WEBVTT 00:00:00.460 --> 00:00:05.560 Okay, so we're thinking about Moses and the kindness of God, and perhaps you're thinking, 00:00:05.679 --> 00:00:11.599 well, why are we talking about kindness? I want to suggest this is God's kindness as we see God's 00:00:11.599 --> 00:00:18.460 wonderful timing, because here, by God's providence, Jethro and the family of Moses 00:00:18.460 --> 00:00:25.039 are brought to Moses, and there's a wonderful gift of family, of friendship. 00:00:25.039 --> 00:00:34.899 As St. Augustine wrote a long time ago, two things are essential in this world, life and friendship. 00:00:35.719 --> 00:00:45.519 Both must be prized highly and not undervalued. They are nature's gifts. It's a wisdom that's 00:00:45.519 --> 00:00:51.480 captured in the Toy Story movies. I can quote this one much more easily. You know the song, 00:00:51.479 --> 00:00:56.500 the title song, when the road is rough ahead, and you're miles and miles from your nice warm bed, 00:00:56.559 --> 00:01:01.559 you just remember what your old pal said, boy, you've got a friend in me. It's the wisdom of 00:01:01.559 --> 00:01:10.079 Proverbs, the wisdom of Proverbs 17, 17, a friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a 00:01:10.079 --> 00:01:18.400 time of adversity. Friendship is a gift from God. Jethro coming is a gift, a kindness from God. 00:01:18.400 --> 00:01:25.040 We need to recognize our own context as well. Right now, we're in Edinburgh, and Edinburgh is, 00:01:25.420 --> 00:01:33.560 according to recent studies, one of the loneliest places in the United Kingdom. 33% of respondents 00:01:33.560 --> 00:01:42.120 in a recent survey said they were not involved in any real community within the city. There is a rise 00:01:42.120 --> 00:01:49.980 of people going to talk to their GPs about loneliness. Social isolation is increasing. More 00:01:49.980 --> 00:01:59.580 people are living alone and being lonely. As Christians, we can be profoundly thankful that 00:01:59.580 --> 00:02:07.400 one of God's kindnesses to us is one another. You know, when you move to a new city, you move location, 00:02:07.400 --> 00:02:14.340 you have a place to belong. People who welcome you, people to come alongside so we can serve together, 00:02:14.439 --> 00:02:20.180 we can share life together. And friendship as well, to go back to this morning's sermon, 00:02:20.900 --> 00:02:27.960 it is part of the good that we offer as we devote ourselves to doing good. One of those goods is the 00:02:27.960 --> 00:02:33.280 gift of friendship. Just to remind ourselves, and if you've not been around, Moses has known 00:02:33.280 --> 00:02:39.319 more than a few tough times in these last few months. So, over the last couple of months, 00:02:39.659 --> 00:02:44.939 he's had to live with the people often grumbling, the people of God grumbling against him, 00:02:45.319 --> 00:02:53.020 testing God. They have been largely for him a source of discouragement. So, in that setting, 00:02:53.620 --> 00:02:58.819 Jethro's friendship, well, it's like another oasis in the desert. 00:02:58.819 --> 00:03:07.620 And Jethro, I think, gives us a model of godly friendship. So, we're going to notice together 00:03:07.620 --> 00:03:17.719 that Jethro comes to Moses, and they share withness—kind of made-up word—worship and wisdom. 00:03:19.180 --> 00:03:23.780 And I hope as we go through this, we're going to learn together what it means to be a friend 00:03:23.780 --> 00:03:31.240 friend for others, but also it'll help us to think about the friend above all that we really need 00:03:31.240 --> 00:03:39.240 ourselves. But let's go to the first eight verses and think about friendship and with-ness. 00:03:40.139 --> 00:03:50.620 Another proverb, Proverbs 25, 25. Like cold water to a weary soul is good news from a distant land. 00:03:50.620 --> 00:03:59.439 We get that. You know, you're feeling a bit flat. Life is hard. But then the phone rings, 00:03:59.620 --> 00:04:06.580 or the letter comes in. Or, best yet, we get a visit from an old friend. You share time. You share 00:04:06.580 --> 00:04:15.819 your heart together. There is refreshing in those hours. What's been happening to Moses is that 00:04:15.819 --> 00:04:21.219 all that's recorded here, when the people are talking to Moses, they're grumbling, they're 00:04:21.219 --> 00:04:28.300 