Does God Care About My Friendships?

Have you ever offended someone so much that they refused to speak with you ever again? Maybe it was a spouse, a girlfriend or boyfriend, perhaps a coworker or classmate, or even a relative. I have. Here is my story.

When I was a kid, I had a friend named Chris. He was my best buddy. We hung out together; we did everything together. One day, I ran into a bully on the street. He started to pick a fight with me. I didn’t do anything to him. He just didn’t like me. We fought. He was bigger than me and a better fighter. So I was quickly losing, badly!

Suddenly, Chris came out of his house, just in time. He ran across the street to help. Pulling the bully off me, he began to pound on him. Chris was going to kill him. I yelled “stop, that’s enough!” Chris let the bully up and he ran home. As Chris and I walked away, I criticized him for beating the bully senseless. I said, “You shouldn’t have beaten him up like that.”

Chris was hurt, and rightly so. I wasn’t grateful to him for helping me; I judged him for being too harsh with the bully. Instead of thanking him, I scolded him! He was silent. He turned away. Immediately, I realized what I had done, but it was too late. Chris went home.

I knocked on his door; no answer. I apologized; he ignored me. I phoned; he wouldn’t talk. Chris simply wouldn’t listen to me. Finally, he moved away. We never spoke again after that day. Our friendship was ruined. 

What ruined my friendship with Chris? Sin! Yes, sin. The bully’s sin – He wanted to beat me up for no reason. Also my sin -- I was judgmental rather than grateful. And Chris sinned too -- he was unforgiving. Whose sin was worse? It doesn’t matter. If just one of our sins was avoided, Chris and I would have remained friends. 

That’s what sin does – it ruins friendships. It destroys marriages. It causes children to run away from home. It drives people into all kinds of addictions. It fills our jails, our hospitals and our cemeteries. 

Sin messes up people’s lives, everyday, all day long. Even when we admit we were wrong, or try to fix things, sin interferes with our amends. And can we really undo the wrongs we’ve done?

No one is exempt. Everyone is affected by sin, their own and others’. What’s worse, our sins offend God – our only true friend! We really need help, don’t we? So what do we do?

There is a solution -- Jesus. The Bible says Jesus came to bring reconciliation.^[1] But the first relationship that needs to be reconciled is with God.  This is called “salvation.” We need to be saved from our sins. We need to become God’s friend. How is your relationship with God? Are you on speaking terms? Are you God’s friend? Jesus wants you and God to be friends.

The Bible says that “God is love” and that God loved you so much He sent Jesus to be your mediator, a go-between, for you and God.^[2] But God won’t force you to be His friend. You have the right to choose your own friends.^[3]

So what happens to people who reject God; do they go to Hell or something? Yes, where else would they go?^[4] God is love.^[5] Hell is a place without love.^[6] God is good and wants good things for us.^[7] Hell is a place without goodness.^[8]  God wants to forgive you and for you to forgive others.^[9] Hell is a place without forgiveness.^[10] Heaven is joyful and pleasant because God is there.^[11] People who don’t want to be around God go to hell -- the only other place to go.^[12] 

Are you God’s friend? Do you want to be God’s friend? Here’s what to do:

(1) Believe your sins are causing problems between you and God.^[13]

The Bible says, "…your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He will not hear."^[14] 

(2) Believe God sent Jesus to be your mediator so you can be reconciled to God.^[15]

The Bible says, "…God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself ... we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God."^[16]

(3) Believe Jesus is the one and only true mediator between you and God. ^[17]

Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me."^[18]

(4) Ask God, in the name of Jesus, to forgive you and to be your friend.^[19]

"For whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved."^[20]

Pray a simple prayer – something like this:

God, I know my sins cause us problems. But, I believe you want to be my friend. I want to be your friend too. Thank you for sending Jesus to be our mediator. Please forgive my sins and save me. I ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

If you prayed this prayer, please contact us. This is the beginning of your new friendship with God, through Jesus. We want to help you! We are God’s friends too.  And please, go to a Bible believing church this Sunday. God likes His friends to hang out together. Church is a great place to meet God’s friends. See you there!

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