FRIENDS BLESS OUR LIVES

Text: I thank my God every time I remember you. Phil. 1:3

This epistle was written by Paul the Apostle. Paul found the church at Philippi on his second missionary journey; after Paul left the city the church stayed in contact with him and often took care of his needs. After a while they lost their communication.

When later in his life when he went as a prisoner to Rome they once more established a relationship with him. The immediate occasion for the writing of Philipians was Paul's receiving a gift from the Christians at Philippi. When Paul learnt about the church's feelings and sincerity he wrote to them, Paul wanted them to know how grateful he was to the kindness and sincerity of the church shown by the church at Philippi. This epistle of Paul to the church at Philippi is mainly filled with various personal forms of the word joy. 

I. Friends are important but don't forget your parents advices

Elizabeth Barett Browning a poetess (an atheist) of the 18^th century once asked a novelist Charles Kinglesley (the son of a vicar of a church in England) tell me the secret of your life he replied I had a friend who always helped me.

Few of us realize how important our good friends are and what a contribution they make to our lives. But it is our duty to identify which are the good and the bad ones. Most of the times I used to ignore the words or the advice of my parents and considered the words of my friends greater, later I realized that how important those words of my parents meant to me. I am not saying in every friend you make you should ask your parents but we have to remember the advices provided by them, most of the times we give less value to these advices we have to highly value the advices provided by our parents and I am sure none of the parents will be guiding their children to go the wrong way because they expect us to walk in the right ways. Not only that as I Corinthians.15:33 Bad company corrupts good character so we should be careful when we make friends.

Someone has once said like this even circumstance leads us to death if we have two or three friends we are fortunate. Paul has happy memories when he looks back although he had been away for a long time. He also thanks God for his friends and remembered them in prayer.

II. Our friends in Christ are our dearest friends

A tremendous difference exists within friendships. Most of the times we meet and make friends with many people. Some may be good; some may be bad; some may be just an acquaintance (that is a person who knows just the moment you met him only).But during the times of trouble no one except the friend who knows Christ would be there to help you.

Paul loved his Christian friends and he often mentions in his letters. Sometimes Paul even mentions the good qualities of his friends. Even when disappointed with someone Paul made special attention about them in his letters for e.g John Mark turned back on the first missionary. Paul refused to take Mark when he came back on the second missionary journey. It is not because Paul hated Mark but I think Paul loved Mark and wanted Mark to know that doing God's work should be a continuous work and not doing it half by half. Years later as we read

2Timothy. 4:11 Paul includes Mark when writing to Timothy.

III. To make and to keep friends, we must be a friend

To show ourselves friendly we should throw out the selfish attitude away from us. Most of the times we expect others to come forward to communicate with us or to make friends. Often we must take the first step in establishing the relationship. Jesus said of himself in Mark. 10:45 "…..not come to be served but to serve…..." each christian should have this attitude toward life. We should not seek what we can get from our friends but rather what we can do for our friends. In this way we gain friends and I am sure no one likes to be with a selfish person.

Jesus said we are his friends if we do what he commands us to do. This means friendship also carries obligation

IV. The greatest friend is Jesus 

Prov. 18:24 says "A man of many companions may come to ruin but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” This marvelous Old Testament passage referring to our Saviour.

He delivered us from sin and he promised to stay with us in every step of life's journey. Jesus laid down his life for his friends but he also did for his enemies as well. In fact this is the way he made his enemies his friends. Jesus showed by dying on the cross that he loved us so much.

I would like to conclude by saying that friends may come and go. In that itself some may be bad or some be good will be there, no matter how much time will pass on there is only one man who sticks closer to us forever as he promised to us and that is our Lord Jesus Christ who is not only a friend but our one and only Saviour.