A True Friend

And long ago, God gave David something he could not buy. He was priceless. There was no price on it. He couldn't buy it. 1 Samuel 16, verse 1. 1 Samuel 16, verse 1. 2 Samuel 16, verse 2. And so he did as he was told. You come down to verse 13. Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and he anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up and went up to Rehma.

A throne! A throne! He's anointed to be king. God's giving him a throne. And that throne really is so long-ranging. So long-ranging.

Now, back at that time, when he started ruling, he reigned for 40 years. And yet, a throne as a king is going to go a whole lot longer than that. It actually extends throughout the millennium of Christ and beyond. Because notice Ezekiel 34. You know, we look at that account back there, and we see how that God gave him a throne. And we see how that when Jesus returns, and David is resurrected, he'll also have a specific throne that will involve the very people that he was made king over.

Israel. Ezekiel 34, verse 23. Speaking of that time, when the millennium is set up, when Christ is returned. And I will set up one shepherd over them, verse 23. And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them even my servant David. He shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd, and I the Lord will be their God, and my servant David, a prince among them.

I the Lord have spoken it. And then it's also mentioned again in chapter 37. In chapter 37, verses 22 and 24, verse 22. And I will make them one nation in the land, talking about the house of Judah, the house of Israel that had split under Rehoboam.

And they'll be brought back together. That's the context. Upon the mountains of Israel, and one king shall be king to them all, and they shall be no more two nations, two houses. Neither shall they be divided into two kingdoms anymore. Not the kingdom of Judah, the kingdom of Israel will be put together and called the kingdom of Israel again. And then in verse 24, And David, my servant, shall be king over them, and they all shall have one shepherd, and they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them. There was a song a number of years ago, some time ago, and it had the lyrics. I don't remember the exact title of the song. This might have been the song title. I don't know. But the lyric was in there. It's good to be king. It's good to be king. Yes, it is, and that's in our future. If you go with me to Revelation 5 and verse 10, that's in our future, to be king. To be kings.

Revelation 5 and verse 10, And as made us, and this is all of us, as men and women, children of God, sons and daughters, and as made us into our God, kings and priests. Those are rulers, governors, and educators, administrators and educators, kings and priests. And we shall reign, or rule, that is, on the earth.

And then if you look at Revelation 20, and just to focus on thrones, per se, Revelation 20 and verse 4, And I saw thrones, plural, and they, plural, sat upon them, And judgment was given unto them, or rulership. A throne is something we can all have to look forward to. Now, when Samuel appeared to Jesse, and went through all of his sons, and God pointed out, no, no, no. Well, Jesse, or then he left? Oh, yeah. The kid, the youngest. He's out there keeping the sheep. Well, get him in here.

Just a teenager, at the most, and he was anointed king, to be king. He was anointed for the kingship. He was given at that time a throne, but he wasn't sitting on it at the time.

David and his brothers must have known what the adenointing was about.

And at whatever point, at that point, or God through his spirit, really shining the light on what that was all about, however it was, there was a point where David realized that he was anointed as the future king of Israel, but he didn't have it right away, did he? And he was anointed king while he was still a teenager, probably somewhere around 17, probably somewhere around that age.

For some reason, it seems, you know, Jeremiah picked at 17, you know, told at 17, we've got this job for you. Joseph sold at 17, and David was a teenager. We know that for sure. And again, probably around 17. But here's what's interesting. He was anointed king while still a teenager, but he didn't actually sit on the throne until he was 30 years old.

So we probably have a stretch of about 13 years in there. And those years from his teens till age 30 were some of the most exciting and challenging and difficult times of his life. In many regards, they were critical, crucial, hard, difficult, and lonely. They were not what you'd expect for a future king.

They were very trying years in many respects. And though he had been anointed king, it would be years before he actually had the throne. And those years would be some of the roughest, some of the roughest of his life. See, God gave David a throne, but David didn't need it right away. There was too much training. There was too much training David yet had to go through. The throne could wait for a while, but there was something else that David needed.

