Dwight Fletcher | Friendship – A Kingdom currency

I wish you a prosperous New Year, knowing that ‘good fren betta dan pocket money’. We closed last year talking about Jesus’ humanity and what we could learn from it. So we begin 2021 by looking at the rich friendships in Jesus’ life.

In 2020, we realised how important relationships are. Without others, many persons became depressed, even when their physical needs were covered. And next to family, friendships are the most significant relationships in our lives and are sometimes even more significant than birth relations. Which is why when Jesus walked this Earth, He also had close friends who provided support to Him.

In reading the Bible, we often perceive Jesus’ disciples only as His trainees, but the truth is, He viewed His disciples as friends. He said: “I no longer call you servants … I call you friends…” John 15:15 (NCV). He travelled with friends, stayed with them, and visited them. He worked, preached and partied alongside them. In fact, Jesus was so friendly that He was called “the friend of sinners”. Sometimes He disagreed with and was disappointed with them, but He would also forgive and restore them. Jesus lived this way because He knew the benefits of friendship.

1. COMPANIONSHIP

And Jesus didn’t only have close relationships with His 12 disciples, but also with others. Lazarus, Mary and Martha were dear friends that He went to see often. He was often over at their house eating and fellowshipping with them (John 11 & 12).

Jesus knew that relationships is a high-value currency of the Kingdom of God, and while here on Earth, He was rich in it! He lived and died to re-establish our relationship with God the Father – He restored our sonship and our friendship.

The first problem in the world wasn’t sin, it was solitude. At each step of the way when God created the world, He pronounced that everything was “good”. Then God created Adam and He made an unsettling statement: “It is not good that the man should be alone” Genesis 2:18 (NIV). This was before the fall of man when sin entered the world. Adam wasn’t “in a good way”; he needed community and companionship. Tim Keller says: “God made us in such a way that we couldn’t even enjoy paradise without friends. Adam had a perfect quiet time every day for 24 hours a day. Yet he needed friends.”

2. JOY

Jesus’ companions brought Him joy that He expressed on many occasions. Jesus taught His friends this principle of ministry by sending them out in pairs. He told them how to minister and what to do. At the end of the ministry the Bible says, “The seventy-two returned with joy and said, ‘Lord, even the demons submit to us in your name’.” Luke 10:17 (NIV). Take note of Jesus’ response: “In that very hour He was overjoyed and rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit…” Luke 10:21a (AMP). Jesus Himself was excited! The Greek word suggests “shouting and leaping with joy”.

There’s a joy we can’t experience by ourselves. And as much as possible, we need these kinds of friends, even if only online at the moment. It’s beneficial to start healthy relationships face to face but they can be maintained through video calling and other online activities, until it’s safe to do otherwise.

As people who were made in the image of God, we were made for relationships. Jesus needed friends around Him, and so do we. Next week we’ll continue to discuss the importance of friendship, but until then, what relationships will you be building up in 2021?