Are You A Friend of God…Are You Even A Friend, Period?
Who am I that You are mindful of me?
That You hear me when I call
Is it true that You are thinking of me?
How You love me
It's amazing
Who am I, Lord
The Lyrics to the song 🎵, I am a Friend of God. A beautiful song, undoubtedly, heard bellowing on Sunday mornings during praise in churches and assemblies all throughout the Earth. It’s definitely a “feel good” song.
But as with anything concerning the Word of God, we sing and speak scriptural truths that are not necessarily a truth MANY live outside the four walls of fellowship. It’s easy to put on the face of “religion and holiness” it’s as old as those that lived in the Biblical days.
I can show you better than I can tell you and I will show you in scripture:
Luke 18:10-14 - 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The Pharisee stood in pride and “prayed” about himself. Bad move when praying to The Lord God, not to mention just plain ignorant, in that the lack of understanding as to the nature of The Lord God and knowledge of the scriptures
Proverbs 27:2 - Let another man praise you, and not your own mouth; A stranger, and not your own lips.
1 Corinthians 1:29-31 - 29 that no flesh should glory in His presence. 30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God—and righteousness and sanctification and redemption— 31 that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in theLord.”
Therefore, it is safe to say the Pharisee didn’t know The God he believed he was serving. He knew how to walk in pride and boast as if he was holy, when in actuality he was just religious and religion is a ritual and formality that by its very definition keeps many away from The One True Living God! STRIVE FOR RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD GOD; NOT TO BE RELIGIOUS.
The scriptures give us definitions, illustrations, and demonstrations of what is a friend. Friendship begins with love. Not love as a feeling per se, but as an act of one’s will.
I will use myself as an example to explain:
My love for others is not predicated on how others treat me, or what they think of me. I choose to love because that is what’s in my heart. It’s a choice, my choice, and not a ”touchy-feelie” emotion that vacillates between my “moods” because that is flesh born of a carnal nature.I have been granted a Supernatural Revelation of Hell and I can say for certain I do not desire that any should spend eternity there and yet so many are. But I can also say for certain, that I will not be there. My heart, my words, and my deeds have been made new by the washing of the water of the Word of God I live the will of my Heavenly Father because I know and understand His Word
I don’t have time to walk in flesh by gossiping, lying, murmuring, or playing with this gift and my calling for selfish gain. I have been entrusted to teach and lead souls to Christ; therefore, though I may love you, I may abstain from your presence in my life simply because you may not be walking upright before The Lord, and my salvation is far too valuable to me to allow it to be determined by the actions of others I can and will depart from toxicity.
1 Corinthians 15:33 - Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.
And you already know the scriptures I MUST share:
Matthew 7:13-14 - 13 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
Isaiah 5:14 - 14 Therefore Sheol [Hell] has enlarged itself And opened its mouth beyond measure;
Their glory and their multitude and their pomp,
And he who is jubilant, shall descend into it.
Is it really worth it to “flex” on this earth and spend eternity in torment in Sheol [Hell]? Those two scriptures alone should cause you to live for your eternal life and not for pride, pomp, and pageantry here on Earth.
Anyhow, according to the scriptures, friend(ship) begins with love. Not your definition of love, but the scriptural definition of love:
1 Corinthians 13 - The Way of Love
13 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned,but have not love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8 Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass away. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I gave up childish ways. 12 For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.
13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.
So I ask…are you a friend according to the scriptures?
Husbands, do you love your wives? Are you friends?
Ephesians 5:25-30
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. 28 In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. 29 After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— 30 for we are members of his body.
Wives do you love your husbands? Are you friends according to scripture definitions?
Ephesians 5:22-24
22 Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord. 23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Savior. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything.
Wives, skip on over to Proverbs 31 to gain a better understanding of Ephesians 5:22-24. Because so many do not understand Ephesians 5:22-24 in terms of a wife loving her husband. It is misunderstood to mean that the woman is subjugated to her husband; when in actuality Proverbs 31 tells us in great detail that she is a well-rounded successful woman and the fruit of her love and friendship is demonstrated through her husband, through her children, in her business affairs, in her attitude, her character, and her personality. She represents her husband, her children and her household well! She represents well period!
And if you are honest and find that you are not a friend in your earthly relationships according to scripture (not according to YOUR definition)…then are you a friend of God?
Hmmm…let’s see:
James 2:23 - 23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.
Well, lookie lookie…Abraham didn’t call God his friend, the scriptures say his [Abraham’s] faith was accounted to him as being in right-standing with The Lord God…and because of his faith which led to his obedience, he was called a friend of God! You and I don’t determine and declare that we are a friend of God, The Lord God determines our worthiness to be called friend of God. Remember that
Beloved, James 2:23 leaves more for you to ponder and meditate then I ever, in my finite mere self , ever could. In fact, this entire blog leaves much to ponder in your heart and take a really honest look at yourself as a friend to mankind and more importantly as a friend to God.
In Christ’s Love Dear Friends,
Apostle & Prophetess Wendy Connor
(c) Copyright 2022 Wendy Connor
