James 2:17, “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (ESV). To celebrate this book, Trillia’s publisher will give away 5 copies! Enter to win by leaving a comment here. Įnter to WIN your very own copy of Jesus and the Gift of Friendship by Trillia Newbell.
You can follow Trillia on Instagram and at. OUR FAVORITE THINGSįor more encouragement for your kids to embrace Jesus as their closest friend, you can grab a copy of Trillia Newbell’s book, Jesus and the Gift of Friendship. Thank You for being my friend, my Savior, my Lord. Jesus, thank You that You give me the power to obey. But, Jesus, thank You that You provide a way for me to say “no” to my sin through the power of Your Holy Spirit. Lord, I know that my temptation is to run to lesser things. “He who calls you is faithful he will surely do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:24, ESV). He who began a good work in you will complete it (Philippians 1:6). Because of your sin, you have failed your greatest friend, but the good news is that He has never and will never fail you.Īren’t we glad that Jesus is honest with us?! He tells us exactly how we can be His friend. Jesus is your friend because of His great love. You are a friend of Jesus - if you obey Him. This does not add to our salvation by grace alone through faith alone, yet it confirms our transformed hearts.Īnd the offer to be Jesus’ friend - the same Jesus who is the Author and Perfecter of our faith, the Alpha and Omega, the beautiful One who bore our sins and transgressions - is irresistible for the Christian.Īs with all things we want to teach our children, if we want to teach them this glorious truth, we must first believe it for ourselves. As we abide in Him, we will bear the fruit of righteousness. Jesus tells us that we are His friends (let that soak in for a minute) if we obey His command to love, and that command is fulfilled through abiding. He then says, “You are my friends if you do what I command you” (John 15:14). In this chapter, Jesus reminds us that there is no greater love than someone laying down his life for his friends. It is a relationship that He initiates through and by His sovereign love. The fruit that Jesus speaks of in John 15 is simply evidence of a relationship with Him. This is also good news to the weary person who thinks she must muster up strength to pursue and know Christ and to love her neighbor. Apart from Christ, we cannot do anything in Him, we bear “much fruit” (John 15:5, ESV). We didn’t choose Him He chose us to walk out our faith in obedience to Him (John 15:16). We obey in love.Īnd here is the good news: We love Jesus because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). We abide through our relationship with Jesus. We display our love for God through our trust, prayer and devotion to Him. To abide in Jesus means to keep His commandments, and to keep His commandments means to love God with all our hearts, souls and minds and to love our neighbor as ourselves (Matthew 22:37-39). Then in John 15:10, Jesus explains what it looks like to abide in Him: “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love” (ESV).
The point is that we can’t grow more like Jesus apart from Jesus (John 15:5)! We get a helpful word picture - if we don’t abide, we will wither away and fall off the vine. Jesus told His disciples that they must abide, or remain, in Him (John 15:4). John 15 starts with some familiar verses.
When I think of John 15:14, and all the verses around it, I can’t help but wonder if we might be a little surprised by Jesus’ answer to the question of what makes a good friend. One of the qualities I most value in a person, and especially in a friend, is honesty. She and I laughed at how similar we are to one another. I would have thought she would have said “loyalty” or “kindness” or even “humor.” I thought that was such an interesting answer for a 13-year-old girl. She answered without hesitation: “Honesty.” Recently, I asked my daughter what makes a good friend. “You are my friends if you do what I command you.” John 15:14 (ESV) You (and Your Children) Have a Friend in Jesus
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