complaining, they're testing God. What about the people who've been visiting Moses? Well, 00:04:28.860 --> 00:04:34.339 Pharaoh's army has come to visit, intent on destruction. The Amalekites have come to visit, 00:04:34.500 --> 00:04:40.060 intent on destruction. And whenever the Israelites come to chap on Moses' door, they're asking the 00:04:40.060 --> 00:04:47.300 question, what are you doing? Why did you bring us here? Does God know what he's doing? And into that 00:04:47.300 --> 00:04:54.899 setting, what does God provide? He provides that visit from a distant land. For the first time in 00:04:54.899 --> 00:05:03.259 eighteen months, Moses is reunited with his family. You imagine, you know, here's verse six, 00:05:03.259 --> 00:05:10.920 the relief. Jethro sent word to him, I, your father-in-law, Jethro, I'm coming to you with 00:05:10.920 --> 00:05:21.019 your wife and her two sons. Moses, you've got a visitor. He said, this time, it's Jethro, it's your 00:05:21.019 --> 00:05:28.319 father-in-law, and he's bringing his wife and your kids. It's interesting, isn't it, that the focus 00:05:28.319 --> 00:05:36.279 falls on Jethro? Really interesting character. In verse one, we discover priest of Midian, father-in-law 00:05:36.279 --> 00:05:44.560 of Moses. What motivates his journey? He hears of God's work. He hears what God has done in rescuing 00:05:44.560 --> 00:05:53.120 his people. In verse nine, we have him clearly delighted by God's work. We have him praising the 00:05:53.120 --> 00:06:01.600 Lord. Bear in mind that he's not an Israelite, but he's now become a believer in Israel's God, 00:06:02.360 --> 00:06:11.120 and he comes to bring encouragement. J.C. Ryle, the Bishop of Liverpool in the 19th century, 00:06:11.579 --> 00:06:21.660 wrote this, the brightest sunbeam in the world is a friend. Friendship halves our troubles and doubles 00:06:21.660 --> 00:06:34.000 our joys. That's what Moses has in Jethro in these moments. The scene that we're presented in verses 00:06:34.000 --> 00:06:42.360 seven and eight is a very touching scene. We see Moses honor his father. He bows down. He kisses him. 00:06:43.320 --> 00:06:50.379 They greet each other. There's affection, and it gives Moses an opportunity to talk about 00:06:50.379 --> 00:06:56.180 all that God has been doing. He gets to share what's in his heart of God's work. 00:06:59.000 --> 00:07:05.219 I think one of the things that this story reminds us of is that Moses is no Superman. 00:07:06.259 --> 00:07:12.180 You know, sometimes we can paint the heroes of the Bible as if they were somehow different from us. 00:07:13.139 --> 00:07:18.879 But just like all of us, he too needed encouragement. He too needed his family. He needed 00:07:18.879 --> 00:07:26.459 friendship. And that shouldn't be a surprise because that's by God's design. You know, we go all the way 00:07:26.459 --> 00:07:34.180 back to the beginning of the Bible, Genesis 1, Genesis 2. There is a perfect garden. There is the perfect man 00:07:34.180 --> 00:07:41.759 made, Adam. But God can say in that perfection something is not good. What's not good? Adam is alone. 00:07:41.759 --> 00:07:49.680 People have been made for community and for friendship. And that shouldn't surprise us because 00:07:49.680 --> 00:07:55.459 we're made in God's image, and this is God's pattern. God exists, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, 00:07:55.839 --> 00:08:03.839 in an eternal fellowship of perfect love and friendship. This is part of the uniqueness of 00:08:03.839 --> 00:08:12.979 the God of the Bible. He has never been alone. He is never lonely. He is an eternal fellowship 00:08:12.979 --> 00:08:19.759 of perfect love. And making us in his image, then, we are made for friendship, for fellowship, for community. 00:08:21.579 --> 00:08:29.239 So Moses has been given this calling from God to lead his people, to act as a mediator, 00:08:29.240 --> 00:08:37.539 to represent the people before God. But we saw last week as well that God is providing others to come 00:08:37.539 --> 00:08:46.340 alongside him and to help. So last week, it was his brother Aaron and her, and they're literally lifting 00:08:46.340 --> 00:08:57.860 his arms up to help him to pray. And this week, it's the visit of Jethro and the wisdom and the worship 00:08:57.860 --> 00:09:09.360 that he brings that help him to serve. We need one another. Tolkien captured it so well in Lord of the Rings. 