Our Friendship With God
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Greetings…
Right now the whole world is focusing on one thing it seems and it isn’t God unfortunately it is Covid-19 also know as the corona virus.
but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect,
Don’t get me wrong some, because of this, have turned back to God but it seems more are afraid of this virus than their Creator above.
But even for those that are faithful these times are strange, concerning, anxiety riddled, fear filled.
This means more than ever we must understand it is a time for “UNCOMPROMISING TRUST IN GOD,” and “TRUST IN EACH OTHER.”
Brethren when life comes at us like this we need a walking, talking, personal friendship with our God.
What does that mean, how can we be friends with God and God friends with us?
Let’s see if we can answer those questions today.
Friendship Requires Communication
Friendship Requires Communication
Why hope for heaven?
Why hope for heaven?
Good Communication.
Good Communication.
There is no doubt we are to hope for heaven as our eternal habitation, in fact our “hope is laid up in heaven” ().
When Moses was up on Mount Sinai with God we read this about God’s communication with Moses.
So with that in mind let’s examine our lesson for today.
But why are we to hope for heaven, what is it about heaven that motivates our hope for it?
Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.
There are two main reason we are to “hope for heaven.”
Communication is the key to any good relationship and that isn’t different where God is concerned.
First, God is there.
Friendship with God requires good communication, which means holding nothing back from God.
In Peter teaches baptism is a type of the flood, but in the later part of that verses and in the next we see Jesus is at the right hand of God in heaven.
It requires us imploring of God.
But Moses implored the Lord his God and said, “O Lord, why does your wrath burn hot against your people, whom you have brought out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?
Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers having been subjected to him.
Why should we hope to be in heaven one day, because God the Father, Son, and Spirit are there waiting for us to join them.
It requires us to “pour out our soul” to God.
But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.
Summary
Summary
Friendship with God requires complete communication with our God.
We must “pour out our soul” to God about the great, the good, the bad, and the ugly.
Friendship Requires Service
Friendship Requires Service
Pure Obedience
Pure Obedience
Over and over in the Bible we read that righteous living and obedience to God is required for friendship with God.
Because of Abraham’s belief and subsequent obedience to God’s Word i.e. his righteousness he was considered a friend of God.
and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.
Jesus told His disciples that they could not be His friend without obey Him.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
Summary
Summary
Pure obedience or righteousness is the gateway to friendship, but it only opens the door to it, it isn’t the only factor.
In fact, if we only serve God, we will not be His friend because there something else required. ( cliff note)
In other words...
Friendship Requires Communication
Friendship Requires Communication
From God To Man
From God To Man
Communication has always been the beating heart of a friendship.
Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.
Without such there is no trust and there is therefore no friendship.
Friendship is not one sided, it isn’t that we are just friends with God, but God wants to be friend with us.
Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses turned again into the camp, his assistant Joshua the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.
If communication is required, we should see this dynamic transpire between both God and man.
It just so happens, if we study friendship with God, we see this is the case.
God, understanding friendship only takes place through communication and earned trust, has done that just; He has communicated why He would make a perfect friend for us.
When Jesus was here on earth and His disciples were following Him and serving Him there is a point where their discipleship turned from servants to friends.
Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.
Notice this friendship only took place once Jesus had communicated with the disciples and earned their trust.
Now, I’m not saying God “needs” our trust or friendship, but God does want it and friendship isn’t expected but earned.
God knows this and has proven His value as a friend to us over and over.
God communicated clearly and succinctly to His creation why He is worthy of our friendship, but for there to be a friendship between God and man we must communicate as well.
From Man To God
From Man To God
As I mentioned earlier and as we noticed with Jesus relationship with His apostles, friendship with God is more than just our service to God it is our willingness to communicate with our God.
We are to serve but our service is bolstered and converted to friendship when we offer God what He has offered us, a reason to be friends.
What can we possibly offer God, by way of communication, that deems us worthy of friendship.
Before I answer that I want to first point out what destroys friendships quicker than anything else, a lack of trust.
Friendships assume the other is being honest and forthright about everything in their lives so that there are no real surprises.
Now, to go back to our question, “What can we possibly offer God, by way of communication, that deems us worthy of friendship” in light of what I just mentioned, it’s our honest and forthrightness about everything.
We become friends with God when we open up to God and are honest to God about everything in our lives.
What does this mean?
It means communicating, as a friend would, with God when we are excited, happy, and joyous.
After the Egyptian army was drown in the Red Sea by God Moses communicated with God, His friend, in song.
Then Moses and the people of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying, “I will sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and his rider he has thrown into the sea. The Lord is my strength and my song, and he has become my salvation; this is my God, and I will praise him, my father’s God, and I will exalt him. The Lord is a man of war; the Lord is his name.
Mary, Jesus’ mother, after talking with Elizabeth rejoiced in song to to God.
Lk 1.46-
And Mary said, “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant. For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for he who is mighty has done great things for me, and holy is his name.
It means communicating, as a friend would, with God when we are scared, anxious, or worried.
Hanna after not conceiving “poured out her soul to God.”
But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord.
The psalmist would declare “all his longings” before God.
Ps 38.9
O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you.
Summary
Summary
Friendship with God, for our part, requires total communication with our Creator, our Father, our God.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Friendship with God requires we “obey His commandments” but it also requires we have an open and honest communication constantly with no hidden secrets.
Because as you know, we might can hide things from our physical friends for a time, but we will never be able to hide anything from our spiritual friend God.
Yes, we are in troubling times but as the song says, “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to God in prayer! O what peace we often forfeit, O what needless pain we bear, All because we do not carry everything to God in prayer!”
Invitation
Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save, or his ear dull, that it cannot hear; but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you so that he does not hear.
who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent,
“Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven.
in flaming fire, inflicting vengeance on those who do not know God and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus.
Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand, and by which you are being saved, if you hold fast to the word I preached to you—unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,
Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.