What Makes a True Friend (Proverbs 17:17)
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Proverbs 17:17
A friend loves at all times,
And a brother is born for adversity.
Ah! I love this verse. There are so many things to say and routes to travel when discussing this verse. I wish we had more than a few minutes to talk about it.
Nonetheless, here’s what I want you to walk away with today:
A friend and a brother are revealed in adversity.
Adversity is the ultimate test of love. It’s where true friendship is revealed. You never know who your real friends are until they’re given the opportunity to jump ship.
It’s like sports. You find out who the real fans are when there’s no reason to be on the bandwagon. And for sports, that’s when the team is awful. With friends, it’s when life is awful.
A true friend and a brother love at all times – they are born for adversity. They don’t just care for and love you because of your strengths; they love you in spite of your weaknesses. The true friend is not ashamed of poverty or a prison, a palace or the Palisades. Their love is unconditional.
Such was the love of Joseph to his brothers, even though they had betrayed him (Genesis 45:5-8).
Such was the love of Ruth, who stayed with Naomi, choosing to leave everything behind (Ruth 1:16-17).
Such was the love between David and Jonathan, transcending family ties.
Oh, and of course, these examples all point us to the love of Jesus Christ, the ultimate friend and brother. The one who took on flesh, loving us to the end, and caring so much for the adversity set WITHIN us, within our hearts – that adversity being sin – that He bled and died for it.
Let that simmer. Jesus loved you so much that He died for you.
What a friend we have in Jesus.
I want to pose three questions to you today:
First, internally: Are you a true friend to anyone?
Second, externally: How many true friends do you have?
And third, spiritually: Do you know the True Friend, Jesus Christ?
No chance you get the first two questions right if you can’t get the third. Jesus must be a friend to you before you can become a true and real friend to anyone else. You don’t know love, you don’t know friendship, until you know Jesus.
Let’s pray.
