My Friends
You are my friends …
You are my friends if you do what I command.
All the glory, praises and honor be to the Holy Father in Jesus’precious name !
The words in the subject verse were spoken by Jesus Christ, the begotten Son of God. The Almighty God is giving us the opportunity to become His friends. And it is clear from the subject verse, how one could become His friend. If we could get to know the context, it will be more easier for us to understand how.
Jesus places before us a condition for becoming His friend. And it is to follow the commands that He gave to His disciples in the previous two verses. The following verses describes us what He commanded.
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
John 15:12-13 NIV
Jesus Christ told the disciples what He was going to do. But they did not understand Him. The disciples might have understood the first part of the command, But the second part might have caused confusion among them. Truly, laying life for others shows the depth of love one has fort the others. Only a true friend shall lay his life. Most importantly, the Lord Jesus chose us to be His friends. And since we are His friends, He laid His life for us. Moreover, He chose not to call us as His servants, but as friends.
Jesus sacrificed Himself to atone our sins. He washed all our sins by His own blood that He shed on the Cross. Furthermore, those who repent of their sins and believe in the Son of God by giving their heart to Him, shall have this free gift of salvation. Remember, as the famous man of God, Billy Graham said, “To us it’s free, but it cost God the life of His Son”.
Therefore brethren, let us fully submit to the Lord and live our lives as He commanded. In Jesus’ precious name. Amen.