The Price of Friendship

This is My command: love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, that someone would lay down his life for his friends. John 15:12-13 (hcsb)

How do you define friendship? In this social networking world the definition of a “friend” has become fuzzy at best. If we say we have 732 friends, do we really have that many friends? I mean, can we really be “friends” with someone we speak with primarily through two-sentence updates or 140-character messages? Does the ability to become someone’s “friend” on the Internet cheapen our idea of what it means to actually be a friend?

Don’t get me wrong. It is not that there is anything inherently wrong with social networking. I would only caution those of us that desire deep, lasting friendships not to allow these modes of communication to become substitutes for the real thing.

What does friendship look like? Some great verses to meditate on regarding love are John 15:12-13. Christ used these words to teach the disciples about His love for them. More than that, He was teaching them how He wanted them to treat one another as Christ followers who also were in Christian friendship with one another.

The implications of that command to love one another to the point that we would do as Christ did for us and lay down our lives for another person is astounding. The reality is that none of us will likely ever be asked to lay down our life for a friend. But without a doubt, Christian friendship will involve sacrifice on our part.

Father, forgive me for being selfish and unwilling to sacrifice for others. Help me see ways in which I can sacrifice for my friends. Help me look past my selfish desires and be willing to give up my wants to meet the very real needs of those You have given me as friends. Thank You for the ultimate sacrifice You gave of Your Son Jesus Christ so we might know You in a personal way. In Jesus’ name, amen.