00:09:10.259 --> 00:09:17.519 It was Frodo, the hobbit, who had the task of destroying the ring in Mordor. But as the story 00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:22.500 progresses, it becomes abundantly clear that he needs the fellowship of the ring, especially he needs 00:09:22.500 --> 00:09:33.720 his old friend Samwise Gamgee. In our journey of faith, in our pilgrimage of faith, we need the 00:09:33.720 --> 00:09:43.000 fellowship of the church. We need one another. Now, before we move on from there, it seems so very 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:48.879 fitting in God's providence that we are speaking about fathers-in-law, we're thinking about family, 00:09:48.879 --> 00:09:53.639 because we've got a wedding tomorrow, and we give thanks for that wedding. But here is something 00:09:53.639 --> 00:10:00.519 that's really important to recognize. A godly father-in-law, and indeed a godly mother-in-law, 00:10:01.100 --> 00:10:09.019 is a kindness from God. And here we see a family that shares faith. And that's a wonderful thing, 00:10:09.759 --> 00:10:14.620 that you're a part of a family of faith is a wonderful gift. So let me encourage you from day 00:10:14.620 --> 00:10:23.480 one, to find ways to use that, to grow in your love for one another, your love for God, and to use 00:10:23.480 --> 00:10:30.039 the maturity and the wisdom of your in-laws as part of that. Because a godly father-in-law and a mother-in-law 00:10:30.039 --> 00:10:37.539 is a kindness from God. And to go more general, a godly friend is a wonderful kindness from God. 00:10:37.539 --> 00:10:47.879 To have someone like Jethro, someone who senses our need, someone who makes room and takes time, 00:10:48.819 --> 00:10:54.599 one who listens well, one who asks good questions, one who wants to build us in our faith, that's a good 00:10:54.599 --> 00:11:02.039 gift. If we want this kind of friend, and I hope if we're Christians we all want this kind of friend, 00:11:02.039 --> 00:11:10.659 friend, maybe the first thing we need to do is to pray, but also to aim to be that kind of friend 00:11:10.659 --> 00:11:16.980 to others. As we recognize what a goodness it is that we would desire to show that goodness to others, 00:11:17.059 --> 00:11:22.459 that we'd be reaching out within our church to build connections. Because friendship is a kindness 00:11:22.459 --> 00:11:28.579 from God. And most importantly, we're invited to enjoy the wonderful kindness of friendship 00:11:28.580 --> 00:11:37.400 with our God through His Son, the Lord Jesus. That's what we read in John 15. We read of the great love, 00:11:37.480 --> 00:11:45.060 the greatest demonstration of love from Jesus. Jesus who came to be with us, leaving glory to become 00:11:45.060 --> 00:11:51.060 one of us, ultimately to die for us. 00:11:51.059 --> 00:12:00.899 to turn God's enemies into God's friends by making peace through His blood shed on the cross. 00:12:01.559 --> 00:12:10.539 Jesus, the Son of God, welcomes us, invites us into friendship, coming to live in our hearts by faith. 00:12:11.539 --> 00:12:17.939 That is the greatest withness of all. And as the people of God, we get to enjoy that. 00:12:17.940 --> 00:12:24.800 Well, that's friendship and withness. Let's move on and think about friendship and worship. Turn with me 00:12:24.800 --> 00:12:32.440 to verses 9 to 12. First of all, another proverb, Proverbs 12, 25. We read there, 00:12:32.580 --> 00:12:41.640 anxiety weighs down the heart, but a kind word cheers it up. I want to think of Jethro's words 00:12:41.639 --> 00:12:50.199 as a cheering alternative to what Moses has had to put up with for the past number of months. Just to 00:12:50.199 --> 00:12:57.500 dip into these last chapters to get a sense of what Moses has been listening to. Exodus 15, 24, 00:12:58.080 --> 00:13:04.960 the people grumbled against Moses saying, what are we to drink? Chapter 16, verse 3, 00:13:04.960 --> 00:13:11.740 the Israelites said to Moses and Aaron, if only we died by the Lord's hand in Egypt. There we sat round 00:13:11.740 --> 00:13:18.360 pots of meat, but you've brought us out into the desert to starve this assembly to death. Or chapter 00:13:18.360 --> 00:13:24.920 17, verse 7, the place where they were was called Massa and Maribah because the Israelites quarreled and 00:13:24.920 --> 00:13:32.100 they tested the Lord, saying, is the Lord among us or not? These are not encouraging conversations. 