WELCOME HOME! - Emmaus Bible Fellowship Church
156908517145000162369532321500Topical StudySelected ScripturesINTRODUCTIONAs most of you know, I don’t like people. People are organisms and organisms are mostly unpredictable and are messy. All jokes aside, living on an inhabited planet, it is impossible to avoid associationswith fellow humans and being part of a covenant community, it is ill advised to avoid contact with our covenant partners. God wants us to make friends. In His all-sufficient Word, God has provided the wisdom necessary whereby we can develop good relations with those around usas well as avoid the pitfalls that too often destroy good friendships. A good portion of this wisdom is found in Proverbs, where much isrevealed regarding the subject of friendships. I. FRIENDSHIP DEFINEDA.Friendship is a reciprocal relationship characterized by intimacy, faithfulness, trust, unmotivated kindness, and service. The concept can describe one’s relationship with people and with God.B.Friendship is not simply a casual acquaintance but a strong, deep connection between two individuals who are bound together in such a way that affects every aspect of their involvement in society. In both the OT and NT, friendship is based on volition, not obligation.C.There is an intimacy and disclosure that sometimes only happens within a friendship. This type of intimacy and disclosure doesn’t even happen amongst family members. -63517589500Those people that you call “friend”, why do you consider them a friend?II.THE VALUE OF FRIENDS A. Friends Are a Source of Comfort1.A friend loves at all times - in good times and in bad times – Proverbs 17:17a 2. In some cases, friends are even better than a brother/sister - - Proverbs 18:24b B. Friends Are A Source of Good Counsel 1. Counsel that is earnest and a delight - Proverbs 27:9 2. The value of counsel in general is seen in Proverbs 11:14a.Some of the best counsel comes from our genuine friends.1181529003111501587500What are some practical things that you value in your friendships?II. THE CHOICE OF FRIENDS A. Friends You Do Not Want 1. Gossips - Proverbs 20:19If they gossip about others to you, they will probably gossip to others about you.Women aren’t the only people who gossip! 2. Short-tempered - Proverbs 22:24-25; 14:17; 29:11 3. Those given to drinking and gluttony - Proverbs 23:20-214. Those given to change, or associate with rebels – Proverbs 24:21-22 5. Liars, those untrustworthy, and those inconsiderate – Proverbs 25:18-20 - 6. Those given to violence - Proverbs 1:10-19 B. Friends You Do Want 1. Those who display wisdom themselves - Proverbs 13:20a 2. Those who teach/counsel that will help lead you in the right way - Proverbs 13:143.Those who get in your way when you are on your way down.The wrong kind of friends can be a corrupting influence…Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.”I Corinthians 15:33…but a friend who is good and wise is one you want to hold on to!III. MAINTAINING FRIENDSHIPS A. Things Which Disrupt Friendships 1. Repeating everything you hear - Proverbs 17:9 2. Getting into senseless arguments - Proverbs 17:14 3. Overstaying your welcome - Proverbs 25:17 4. Meddling in affairs not your own - Proverbs 26:17 5. Playing bad jokes - Proverbs 26:18-19 6. Being an arguer - Proverbs 26:20 7. Being contentious - Proverbs 26:21 By following the advice above, one is less likely to offend his or her friends. But sometimes we do, and regaining their confidence may not be easy A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city,And contentions are like the bars of a citadel.Proverbs 18:19What can be done? B. Solving Problems with Our Friends 1. Make sure that you are at peace with the Lord – Proverbs 16:72. Be slow to anger - Proverbs 15:18; 16:32; 19:11 compare James 1:19-20 3. Be slow to respond – James 1:19-20 4. Avoid quarreling - Proverbs 20:3 5. Speak gently - Proverbs 15:1 6. Speak briefly - Proverbs 10:19 7. Be quick to show love - Proverbs 10:12 8. If necessary, rebuke rather than flatter – Proverbs 28:23REAL friends are those people who, when you make a fool of yourself, don’t think that you have done a permanent job.CONCLUSIONSome of us have had or maybe still have friends that were or are not good for us. Properly applying the wisdom of God found in His Word can assure that we enjoy the blessings of good friends in this life. We can look forward to enjoying these dear friends in life eternal! But, first Proverbs 18:24a says?“a man that hath friends must shew himself friendly”. I went out to find a friend,But could not find one there,I went out to be a friend,And friends were everywhere!Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort, of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but to pour them all out just as they are, chaff and grain together, knowing that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and then, with the breath of kindness blow the rest away” George Eliot ................
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