Friend Of God
John 15:15 Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you.
Hushai
? The latter half of I Chronicles chapter 27, details the names and roles of those that played an important part in David’s kingdom.
? Hidden within that list in the 33rd verse is a very special notation.
? While others are named as counselors and scribes and leaders.
? We are told in this passage that Hushai the Archite was the Kings companion.
? 2 Samual 15:37 further clarifies this role referring to Hushai as David’s friend.
? Hushai was more than just a servant in David’s court, he was more than just an advisor, he was the kings friend.
? And when David’s other, most trusted advisors defected to join the rebelling Absolom,
? Hushai, David’s friend, remained loyal to the king.
? According to David’s instructions, Hushai pretended to be loyal to Absolom and slipped information to David about Absolom’s plans.
? When David’s rebellious advisors urged Absolom to attack David while his forces were in disarray, Hushai prevailed and convinced Absolom to hesitate long enough that David was able to gather his forces and dispel the attack.
? Hushai was the King’s Friend.
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In our text, Jesus draws a distinction between being a servant of God and being a friend of God.
? Note the distinction.
? It’s not the privilege of the servant to understand his master’s business.
? He just does what he is told.
? No questions. No reasons. Just “Very good, sir. If you say so, sir.”
? Jesus made it plain that he wasn’t looking for mind-numbed robots to follow him around.
? He was looking for someone he could elevate to the level of friend.
? God is looking for someone that will do more than just serve him out of obligation, he’s looking for someone that will develop a relationship with him.
? I truly believe that there is a call going out to the body of Christ urging us all to draw closer to him.
? I believe that as the end of time unfolds, God is looking for friends that he can confide in, more than servants that simply serve him.
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The problem is that it’s easier to be a servant.
? Servants are reactionary, they are reactive.
? They live their lives responding to the circumstances around them.
? Their course and direction is always set by some outside force that exerts influence over them.
? Like a pinball bpuncing around in the arcade, they have no perspective of the biggfer picture, they are propelled from one event to another by external forces.
? The distinction between a servant and a friend, according to Jesus, is that the servant doesn’t know what his master is planning.
? He’s just a small cog in the big picture that does what he is told.
? Some of us like it that way, we don’t have to take responsibility for our lives.
? We can blame it all on God.
? It’s easy to be a servant.
? It’s easy to be constantly influenced by the circumstances of life.
? Bouncing from one event to the next, haphazardly journeying through this life in the general direction of heaven.
But God is calling us to a different level.
? From henceforth, Jesus said, I call you not servants, I call you friends.
? As much as the role of a servant is menial and mechanical
? There is a high ministry of friendship with God, and it’s a ministry that any child of God can fulfill.
? The renowned revivalist and prayer warrior, Verbal Bean used this anology:
? When you are a passenger in an airplane, you have very little knowledge of the specifics of the flight, you are mainly just along for the ride.
? You know when it takes off and you know when it lands and beyond that you trust the unseen hand that navigates it from here to there.
? He goes on to talk about an opportunity in his life, where the pilot invited him into the cockpit.
? The pilot showed him how everything worked, even let him handle the controls for a moment.
? All of a sudden, he said, I was no longer just a passenger, I was an active participant.
? I was helping guide the ship.
? He concluded with the belief that it is the sincere desire of God to elevate his people from the role of passenger to the role of participant.
? I have felt in my spirit for several days now that it is God is calling all of us to a closer walk with him.
? To a place where we are more than just the servant of God, a place where we become the friend of God.
This role of friendship
? It’s this role of friendship that grants us the spiritual insight to make a difference in our world.
? I mentioned the pinball, constantly influenced by outside pressures, it has no idea where it’s going or what is going to happen next.
? It just reacts.
? That’s the way I live my life much of the time.
? Careening out of control from one event to the next.
? Reacting to this crisis, dealing with that event, trying to make a differenc here, or there, as my life quickly passes me by.
? I believe that God has a higher calling for each of us, I believe that if we would allow him, he would like to pull back the curtain and allow us to see the bigger picture.
? The servant doesn’t know what the master is doing, he said, but you are my friend…
? Let me show you, what I’m getting ready to do.
? I don’t believe God ever intended for the church to be reactive, I belive he intended for us to be proactive.
? I don’t believe he intended for us to be constantly influenced, I believe he intends for us to be the influencer.
? It is the high ministry of friendship.
? I believe that god is looking for people that he can call friend.
? Someone he can reveal his will to.
? Someone that, as they pass through this life, can capitalize on moments or opportunities.
? Seeing not just the moment but grasping the big picture.