00:13:32.100 --> 00:13:42.000 But Jethro comes with a very different voice, which is wonderful. It's a very particular kind of friendship, 00:13:42.720 --> 00:13:47.899 Christian friendship that's in focus here when we think about Jethro and Moses, because the focus 00:13:47.899 --> 00:13:57.440 falls on their shared faith and their shared worship. So look at verse 8. We find Moses tell his father-in-law 00:13:57.440 --> 00:14:04.820 about everything the Lord had done, how he saved them through hardships. And then look at verses 9 to 11. 00:14:05.140 --> 00:14:13.560 Jethro is delighted, and he praises God. And why does he praise God? There's two reasons here. He praises God 00:14:13.560 --> 00:14:24.600 because of his rescue of his people, and he praises God as he appreciates God's greater glory, 00:14:24.600 --> 00:14:35.259 his supremacy. He is God above all. And then Jethro worships. Verse 12, Jethro brought a burnt offering 00:14:35.259 --> 00:14:40.860 and other sacrifices to God. And Aaron came with all the elders of Israel to eat a meal with Moses' 00:14:40.860 --> 00:14:48.000 father-in-law in the presence of God. Here is a pattern that God sets, and it's a wonderful pattern. 00:14:48.000 --> 00:15:00.740 A sacrifice is made. Sin is covered. Sin is cleansed. And once that happens, they enter into God's presence. 00:15:01.759 --> 00:15:10.679 They enjoy fellowship, communion with God. In the New Testament, we think about Jesus' death on the cross 00:15:10.679 --> 00:15:15.740 as the way for our sin to be covered, as the way for us to be cleansed from all unrighteousness. 00:15:15.740 --> 00:15:23.080 And we remember that at the same time as Jesus died down in the temple, the curtain, the no access 00:15:23.080 --> 00:15:31.180 sign was torn in two. Through Jesus' death, we're invited all the way in to fellowship with our God. 00:15:32.120 --> 00:15:38.539 So this family reunion then becomes a celebration, a celebration of God's faithfulness, 00:15:38.539 --> 00:15:48.639 a celebration of the faith that they share. Often this happens when we get together with old friends, 00:15:49.639 --> 00:15:58.419 or we get together for a family reunion. What happens? We spend happy hours telling stories, 00:15:58.799 --> 00:16:05.539 often stories from the past, maybe the last time everyone got together, activities that we shared, 00:16:05.539 --> 00:16:15.099 and fun and laughter that happened, memories that are shared. Why is that? Why do we always go back 00:16:15.099 --> 00:16:21.860 as much as we go forward? Because those stories in our past, they link us together with our friends 00:16:21.860 --> 00:16:28.939 or with our family. They're part of our shared identity. It becomes the foundation that our relationship 00:16:28.940 --> 00:16:35.160 is built on. And to think about that, doesn't that become a great model for how we think about Christian 00:16:35.160 --> 00:16:42.100 friendship and fellowship? Because for everybody who's a believer in Jesus, we share in a story, 00:16:42.200 --> 00:16:49.280 don't we? We share in the great story of God's salvation in and through the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:16:49.279 --> 00:16:58.720 And we share our particular place within that story, but we know we are part of God's people in all times, 00:16:59.000 --> 00:17:08.379 in all places. And what binds us together? The activities that we share. Our times of worship 00:17:08.379 --> 00:17:15.319 together. Our times of sharing fellowship as we share the sacraments together, they create a sense of 00:17:15.319 --> 00:17:26.319 shared identity. As we serve together, as we share hospitality together, as we share the Word of God, 00:17:26.379 --> 00:17:31.960 as we share prayer with one another, we're building this foundation of faith. 00:17:34.460 --> 00:17:42.019 How can we build these Christian friendships? As we recognize the value of friendship and Christian 00:17:42.019 --> 00:17:51.240 friendship, how can we build and develop? As we recognize how important it is to have that shared 00:17:51.240 --> 00:17:58.740 sense of identity and belonging, to have a place and a people to share our joys and sorrows with, 00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:07.119 to have those who will help us to grow in faith. Just like Jonathan did for David in the Old Testament. 