“Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God” (James 4:4).
Everyone wants to have a friend, and be a friend! It’s amazing how many times in the Bible friends are mentioned. There were treacherous friends. We all know the story of Samson and how the woman he loved and thought was his friend, betrayed him. When Judas came to betray the Lord Jesus, Jesus said to him, “Friend, wherefore art thou come?” (Matthew 26:50). And there were good friends like David and Jonathan, or Ruth and Naomi, in the Old Testament, and James and John in the New Testament.
Our verse today is warning us that, if we know the Lord Jesus as Savior, we will not want to have friends who do not love Him too. The “world” as we call those who have not accepted Christ, does not want to talk about Him. And if He is our very best friend, then we do want to talk about Him!
If you were to make a list of qualities you would like to have in a friend, what might it include? Perhaps cheerful, kind, helpful, fun! Would you think to include “someone who is honest with me?” Maybe someone who would kindly tell me when I’m wrong or might be hurting someone’s feelings?
There is a good verse in Proverbs 27:6 that tells us, “Faithful are the wounds of a friend.” No one likes to be wounded. But a good friend may kindly have to do that sometimes. And as a friend, we need to learn how to accept criticism.
Another special quality in a good friend is that they do not gossip about the little secrets we may share. That means we can trust them when we tell them something special that is only between friends. It’s wonderful to be able to pray with and for a friend who has shared a problem he/she may be having.
And here is a final verse to think about, “A whisperer separateth chief friends” (Proverbs 16:28). Let is never be the one responsible for separating friends!