Christ Chose Us

John 15:16, "You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you."

Here, the Lord Jesus teaches a truth that has existed throughout history, and that is:

God is the Initiator.

He gives because we are in want. He chose us because we find ourselves hopelessly poor and in need of a Savior. He bestows His favor and grace upon us because that is Who He is. It certainly is not because of man's wisdom and goodness that we are chosen of Him. He chose us because He loves us, not because He has needs.

Deuteronomy 7:7, "The Lord did not set His love on you nor choose you because you were more in number than any other people, for you were the least of all people; but because the Lord loves you..."

The Lord made the first choice - to love and to die for us, to invite us to live with him forever. We make the next choice - to accept or reject his offer. Without His choice, we would have no choice to respond to His eternal love.

1 Corinthians 1:27, 29, "But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty...that no flesh should glory in His presence."

Philippians 19-11, "And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernments, that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ, being filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God."

As we learn to run to the Lord and abide in Him, we will know and enjoy wonderful fellowship with our Father. We will experience the genuine love of God, and we will desire to share it with everyone we meet. Finally, we will be joyfully and willingly obliged to express this love by the good works we do as the Lord leads us. In this way, the fruit will remain.

Jesus Wants to Call Us Friends

John 15:14-15, "You are My friends if you do whatever I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you."

Because Jesus is our Lord and Master, He should call us servants; instead He calls us friends. A friend enjoys spending time with another friend. It is a valued relationship where each one can converse freely and laugh openly. You have learned to trust your friend, and so you confide feelings and dreams, as well as personal failure. Friendship is a choice.

Jesus was on His way to the cross, and He knew that His time on earth with His friends was short. In the upper room, Jesus had taught them about serving. Then, in the vineyard, he talked with them about genuine love -- the kind of love that comes from the Father. He explained that they could use this same love to love one another, and that the result would be a life full of joy.

As the time approached when Jesus Christ was to lay down His life according to the will of the Father, He shared openly with the eleven men He called friends. He told them that He had held nothing back, but that He told them everything that He heard from the Father. Everything.

The clock was ticking, and Jesus was interested in relationships. It tells of His nature that this was a priority to Him. He truly desires an intimate relationship with His disciples, one that is voluntary, not one of compulsion.

James 2:23, "And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.' And he was called the friend of God."

Proverbs 18:24, "A man who has friends must himself be friendly, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother."

A Christian's heart cannot contain the love that is sure to grow as a result of abiding in God. Our lives will spill over with unexplainable joy as we learn and practice abiding in His presence. He will share with us everything we need to know, and we will experience a continual filling as a result of our friendship with our Lord.

Thank you, Lord, for wanting a relationship with me. I would not know the way if you did not guide me. I love you. Amen.

Points to Ponder

1. Read James 1:1. Why do you think James called himself a bondservant?


2. Is it possible for a person to love someone, but not to be a friend?


3. Are you a friend of Jesus?