00:18:07.119 --> 00:18:15.919 David, who was promised by God that he would be king after Saul. And Saul hated David because of that 00:18:15.919 --> 00:18:20.879 reality and spent years hunting him down. Well, there's what… The story's recorded in one place 00:18:20.879 --> 00:18:27.819 where David is on the run, has been on the run for a long time, and he's feeling low. And Jonathan, 00:18:28.299 --> 00:18:33.819 the son of Saul, at great risks to himself, comes to visit David. And we're told that he came 00:18:33.819 --> 00:18:41.919 to strengthen his hand in the Lord. What a wonderful example of what Christian friends do. 00:18:43.419 --> 00:18:50.559 We help one another to keep going in the journey of faith as we remind ourselves that we are in 00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:55.679 the hands of our good God. So, how can we build our Christian friendship? Some suggestions 00:18:55.679 --> 00:19:00.799 to think about, perhaps. For some of us, it'll look like reading a Christian book, 00:19:00.799 --> 00:19:09.319 reading the Bible together with someone regularly. And maybe it'll be to work on how do we start 00:19:09.319 --> 00:19:14.519 spiritual conversations, to move from those surface-level conversations that we often have, 00:19:14.559 --> 00:19:18.599 maybe to fight through the pain barrier. Perhaps it'll be to write to someone, 00:19:19.460 --> 00:19:24.700 share a portion of God's Word, how it spoke to you, to encourage them. Maybe it'll begin with making 00:19:24.700 --> 00:19:32.200 room in our calendar so we're not so busy that we don't have time for our friends. Maybe it'll look 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:37.799 like coming to church a little bit earlier, staying a little bit later, so that we get time within the 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:47.559 time that we have together to build relationships. Christian friendship involves worship. But here's the 00:19:47.559 --> 00:19:54.460 last thing for us to think about friendship and wisdom. So, we've already said that Moses has been 00:19:54.460 --> 00:20:02.679 surrounded by a host of different voices, most of them profoundly discouraging. But here is Jethro 00:20:02.679 --> 00:20:10.480 coming. We find ourselves, I guess, surrounded by a whole host of different voices, lots of people 00:20:10.480 --> 00:20:15.619 perhaps offering advice, people we know well, people we don't know well, people on the internet. Who do we 00:20:15.619 --> 00:20:24.719 listen to? And who do we trust? I think the story of Jethro and Moses reminds us of the importance 00:20:24.719 --> 00:20:35.000 of seeking out wise, godly friends and family members. Because we see the wisdom of Jethro's 00:20:35.000 --> 00:20:40.679 advice as it's received by Moses. And again, if we're looking around, we're thinking about our own life, 00:20:40.680 --> 00:20:46.920 and we think, you know, I don't think I have one of those friends. Then it's the time to start praying 00:20:46.920 --> 00:20:56.140 for one and aiming to be one for others. Another proverb, Proverbs 27 verse 6, especially the first 00:20:56.140 --> 00:21:10.259 half, wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses. Jethro brings a hard word 00:21:10.259 --> 00:21:20.920 in some senses to Moses, because Jethro identifies a problem. Verses 13 to 18, he sees how Moses is 00:21:20.920 --> 00:21:28.299 functioning as leader. And he will say to him, in verse 17, what you're doing is not good. 00:21:29.559 --> 00:21:34.319 You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you. 00:21:34.319 --> 00:21:43.879 You cannot handle it alone. By Moses being the sole judge for all cases, simple and complex, 00:21:44.179 --> 00:21:51.319 he's creating a bottleneck, and he's wearing himself and the people out. That's a hard word to deliver, 00:21:51.619 --> 00:21:58.200 but the wounds of a friend can be trusted. Jethro then proposes the solution in verses 19 to 23. 