Today is world friendship day! As humans, friendship is something which helps us to thrive, but as Christians, friendship is especially important for us to nurture.

Importantly, before I start, I want to note that friendship is not a one-way thing – the relationship is mutual. My favourite definition of a friend is:

“A friend is someone you love and who loves you, Someone you respect and who resects you, Someone whom you trust and who trusts you“

So if that’s what a friend is, then we must next consider what a friend does – and what this means for how we as Christians and friends should act.

In Proverbs 17:17, it says a friend loves at all times.

To really understand this, I am going to break it down into 3 parts, and explore using the example of Jesus as a friend in John 11 and 12.

Part One: a friend.

In John 11:11-15, Jesus demonstrates friendship to both his disciples and Lazarus. First, when the disciples don’t understand his euphemism that Lazarus is “asleep” he tells them “plainly” that Lazarus has died. The word used in Greek is parrhesia which we would translate literally as candor, which would have been considered classically as a quality of true friendship – to speak candidly as opposed to using flattery or pretences. The way that Jesus addresses his friends honestly demonstrates how he values them as friends. And second, when Lazarus is in his time of need, Jesus does not hesitate in going to him.

Part Two: loves

In John 11:30-36, we see that Jesus loved his friend, Lazarus, and was troubled when he learnt of his death.

We then have this verse – the shortest verse in the bible – “Jesus wept”. Jesus wept. These are just two little words, but they demonstrate Jesus’ love for Lazarus, and the Jews around him noted his love for him. Think about some of your own friends and everything you’ve been through with them. The ups and downs, the inside jokes, the funny memories – it is only natural that you would feel grief if they were taken from you.

A friend loves. There are many many ways we see this shown. But Jesus demonstrates his love here when he weeps. When things are all going well, it is easy to love a friend. A true friend still loves when things are hard.

And this leads me nicely onto the third part –

Part Three: at all times

If we look at Jesus’s friendship with Lazarus, Jesus showed his love for Lazarus when he wept at his death. Jesus then goes on to raise him back from the dead. If we look at the start of the next chapter of John, we read that Jesus celebrates with Lazarus before Passover.

Jesus was with Lazarus, Mary and Martha when Lazarus had died and then again when they were celebrating.

He loves his friends when they are suffering and when they are rejoicing. He loves them when it is easy to do so, and when it is not. His love for them continues through the thick and the thin.

He loves them at all times.

That’s what friends are for, and what we as Christians are called to be and do.