1

I am a friend of Jesus

2

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command.

(John 15:13-14)

3

Most people have friends with whom they share friendships.
Having good friends is one of the most important and happy things.
In the Bible, there are stories of people who had good friendships that we can imitate.

4

The first is Jonathan, the son of David and King Saul. Jonathan generously shared with David the things he treasured and promised him eternal friendship.
The Bible tells us that Jonathan cherished and loved David as if he were his own life.
[And Jonathan made a covenant with David because he loved him as himself.

(1 Samuel 18:3)]

5

Jonathan kept his promise to David faithfully to the end. Whenever his father, King Saul, was jealous of David and tried to kill him, he informed him in advance and helped him avoid it. Jonathan was a man of true friendship to the extent that his love and friendship for David would not change even if David took the position of king he would inherit.
["Don't be afraid," he said. "My father Saul will not lay a hand on you.
You will be king over Israel, and I will be second to you. Even my father Saul knows this." (1 Samuel 23:17)]

6

David was also true to his friendship with Jonathan. However, Jonathan, whom David loved, died along with King Saul in the war against the Philistines.
David, who succeeded King Saul as king, brought Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan, who had a crippled leg, to the palace and took care of him so that he could eat at the king's table like one of the princes.

7

David and Jonathan showed us what a beautiful friend can be for those who serve God.
They truly love each other and have demonstrated a sincere friendship, helping each other in times of need. A person who has such good friends is truly a blessed person.

8

The Bible also tells the story of four friends, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah,
who were members of the royal family of Judah.
These four friends were taken captive when the kingdom of Judah was invaded by King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, and they studied at the royal school of Babylon.
But they have a big problem. Because every day the king's food contained things forbidden to those who served God.

9

These four friends said to Asbunas, the chief of the Ashpenaz, that they would not eat the king's food. The four friends asked him to compare them with the other friends who ate the king's food after giving them only vegetables for ten days.
It was a dangerous thing that they could lose their lives if they refused to eat the king's food. The four friends acted together, determined to follow the command of God, who is higher than the command of the king.

10

God was pleased with what your friend did in faith. God moved the chief eunuch to accept their offer. And after 10 days, the faces of the four friends became brighter and more beautiful than the others who ate the king's food.

11

After some time, King Nebuchadnezzar had a strange dream, but he could not remember the meaning of the dream. The king ordered the wise men to remember his dream, but none of them did it. The king was angry and gave an evil order to kill all the wise men.
At that time, Daniel went to the king and promised to solve the dream if he gave him a little time. Daniel earnestly prayed to God to reveal the dream of the three friends and the king.

12

God gave Daniel a vision of the king's dream on the night the four friends began to pray. Daniel accurately told about the dream King Nebuchadnezzar had and interpreted it.
Nebuchadnezzar bowed down to Daniel and exalted the great God.
The prayers of Daniel and his three friends saved the lives of all the wise men of Babylon.
The four friends, Daniel, Hananiah, Michael, and Azariah, were great friends who became one in praying over problems.

13

Jonathan practiced the beautiful love of loving David more than himself. Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah practiced the precious love of praying with one heart for the work of saving not only their own lives but also those of others.
In the Bible, Jesus also spoke about friends. There is a passage that tells us what the greatest love is between friends.
[Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.
( John 15:13)]

14

Jesus said that the greatest love is practiced by those who can lay down their lives for their friends. It is truly a miracle to have a friend who is willing to give his life for you.
But the surprising fact is that we who are saved already have friends who gave their lives for us.

15

That friend is Jesus. Jesus gave his life on the cross to save us. And Jesus himself said in the Bible that anyone who believes in Jesus and keeps what he said can become a friend of Jesus.
[You are my friends if you do what I command. (John 15:14)]

16

As children of God, we are people who have Jesus as our friend who cannot be compared to any other friend in this world.
Jesus, my friend, tells us through the Holy Spirit what God's will is. Jesus, my friend, helps us to receive and bear fruit whatever we ask in the name of God.

17

As Jesus' friends, we must extend the special love Jesus gave us to other friends.
We must love our friends of faith who shared the same love that Jesus gave his life on the cross.
Like Daniel and his three friends, we must work together for good. Also, like Jonathan,
we must practice wonderful love by sincerely helping a friend who is suffering from an injustice.

(This is the sample conclusion provided by CTM. Please feel free to change the conclusion to best suit the listeners of your sermon.)