Greater than a Friend

By Okwudili Umeweni

“Do not hold on to me,” Jesus told her, “because I have not yet gone back up to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them that I am returning to him who is my Father and their father, my God and their God.”

(John 20:17 TEV).”

A friend as defined by my mobile phone’s Dictionary simply means ‘a person one likes and chooses to spend time with’. In every way, a friend is greater than a servant because he knows many things his fellow friend does but a servant has no access to such information unless revealed to him by his master. Even Jesus during His earthly ministry confirmed this by saying to His disciples at a time, “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”

(John 15:15).

It is little wonder God said, “But thou Israel, art my servant, Jacob whom I have chosen, the seed of Abraham my friend” (Isaiah 41:8).

Here, God called Jacob His servant and Abraham His friend because He so much loved Abraham and could share hard matters with him. Then, that was one of the greatest honor that could be given to mankind by God to call someone a friend.

But when Jesus died and shed His blood for the remission of sins for all mankind, we became His brothers. In every way, brothers are greater than friends because they are of same blood and have every right to partake of their Father’s inheritance which a friend can’t.

That is who we are! Partakers of God’s divine nature and joint-heirs with Christ. We have every right to what our heavenly Father has through Jesus the First born.

If Abraham who was such a great man loved by God in his times could only be called ‘a friend’, then we are even now much greater than Abraham because we are Brothers to Jesus (sons of God). Glory to God!

An evangelist cum author

http://www.umeweniokwudili.com

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