00:21:58.200 --> 00:22:06.440 3. Importantly, he says to Moses, here's your priority. You must be the people's representative 00:22:06.440 --> 00:22:13.080 before God. So he must continue with that primary calling to represent the people before God 00:22:13.080 --> 00:22:20.960 in prayer, bringing the needs to God, and he must teach them God's decrees and instructions. 00:22:22.019 --> 00:22:26.120 Must keep bringing God's Word to show how the people of God are to live for Him. 00:22:26.119 --> 00:22:32.939 It's interesting to think about that pattern. Then go to Acts chapter 6, and to hear the apostles 00:22:32.939 --> 00:22:38.819 say to the church with multiple needs, we must devote ourselves to word and prayer. 00:22:39.659 --> 00:22:48.379 And then they establish the role of deacons, who will then continue to care at a different level, 00:22:48.379 --> 00:22:55.859 in a different way. It sounds very much like Jethro's advice here. He tells Moses to learn to delegate. 00:22:56.119 --> 00:23:03.000 Not just to anybody. He gives those important qualifications. You're looking for people who 00:23:03.000 --> 00:23:08.899 are capable, people who worship God, who fear God, people who can be trusted, people who are not 00:23:08.899 --> 00:23:16.439 corrupt. And he says, Moses, if you do that, think about the impact. If you appoint people to smaller 00:23:16.439 --> 00:23:21.599 groups, then it's going to allow the Word of God to reach all the way down through society. 00:23:21.599 --> 00:23:28.659 Gifted people are going to be enabled to use their gifts. The burden is going to be shared, 00:23:28.919 --> 00:23:34.319 and people are going to be satisfied. So before, there was only one cue. Everybody had to come to 00:23:34.319 --> 00:23:40.959 Moses. But now there's a whole multitude of capable leaders being established. So everybody is more 00:23:40.959 --> 00:23:46.299 likely, when they're seeking wisdom, to get wisdom from God in His Word. 00:23:46.299 --> 00:23:58.539 How does Moses respond? Verse 24, he shows his humility. He receives the wisdom. Moses listened 00:23:58.539 --> 00:24:06.659 to his father-in-law and did everything he said. He's really humble. You know, he's like, hang on, 00:24:06.759 --> 00:24:14.220 Jethro, who are you to tell me how to run this show? I'm the one who's been appointed as Israel's leader. 00:24:14.220 --> 00:24:18.960 You know, he's not sulking because he didn't think of the idea first. No, he receives it 00:24:18.960 --> 00:24:30.480 as wisdom from God, which in this case comes via Jethro, his godly father-in-law. And this tells us 00:24:30.480 --> 00:24:38.700 something about God's design. By God's design, Christian friends, Christian family are used to 00:24:38.700 --> 00:24:46.240 bring God's Word and God's wisdom in just the way, in just the time that His people need. 00:24:48.140 --> 00:24:55.700 Dietrich Bonhoeffer understood this in his book, Life Together. He made the point that we need Christian 00:24:55.700 --> 00:25:03.500 brothers and sisters to speak God's Word to us. He recognized that reality that we can become 00:25:03.500 --> 00:25:10.539 discouraged, that our faith, our trust, our sight of Christ and His promises can grow weak. 00:25:11.579 --> 00:25:16.819 Bonhoeffer said, the Christ in his own heart is weaker than the Christ in the Word of his brother. 00:25:17.700 --> 00:25:26.220 His own heart is uncertain. His brother's is sure. Sometimes we need people to remind us 00:25:26.220 --> 00:25:33.640 God can be trusted. He is our Father to speak the truth of His Word and His promise to our hearts. 00:25:34.539 --> 00:25:41.740 John Bunyan, he got that. When he wrote Pilgrim's Progress, he paired Christian with hopeful. 00:25:42.700 --> 00:25:50.640 So, there's that time where they're captured, they're in doubting castle, full of that sense of 00:25:50.640 --> 00:25:59.460 despair. But then hopeful begins to speak. Hopeful reminds Christian of things that are true. Hopeful 00:25:59.460 --> 00:26:07.040 begins to pray. And with the words of hopeful comes Christian's reminder, I have the key, 00:26:08.020 --> 00:26:15.780 the key that unlocks the doors of doubting castle. And it brings to us that reality that there will be 00:26:15.779 --> 00:26:26.920 times where we need the words of a friend to turn the key for the sake of faith. To turn the key so we 00:26:26.920 --> 00:26:37.059 remember and we grow in trust in God's promise and God's Son again. Friendship and wisdom. 