What a Friend

Proverbs 18:24
"A man who has friends must himself be friendly,  
But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." 
 I have been truly blessed with some incredible friendships in my lifetime.  As I write this devotional page today I have come to realize true friendships are one of God's most precious gifts to us. Our friends laugh with us, cry with us, they stand with us when we face adversity, they hold us at our times of deep heartache, they celebrate in times of triumph and they love us in  all times, even when we make mistakes. Those mistakes may even hurt our friends. True friends will continue to be friends even in difficult circumstances. Friends like this are truly sent from God (James 1:17).
 However, there is only one friend who fits this mold 24/7 and He will never leave you or forsake you. He loves you no matter what you have done. As a matter of fact, your deeds, good or bad, have nothing to do with how much He loves you. He is still your friend! He has proven His friendship to us over and over again because He continues to call us righteous and justified even when we sin against Him, (Hebrews 9:12). The Bible makes it very clear. This one friend has done more for us than anyone else in the history of the world. Just look around and observe our world. There are not too many friendly things going on out there these days. To be honest, when I look at friendship in a worldly perspective it doesn't offer much hope at all. We may have some great friends on this earth but they will not, and can not do for you what Jesus has done. He took the punishment we deserved for our wrong. He not only forgives us, but has transferred our sins upon Himself. He was tried and convicted for our wrongs against Father God. He paid our penalty; beaten, humiliated and nailed to a cruel Roman cross. Then in the darkest hour of human history our sins were placed on Him to bare. The perfect Son of God became imperfect so WE could be called perfect (2 Cor. 5:21). The One who was perfect became imperfect for you and then He declared you perfect before His Father in Heaven. Our friend Jesus stands in the Throne room of God  24 hours a day declaring us to be His friend if we have made Him our friend. This is the friend that is closer than a brother, He has made a forever promise to us and He keeps all of His promises! Have you made Jesus your friend today?