John 15:15-17 NIV
15 No longer do I call you servants, for the servant, does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. 17 These things I command you so that you will love one another.
"You've got a friend in me
You've got a friend in me
You got troubles. I've got 'em too
There isn't anything I wouldn't do for you
We stick together and see it through
'Cause you've got a friend in me
You've got a friend in me."
-Randy Newman (as heard in the movie Toy Story)
One of my favorite movies, mind you, not my favorite "kid movie," but my favorite movie of all time is Toy Story. If it has been a while since you have seen it, let me remind you briefly of the gist of the movie. Woody enjoyed being Andy's favorite toy for a long time until Andy received a Buzz Lightyear action figure for his birthday. Through a turn of events, Woody finds himself amongst the forgotten toys and no longer in a place of prominence. Woody does not like the change of circumstances, so he decides to get rid of Buzz for a while, but his plans go awry. Woody ends up knocking Buzz out of the window, and then they have all kinds of adventures to try and make it back home before Andy and his family move. They make it back next door to Andy, at the home of Sid, the toy destroyer. Through humility and some apologies, the two become friends amid their adventures.
Something that stood out to me throughout the movie and in the dynamic of Buzz and Woody's journey of friendship, Woody wanted something from Buzz but was unwilling to offer anything to Buzz.
If I'm honest with you, that is sometimes how I treat my friendships, I want my friends to give me what I need, yet I am not willing to be the very friend that I desire to have. Friendship is not just about receiving, but it is also about giving.
Jesus says something profound to His followers and us in the gospel of John – he calls us friends. You heard it right; the King of Kings calls you and me friends. That blows my mind. The fact that He would call me a friend is profound to me because I have done nothing to be a good friend to the King. The audience that heard this did nothing to be a friend. If you think about it, we have done everything opposite of what a good friend should do. Yet, Jesus still offers us His friendship and invites us to take His example of love and friendship and go and do likewise.
Here is the challenge for us today; let's go and do likewise. Let's be the friend we desire to have. Let's reflect Christ's love amid our friendship. Let's not just be people who consume; let us be people that love and encourage our friends, just like Jesus.
