How To Be A Good Friend Series - A Good Friend Is Willing To Sacrifice

 

A good friend is WILLING to sacrifice! Recall with me the time when Jesus was crying out to the Heavenly Father in the Garden of Gethsemane and He said;

 "Father, if it is Your will, take this cup away from Me; nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.” Luke 22:42

He recognized He too had a will and He yet choose God's path as He willingly suffered and sacrificed for us all! 

"For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps." 1 Peter 2:1

Sacrifice, commitment of time, biting our tongue to listen to a friend are all things that are hard to do. 

It's something we too must choose, will to 'go the extra mile' for and with a friend? In places we truly have no desire to go to? Will we sacrifice to take time and effort to sit in a hospital waiting room, help clean a friend’s house, prepare them a meal and the list continues according to the need. This sacrifice can also get harder than what we ever could imagine or even desire. 

Are we willing to go to places at the risk of our safety? Maybe we have very little, still are we willing to give our last meal to a friend? 

Sacrifice looks different in so many scenarios, but they are that - sacrifices. The last part of First Peter 2:1 says "...so that you might follow in His footsteps." Jesus walked out a life of sacrifice, by not just living a perfect example but paving the way to help empower us to do the same. When Jesus sacrificed, His Love then was disposed to all men and women alike. It is by the Power of the Love of Jesus; we can sacrifice for a friend and even a stranger! Because His love floods our souls and empowers us to be like Him! Read the 'Love Chapter': 1 Corinthians 13, which clearly expresses how we all can operate in the area of sacrifice. 

Today, we are foremost grateful to our Lord and Savior for His great sacrifice for all. And yes, even today, we can then in turn sacrifice for others (especially our friends and family) by revealing His Love as we lay our lives down for others.

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.  If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth."

1 John 3:16-18