Weekly Words of Encouragment 11-2-09

Good Morning All,
Just a simple thought this morning that I hope and pray will be a blessing to each and every one of you. Have you ever considered the value of a friend? Solomon said in Proverbs:

A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24

We all have acquaintances…we all have colleagues or business associates… It is the friends in our life that will be there when the days go dim as well as when the days are delightful. Jesus Christ mentioned friends many times. It was friends that Jesus told the maniac of Gadara to go and tell what great things the Lord had done for him (Mark 5.19); Jesus Christ referred to His disciples as friends when He expounded the fear of God (Luke 12.4); In the parable of the lost sheep, when it is found the Lord says the man called his friends to rejoice (Luke 15.6-9); Likewise with the prodigal son (Luke 15.29).

But perhaps that greatest illustration our Lord has given us concerning friendship was Himself as prophesized in John 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. We know that Jesus Christ laid His life down for us, He gave it willingly. That’s is the value of a friend, one who will sacrifice their time, effort, money and manpower for the one they call ‘friend’.

But how can we have a friend today?

The best way to have a friend is to be a friend. Jesus Christ gave us a beautiful example of friendship – He laid down his life. Sometimes in being friend, we will just have to lay ourselves down, prefer others and esteem them better than ourselves. Sure it may cost you, but remember, you are investing in the value of a friend.

An English publication offered a prize for the best definition of a friend, and among the thousands of answers received were the following:
"One who multiplies joys, divides grief."
"One who understands our silence."
"A volume of sympathy bound in cloth."
"A watch which beats true for all time and never runs down."
But here is the definition that won the prize: "A friend—the one who comes in when the whole world has gone out."

Now, is there any cost that is too high when investing in the value of a friend?

Have a wonderful day.

Til the Shout,
Dr. B.J. Stagner Jr.
Pastor
New Testament Baptist Church