Some of the loneliest people I meet in my office are those who have outlived most of their friends and loved ones but have not made the effort to invest in new relationships. They have a plethora of excuses for not doing so. They say they have trust issues, or that they are tired of being betrayed or burned by fake friends. And then, as they grow older, they find they have no one to talk to and no one who cares about them. They feel cheated. Even though they are often financially secure—they are extraordinarily lonely and aren’t willing to make any effort to change. It seems that since COVID, even young people are experiencing profound loneliness as well.
Why is this?
Well, the Bible has a simple answer:
“A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”
Proverbs 18:24
This is a basic, but often ignored, principle. If you want friends, you have to put yourself out there. You must be willing to be hurt and disappointed. And if Jesus is the Lord of your life, you have a friend who will never leave you, never hurt you and never disappoint you. He empowers you to be a friend to others without the risk of losing your most important friendship. But we cannot be stingy with our friendship.
Selfishness is the opposite of love.
Selflessness produces the best friendships. Jesus said when we follow Him in loving obedience—He calls us HIS friends and HE empowers us to love others as we are loved. He said:
“Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.”
John 15:13-15
The deepest experiences of loving friendship require constant sacrifice.
Christ sacrificed for us so we can sacrifice for others. Paul prayed that the Ephesians would comprehend the WIDTH and LENGTH and DEPTH and HEIGHT of the love of Christ, “which passes knowledge.” (Ephesians 3:18-19)
A love experience that “passes knowledge” means it is unlike even the deepest feelings of love we have felt in ANY human relationship. That’s because it is a supernatural love experience in our soul and spirit as it interacts with God.
The best friendships are made within a strong relationship with Jesus.
2 Responses
There is no better friend that you can always count on for everything then Jesus! amen amen amen
Amen!