The Best Friend

THE BEST FRIEND

John 15:13-15

Pastor Greg Mc Donald

I would like to take this moment and welcome all visitors and thank you for coming and worshiping with us today. We welcome you here today on our Friendship Sunday.

Some are here this morning because you where invited by a family member and others where invited by a friend. This mornings message is on Friendship. So let me ask you what is a friend? One Dictionary: defines it as "One who is personally well known and for whom one has warm regard or affection".

A friend is one who knows your faults and loves you regardless. This morning let us take a look at our main text for today, and that is found in John15:13-15(READ)

In this scripture Jesus has opened the way for a new kind of relationship among His disciples. He calls them friends,"Not servants". The love of Jesus had broken down the wall which separated the Master from the slave, and the rich from the poor. But also a love that latter was expressed even more, when Jesus laid down His life for His friends and those friends are us.

In the eleventh chapter of John there are three characteristics that qualify Jesus as a Best Friend. Instead of reading the eleventh chapter this morning I’m going to just go through and give you a picture of what is taking place in this chapter, then share with you the scriptures that point out these three characteristics.

In the beginning of this chapter, word is sent to Jesus, "that the one you love is sick." This person is Lazarus, who is from Bethany, and is the brother of Mary and Martha.

But when Jesus received this message he didn’t hurry up and go to were he was, He waited two more days before gathering His disciples and telling them, "Let us go back to Judea again", to see Lazarus.

When He told his disciples about this they were worried because the last time he was in Judea they tried to stone him there. And now he wants to go back.

But Jesus was not worried,. And He said to His disciples, our friend Lazarus is asleep and I must go and wake him up. Bit His disciples did not understand. They just thought that he was ill and that resting would do him better.

Then Jesus went on to tell them, that they didn’t understand. Lazarus was not sick in the way they thought, He told them that Lazarus had died. So they all went to the town of Bethany.

Mary and Martha at this time were being comforted by many Jews. And when Jesus arrived, Martha went to meet Him, and she said to Him, Lord if you had been here my brother would not have died.

But Martha had so much faith in Jesus that she said to Him."But even now I know whatever You ask of God, He will give you." Jesus just simply told her, "Your brother will rise again".

Martha then left and called for her sister Mary and told her that the Teacher has come and is calling for you. As soon as she heard this she got up and quickly went to Him.

When she reached were Jesus was she fell at His feet, saying to Him, just like Martha did, "Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died. When Jesus saw her and the Jews with her weeping, He was moved and asked her "Where have you laid Him."

When they reached the grave there was a stone at the entrance of the grave and Jesus told them to take away the stone. But Martha was worried about the smell because Lazarus had been died for four days, And Jesus said to her "Did I not tell you that if you would believe you would see the glory of God?"

So they removed the stone and Jesus looked to heavens and prayed to the Father, then shouted "Lazarus come forth." Then Lazarus came out of the grave and Jesus told them, "Remove his grave clothes.

As we are going to see there is no other friend like Jesus.The first characteristic that I would like to point out is the fact of what a mighty friend Jesus is. In verses 37-44 one of the Jewish men that was with Mary and Martha asked the question, "Could not he who open the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from ?"

Even the people around Him that day knew the mightiness of Jesus. He could have obviously kept Lazarus alive, but he chose to let Him die so that His mightiness would be revealed.

Jesus is a mighty friend who performs miraculous things when we meet his requirements and conditions. What I mean by requirements and conditions is, in verses 39-41 Jesus commanded them to take away the stone.