Christians the Friends of Christ
C. Bradley, M. A. John 15:15 From now on I call you not servants; for the servant knows not what his lord does: but I have called you friends… I. A FEW EXPLANATORY REMARKS CONCERNING THIS FRIENDSHIP. 1. It is really friendship, consisting, not of kindly feelings only, such as we bear towards our ordinary acquaintance, but of a cordial heart-warm love, like that which we have felt towards a few select individals only. 2. It is mutual between our Lord and His people. It is not all on His side, nor all on theirs. To constitute friendship there must be reciprocity. The hearts of Christ and His people are "knit together in love." 3. It is His true disciples only who are admitted to His friendship. He has compassion and kindness for all. But still His kindness, great and tender as it is, is not His friendship. He wept over Jerusalem, the city of His enemies — there was His compassion: He has only His dear, faithful disciples around Him, when He says here, "Ye are My friends." 4. This friendship does not set aside the relation of Master and servant existing between our Lord and His people (ver 14). Spiritual privileges, however high, never alter our obligations. They never put us out of our proper places, nor remove the exalted Jesus from His. 5. This friendship is in truth a friendship between us and God. It begins with Christ; but it does not terminate with Him. All the love of the Father dwells in Him and embraces us as soon as Christ's love embraces us, and soon too we discover this and joyfully embrace the Father in our love. It takes in His Divine nature as well. "Truly our fellowship is with the Father," etc. II. THE GROUNDS OF IT. All these may be comprehended in one word — grace; yet we may trace it still to intermediate things, themselves the fruits of this grace. 1. To mutual knowledge. (1) "I know My sheep, and am known of Mine." Christ knows their persons, peculiarities, all that can be known of them; all they are to be to Him; and thus, knowing them, He fixes His love on them, draws them to Him, makes them His friends. (2) And there is a knowledge too of Him on their side: "Whom having not seen ye love." The Holy Spirit opens the sinner's eyes to behold Christ, discovers to Him the glory of His character and the amiableness of it, and enables him to see and feel how worthy Christ is in Himself of His love. "They that know Thy name will put their trust in Thee." 2. Congeniality. Men may be perfect opposites; but let there be a real friendship between them, and we know that there is much that is common between them. So wherever there is friendship between the soul and Christ, a conformity to Christ has been wrought in that soul. Without it Christ might love the soul with a love of compassion, but not with a love of complacency. And the soul could have without this a little of what we call gratitude, but gratitude is not friendship. The soul must begin to love what Christ loves, to have the same mind that is in Christ and the same heart — then the soul lays hold with its affections on the Saviour and true friendship between them begins. 3. A mutual power of conferring pleasure. I love the man who in any way contributes personally to my happiness, and I love him the most who contributes most to my happiness. Now the Lord Jesus contributes to the happiness of His people. He is precious to their soul, because He is even now their soul's satisfaction and rest. On the other hand, "the Lord taketh pleasure in His people." His delights are with them." He rejoices over them, as a father rejoices over a recovered child, or as a bridegroom rejoices in his bride. And this joy, strange as it may seem to us, can be partly explained. What constitutes the Divine happiness? The exercise of the Divine love, and with it the exercise and enjoyment of the other Divine perfections. And where does God so exercise His love, so call into action and display His perfections, as in His people? in their salvation pardon, sanctification, and final blessedness? III. ITS PROOFS. 1. He has made a great sacrifice for His people (ver. 13). 2. He admits His people to His confidence. 3. On our side we should obey His commands (ver. 14). (C. Bradley, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you. WEB: No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn't know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you.