John 15:14-15
Jesus said: “You are my friends if you do what I command. I no longer call you servants, because a
servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I
learned from my Father I have made known to you.”
We have had the opportunity to restore two old houses in our lifetime. We have some DIY skills, but
never enough to do all the work ourselves. That’s why, on many occasions, friends have come to help
us.
One day, having decided to replace the windows in our house (a tumbledown Breton farmhouse), we
benefitted from the assistance of a couple of friends. When they came to help, they brought along a
visitor, who was a builder and a carpenter. We made friends with this man, discovered many
common points, spoke at length, ate meals together and worked in a joyful and happy atmosphere
for a week.
These three friends were efficient and quick. Under their leadership, the work progressed at a rapid
pace. They were our friends, but we did everything they asked us to do as carefully as possible.
We were working on a project that presented challenges and issues that these friends knew how to
overcome. They were far more skilled than us in this field of work! Their experience made them
more qualified than we could ever be. It would not have occurred to us to contradict their advice or
not follow their instructions.
When Jesus says that we are his friends if we do what He commands, it is because refusing his
instructions would not only be counterproductive to the Kingdom work we seek to build together,
but would seriously put into question our friendship with Him.
Written by Jonathan and Amanda Hanley – adapted from L’Ère du temps, a “thought for the week” based on current affairs, originally published by SU-France and SU-Switzerland.