? Recognizing what God is doing in our world, our city, our church, our homes… and helping facilitate the plan of God.
? That’s the difference between a servant and a friend, the friend becomes an influencer that furthers the will of God, because the friend is aware of WHAT THE WILL OF GOD IS.
? God reveals himself to those he calls friend.
? Can I tell you this morning that God wants to call you his friend?
? That God longs to open your eyes to the plan and purpose he has for your life.
? God longs to give you insight into your world, because god desires an intercessor that will influence the course of our world.
God called Abraham his friend.
? And accordingly, he revealed his plans to Abraham before he brought them to pass.
? He stopped by Abraham’s tent on his way to Sodom and Gomorrah to tell him what he was getting ready to do.
? Because he knew, Abraham was his friend, and that friend would begin to intercede on behalf of the righteous man Lot.
? God called Moses friend, and when he was ready to discard the children of Isreal and start all over with Moses’ lineage he first sopped to talk with his friend about his plans.
? Because knew Moses would intercede on behalf of the lineage of Abraham.
God is looking for someone in this place that he can call his friend.
? Someone that he can reveal his will too.
? Someone that he can trust will intercede on behalf of a lost world.
? God is looking for someone that knows how to pray.
? Someone that remembers what it is the shake the foundations of hell as you open the floodgates of heaven thru prayer.
? God id looking for friends, he is looking for someone that will pray.
Two kinds of oil in the house of God.
? The anointing oil was prepared by the priests and was mixed by a specific formula, it was a complicated process made from rare ingredients.
? But there was also the oil for the lamp
Leviticus 24:2 KJV Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee pure oil olive beaten for the light, to cause the lamps to burn continually.
? The oil for the lamp was provided by the people.
? When the people cam to the house of God, they brought their oil with them.
? The oil that provided the fuel that lit the holy place came from the lives of the people.
? As a matter of fact, the oil for the lamp, and the bread on the table of shewbred were the only two things that people were allowed to bring from outside, into the house of God.
? It is time to bring your oil back to the house of God.
? It is time to turn your heart once again to the ministry of prayer.
? Somewhere, within the flawed paradigm of modern church, it has become the responsibility of the pastor and spiritual leaders in the church to fuel the fire of revival.
? But the old testament model, upon which the church is built requires every person contribute to the fuel upon which a move of God burns.
? God is calling you back to the high ministry of friendship.
? It is time to renew the flow of oil in your life.
? To once again become a vessel of prayer, through which the anointing of God flows.
The problem lies in the fact that it is more convenient to continue on as a servant.
? Life is a whole lot easier when you can just drift aimlessly through it.
? The servant doesn’t know what the master is planning,
? And the problem is that some of us don’t want to know what the master is planning.
? Because, if we know, then we have to do something about it.
? And it’s inconvenient to have to do something about it.
? We’d rather not be bothered.
? Without your oil, the light doesn’t burn as bright as it should.
? Without your oil, the ministry of the church isn’t as effective as it should be.
? Without your oil the impact of the church is diminished.
? It is what you bring to the house of God,
? It is what you contribute to the ministry of God,
? It is the oil of commitment, that a friend of god willingly pours out before the throne of God.
? You’ve been idle for too long.
? God is calling you this morning to the high ministry of friendship.
? He has been romancing your heart for some time now, drawing you closer to him.
? It is his desire to bring you into that inner place, to reveal to you his purpose and plan and to allow you to be instrumental in bringing his will to pass in this end time.
? Will you answer the call?
? Or will you settle for the mundane and be constantly occupied by the trivial.
? God wants you to live a life that has purpose and meaning.
? That purpose is only found in him.
? Will you accept his invitation, or will you shun his friendship?
As a friend of David
? Hushai preserved David’s kingdom.
? David had a plan.
? And As a friend Hushai was in a position that David could reveal to him, and only him, his plan.
? And Hushai became the influencer that brought that plan to fruition.
? If there had been no friend of the king, the reign of David could possibly have come to an end.
? I wonder what it is in our world today that God desires to do, but can’t find friend with which to share that plan.
? I wonder what it is in your life, in your home, among your family that God would do, if only he could find a friend that he could entrust with his plan.
? God has a plan and a purpose for your life
? And he longs to reveal it to you
? He’s calling you this morning to a deeper level
? He’s calling you this morning to a closer walk.
? He’s calling you this morning to the high ministry of friendship.
? How will you respond?
A watershed moment splits life into before and after. Yet it is impossible, except in retrospect to recognize the moment for what it is.
? Could this be such a moment in your life?
