That’s What Friends Are For

1st Samuel 18

It is nice having good friends. God intended for us to have friends. We are relational people. Sometimes we choose people that are not very good friends or we are not very good friends to others. I remember growing up and having a friend that was awesome. We would hang out and do everything together. We would spend the night at each other’s house almost every night in the summer. When my friend would go away and see family for a couple weeks I remember how bummed I was because he was not around. 

In this chapter we see David moving up in the people’s eyes as a leader and Saul becoming more and more jealous of David. We also get to see a great true friendship exemplified in this passage.

True Friendship

Jonathan and David were true best friends. We see that their souls were knit together. In verse 1 we see that Jonathan loved David as his own or that he had an unconditional love for him. Jonathan than would give David his own robe. He would also give David his armor and even his sword, bow, and belt. Now we may be thinking that’s cool, that’s what friends do. The truth is what Jonathan did for David and gave him was very significant. 

David was a shepherd or a very low position. Jonathan was a prince. Jonathan gave David a robe. This robe symbolized that he was a prince. He was giving David something that was a sign of royalty. This also was showing that he believed that God has anointed David as king. He gave David his armor which was his protection which meant he cared more about the protection of David then himself. He gave his sword which remember not that many Israelites had swords during this time (13:19; 17:50). This was a very special gift of war. Everything that showed Jonathan’s importance was given to David to make him important. That is what a true friend does.

What kind of friend are you? Do you give or do you take? A true friend is someone that gives of themselves for the better of the other person. Do you want your friends to continually give and give? Evaluate your friends and how you with your friends. A friend should not cause you to sin. A friend should cause you to glorify God more. Jonathan stripped everything that made him royalty so David would be royalty. Would you do that for your friends?

Jesus is true Friend

In this story I could not help but reflect on how Christ had stripped himself of everything royal and godly for me. He was born into a manger, and being a man, lived a perfect and sinless life. He was beaten and bruised and hung on a tree for me. He rose again to conquer death and died to give salvation to sinful man. Jesus was like Jonathan in that he gave up everything for us so we can be considered righteous. Romans 5:8-10 For God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. While we were enemies we were reconciled to God by they death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall be saved by his life. Christ not only gave us righteousness but took away our sin by paying the debt for us. A true friend sticks closer than a brother (Proverbs 18:24). John 15:13 tells us that no one has no greater love than this to lay down his life for his friends. Jesus laid down his life for us and he calls friend. He is a true friend.