sacrifices for you. Men tend to avoid these as though we don't need them.

Women: the friendships you have, are they BASED ON THE GOSPEL? Are you seeking to put Christ at the center of those times together?

C. Make it a Goal to Develop Friendships

Church-wide, we need to measure our effectiveness in FELLOWSHIP by the quality of the FRIENDSHIPS the gospel is producing here.  Are we a superficial, surfacy, entertainment, fun, and food church which keeps people at an arm's length?

Or does the ministry of this church produce DEEP-SEATED, SPIRITUAL friendships such as those Jesus had with His disciples?  In humility, knowing the deceitfulness of sin, seek to develop ACCOUNTABILITY relationships which can help you make genuine progress in your life.

D. Seek to Be a Friend Make it a matter of prayer to become the kind of person with whom God can entrust a friend. Proverbs 18:24 A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. NKJV