00:26:37.059 --> 00:26:47.819 One last thing to say as we close. To be a good friend, to be a good godly friend, it begins by 00:26:47.819 --> 00:26:54.179 recognizing we need the greatest friend. As we recognize that friendship is one of God's great 00:26:54.179 --> 00:27:00.799 gifts. As we recognize it as a great privilege and indeed a great responsibility within God's church 00:27:00.799 --> 00:27:07.680 to establish and to establish and to build healthy friendships. As we understand that call to be a 00:27:07.680 --> 00:27:15.460 friend who comes alongside and to share faith and to bring God's wisdom, often we feel how unable we are. 00:27:16.480 --> 00:27:23.440 Often we feel our own limitations and we are reminded that first and foremost we need in our life Jesus, 00:27:23.440 --> 00:27:30.059 Jesus, the greatest friend, the greatest friend, Jesus, the one who is greater than Jethro. 00:27:31.120 --> 00:27:37.740 Because as we think about the storyline of the Bible and the gospel, we have in Jesus the friend who came 00:27:37.740 --> 00:27:49.140 to be with us. And what a friend he is. He is a friend of deep love. Do we see that in John chapter 11 00:27:49.140 --> 00:27:55.180 as he weeps at the grave of his friend Lazarus, even as he knows he's going to raise him? 00:27:56.780 --> 00:28:05.720 We meet in Jesus a friend of persevering love as he prepares to wash his disciples' feet, 00:28:06.080 --> 00:28:09.980 preparing them for the reality that he will die for them on the cross. 00:28:09.980 --> 00:28:22.240 He loved them to the end. And as he was departing, he promised that he would never leave or forsake. 00:28:22.240 --> 00:28:32.759 He would be with his friends always. As we read in John 15, he is a friend with open-hearted love. 00:28:32.759 --> 00:28:40.559 Not calling us servants. He calls us friends. For everything that I learned from my Father, 00:28:41.859 --> 00:28:49.960 I have made known to you. Jesus is the friend who invites us all the way in. Inviting us in to know 00:28:49.960 --> 00:28:58.440 the reality of God's love. He is a friend who leads us in worship as the one we worship. 00:28:58.440 --> 00:29:10.840 He is the Lord. He is the great rescuer. He rescued us by his death on the cross. He has revealed his 00:29:10.840 --> 00:29:17.460 superior greatness and glory in defeating all his enemies. And the proof is his resurrection. 00:29:18.740 --> 00:29:27.299 And it's by his great sacrifice that we are able to draw near, to enjoy fellowship with God, 00:29:27.299 --> 00:29:37.180 to call him friend. And he is the friend who is God's wisdom for us. If we want to be wise, 00:29:37.859 --> 00:29:45.119 if we want to be a wise friend, it stands to reason that the first thing we need to know is wisdom. 00:29:46.279 --> 00:29:52.259 Where do we find wisdom? Well, the New Testament tells us we find wisdom as we find Jesus, 00:29:52.259 --> 00:30:01.619 because Jesus is God's wisdom personified. 1 Corinthians 1.30, Christ has become for us 00:30:01.619 --> 00:30:09.680 wisdom from God. That is our righteousness, holiness, and redemption. 00:30:11.160 --> 00:30:20.259 As John begins his gospel, he begins talking about Jesus as the Logos, which is a wisdom word. 00:30:20.259 --> 00:30:28.480 And so, as we read the beginning of John's gospel, we're invited again to recognize in the beginning 00:30:28.480 --> 00:30:36.940 was wisdom, and the wisdom was with God, and the wisdom was God. That in Jesus, wisdom became flesh, 00:30:37.500 --> 00:30:46.500 and made his dwelling among us, and we have seen his glory. So, the way of wisdom involves coming to 00:30:46.500 --> 00:30:54.299 know Jesus, to be brought into the life and the love of our triune God, to have Christ, who is altogether 00:30:54.299 --> 00:31:05.519 wise, dwell in our hearts through faith, drawing our hearts to him, moving us towards him, moving us to be 00:31:05.519 --> 00:31:15.799 wise, to a life centered on God's truth and God's love. As we know and enjoy friendship with Jesus, 00:31:16.500 --> 00:31:24.220 he will teach us, he will teach us, he will help us to be a godly friend for the sake of others, 00:31:24.220 --> 00:31:33.559 as we enjoy friendship from him. Let's pray together. Lord, our God, we thank you 00:31:33.559 --> 00:31:38.940 for the reality that Jesus doesn't call us.