Jesus calls us friends!
That little word "friend" has been used to describe many differenttypes of relationships. You may haveheard the word "friend" used to describe someone in a work relationship, when itwould be more appropriate to refer to the other person as colleague. You might have heard “friend” used todescribe someone whom you have met casually once or twice, when it would bemore appropriate to refer to that person as an acquaintance. Jesus does not call us colleagues or mereacquaintances, Jesus calls us friends. It may be helpful then, for us to know what that truly means, because ifwe are truly to be Jesus’ friends, we need to know what that really demands ofus.
Wikipedia offers a fine description of the word“friend.” “Friends care for one anotherand look out for each other . . . theymust open up about personal things, listen carefully, and be loyal to oneanother.” (Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Friendship ) Furthermore,Wiki states that the behavior of friends includes demonstrating on a consistentbasis the following: 1) Show desire for what is best for the other, (2) show sympathyand empathy, (3) offer honesty, perhaps in situations where it may be difficultfor others to speak the truth, (4) offer mutual understanding and compassion(5) go to each other for emotional support (6) trust in one another (7) and havethe ability to express one's feelings and make mistakes without fear ofjudgment.
When Jesus calls us friends, as we hear in today’s gospel,the kind of relationship he desires with us, all of us, is not merely one inwhich we are a mere colleague or acquaintance. Jesus calls us into a relationship of caring, listening, trusting, andnon-judgmental sharing. This friendship is at the heart of therelational life of the Trinity. This isthe circle of love, which is the life of God: Father, Son, and HolySpirit. God invites his belovedcreation, each one of us, not some … but all into a loving friendship with God,and with each other.
If you are familiar with the popular social media,Facebook, one of the reasons why it is so popular, is that you can connect withyour “friends” from all over the world. Youcan share pictures with each other, you can send messages, and you can renewold relationships. I have friends fromseminary, from conferences I have attended, from Tennessee, from Florida, andfrom all over the world. With thesefriends in the social media world, I can post little events on my daily“wall,” I can upload pictures of my latest adventures, and I can share linksof my favorite videos. I can pick andchoose with whom I will be Facebook “friends,” and I can even choose what Iwill share with those people I call “friends.” I imagine if Jesus used social media to connect with us, the friendshipinvitation would be sent out to all folks, Jesus would probably encourage eachone of us to befriend each other, and Jesus would give full access toeverything about himself and by the way, we would be asked to do the same. That is not the way it is in social mediaworld, nor is it that we way with our own connections. We are exclusive about who we invite into ourcircle of friends. We rarely venture outof our comfort zone to reach out to someone different from us, but that is notwhat Our Lord teaches us.
See, Jesus invites the least likely folks into thefellowship friends. In today’s scripturereading, we heard that the “believers who had come with Peter were astoundedthat the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on theGentiles.” Gentiles were not the only socalled outcasts for that early community. Do you remember how Jesus called tax collectors, blind folk, lepers,prostitutes, and other outcasts as disciples? That was not merely a suggestion or a good idea he had, he seriouslywanted us to follow his lead. Jesusinvites us to invite the outcasts into fellowship with him, and with us. So who might those folks be in our littlecommunity today?
Look around us in Englewood. Who might be the outcasts with whom we arecalled to be friends? Well, consider thefolks who are struggling to make ends meet each month. Did you know that nearly 10% of our neighborsaround us are living below the poverty line? Jesus calls them into a relationship of caring, listening, trusting, andnon-judgmental sharing. Jesus invites usto love them as he loves us. We have theresources to do that very thing, but it takes more than one or two people toserve. In this parish, we serve theleast, lost, and lonely every single day of the week through our food pantry,our Backpack program, and through our Cold night shelter. It takes many hands, many gifts, and manyhours of mission work to make this work of friendship and love areality. Not sure that you can serve inthat kind of ministry, then maybe, you can just be a friend. Come, sit with those who are hurting, listento their story, empathize with their plight, and love them.
There are many others Jesus invites to be hisfriends: the poor yes, thebrokenhearted, the lonely, and the prisoner. That invitation extends to others too regardless of their immigrationstatus, sexual orientation, handicap, addiction, homelessness, or maritalstatus. The invitation to be friends ofJesus is not exclusive, but it resonates beyond all boundaries, all walls, andall divisions. When we consider whomight be in this circle of love, those who we consider worthy to be in thecircle of acceptance, love, grace, reconciliation, and mercy, we must lookthrough the gospel lens. The Gospelmessage is, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.” God so loved the world! Notice that John 3:16 does not say, “For Godso loved the Church.” Surprised? God calls us ALL into relationship. God so loved the WORLD. For God so loved the entire world, not merelya select group. God laid down God’s lifefor us. That is good news, and the storyneeds to be told again, and again, and again. It needs to be told in fresh, new ways. We can no longer open the doors of the church, hope people will come in,and expect them to want to merely hear our story and be like us. We have to begin loving as Jesus loves us. We have to meet people where they are and developfriendships. These friendships willembrace what is best for the other, offer sympathy and empathy, embrace honesty,exalt mutual understanding and compassion, share trust, and offer the freedom toexpress feelings and make mistakes without fear of judgment. We need to make some friends for Jesus.
A little over six months ago, my dear friend the Rev.Becky Robbins-Penniman preached here at St. David’s during “Our Celebration ofNew Ministry,” and that evening I was installed as your Rector. The words from her sermon are just as important today as they wereNovember 6, 2011. Becky gave us all achallenge with these words: “Eric is going to keep calling you to live up tothe life of St. David, and do the little things – a LOT of little things tomake some new friends for Jesus. So, ifyou’re ready to love God, love each other like Christ loves you, and be likeSt. David, doing all those little things among people that are different fromyou as if you were in the presence of God, I invite you all to say after me:Hey, Eric! Let’s go make some newfriends!”
Today, Sunday May 13, 2011, I say to you all, God’speople of St. Davids, “let’s go make some new friends.”
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