A Friend That Sticks Closer Than a Brother: Proverbs18:24
At
Risen Life Church we have been preaching out of the book Proverbs. In this series we have systematized the
major themes of Proverbs and have preached accordingly. In the following sermon I am exploring
what God has said in Proverbs about Friendship. I preached this sermon at Gateway Community Church in
Draper, Utah. Risen Life is
partnering with Gateway to further the Gospel in Salt Lake City. Below I have provided a quick recap of
my sermon. I highly encourage you
to listen to the full sermon HERE.

A friend chooses to love
always. Proverbs
17:17, 17:9, 10:12, 20:26 all speak to the fact that a Godly friend chooses to
love always. Often we become
friends through common interest and mutual agreement on truth. Most of my best friends have come
through the Church. As friends, we
agree on the truth of the Gospel and we strive for the Gospel together. To remain friends we must choose to
love one another above all things.
This is just as true in marriage as it is in friendship. Christ loved us while we were yet
sinners and for this reason alone we can learn to love our friends always. We not only want to seek friends that
will extend love to us in all circumstances but we want to be friends that will
do the same.
A friend is trustworthy. Proverbs 11:13, 16:28,
26:19, 11:12 all teach about what it means to be trustworthy as a friend. A friend keeps what we have entrusted
to them and they do not use what they know to their own benefit or for our
destruction. Instead, they love us
and want the best for us. There is
nothing better than to have a friend that can keep what we have entrusted to
them.
A friend can influence our
character. Proverbs 22:24 urges us to
stray from friends that would influence our character for evil. Rather, we should seek friends that
influence us for good. I have had
friends that have influenced me for good and bad. The Bible urges us to choose our friends carefully. Because of the nature of friendship, we
will take on what our friends value, enjoy, and believe. We want to find friends that help us to
walk in paths of righteousness as well as be friends that lead in the same.
A friend can correct. Proverbs 27:6, 27:9-10, 27:17 all show the benefits
of having a close, loving friend that can point out sin in our life. Friends that are willing to speak truth
into our lives are part of God’s plan for the sanctification of believers. The question we often ask at Risen Life
is, “Who are you doing life with?”
Meaning, who in the body of Christ are you letting speak into your life?
Jesus is a friend that
sticks closer than a brother. What we see in Proverbs
18:24 is that all friends will fail at some point, but there is a friend that
sticks closer than a brother. That
friend is Jesus. In fact as we
walk with Jesus we see that he fulfills the true paradigm of a Godly
friend. He is the friend that
loves us at all times; He is the friend that is ultimately trustworthy; He is
the friend that influences our character by His Spirit; He is the friend that
is committed to lovingly correcting us.
The
question for us is, “Will we accept the handshake of friendship that Jesus
extends to us?” If you will
confess Jesus as Lord, repent of your sins, and walk with Him, He will call you
friend.
LISTEN TO SERMON HERE
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