And it was something that couldn't wait. It was something that he desperately needed for the challenging and hard years ahead, and yet it too was something that he could not buy. And God was about to give him that also. In 1 Samuel 17, you have the very detailed account of the situation with the Philistines and their champion Goliath.

In 1 Samuel 17, we're not going to go through the account. We're not going to read the account and go through it. We're very familiar with it. We're very familiar with the fact that this stripling, this youngster, this teenager, sent to check on his brothers who had already been anointed future king and how in the camp of Israel there were the Philistines on one side of the little valley, and the Israelites on the other, and this giant of a man who was six cubics and a span.

A span is half a cubit. A cubit is 18 inches. That was the common cubit. A span is half of that nine. This being that was nine foot, nine inches tall, and built so powerfully that his spearhead, on his spear, weighed the best they've got to go by 25 pounds. David steps down there, and he doesn't challenge. He doesn't challenge. He persuades Saul. And, of course, there with Saul's court, the tents, he persuades Saul that he can go down there, and he's got such confidence that he can do it.

And his confidence is not in himself, it's in God. That Saul is convinced or persuaded, and, of course, God is working something here, too. But he goes down there, and in the name of his God, the true God, he challenges Goliath, and we know the account. And when he toppled that giant, and when that giant crashed down with a stone buried in his forehead, that in and of itself probably killed him or would have killed him, and he's laying there in full view of all the Philistines, and David pulls that warrior's own sword out and hacks his head off and holds it up, there was no doubt in anybody's mind he's dead, and the Philistines fled.

And it was a great battle that day. And then David returns to Saul, carrying the head of Goliath. And so, in 1 Samuel 18, verse 1, 1 Samuel 18 and verse 1, And it came to pass when he had made an end of speaking to Saul, because he's reported back in, he's come back in, and he's reporting, and he's communicating with Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own soul, as his own being.

And Saul took him that day and would let him go no more home to his father's house, than Jonathan and David made a covenant, because he loved him as his own soul, as his own being. There was a bunding that took place, and Jonathan stripped himself of the robe, the royal robe, because, see, he's next in line to be king. Jonathan is the heir apparent to his father. He strips off the royal robe that was upon him, and he gave it to David, and his garments even to his sword, to his bow, and to his girdle.

What David was given that day by God, that's priceless, that you cannot buy, was a true friend. A true friend. And that's what I'm talking about today, a true friend. If you want a title, title and subject, a true friend. See, for better than a decade, until his death on Mount Gilboa, Jonathan would prove to be that very thing, a true friend. He would fill a special place, and he would play a special role in David's life. So much so that David would later say and write this in 2 Samuel 1, 2 Samuel 1, verses 25-27. Because this is on Mount Gilboa, where Saul and his son Jonathan and his army were they were defeated.

And Saul, that day, died, and Jonathan did too. And you can just imagine David walking across that battlefield where he had lost his true friend Jonathan. Verse 25, How are the mighty fallen in the midst of the battle? Oh, Jonathan, you were slain in your high places. I am distressed for you, my brother Jonathan.

Now, at this point in time, David is right at 30. The years have passed. Very pleasant have you been unto me. Your love to me was wonderful, passing the love of women. And, of course, that's the verse that people try to read too much into.

And that's not what David is talking about with Jonathan here. Come back to that in a moment. How are the mighty fallen and the weapons of war perished?

David, at 30, at least to this point in his life, and maybe never for the remainder of his life, had never had anyone as concerned for his own welfare and well-being as Jonathan. To this point in his life, and again, maybe for the remainder of his life, he had never had anyone who had the depth of sacrificial love for him that Jonathan had for him. See, God knew David needed such in his life while he waited and was being prepared for the throne that was coming. So God gave David another priceless gift that money cannot buy. You cannot buy a true friend. You can buy users, but you can't buy true friends. See, Jonathan means, the name means, Jehovah's gift. The gift from Jehovah. Gift from God. That's what Jonathan means. It's a beautiful name. Gift from God. That's one of the main reasons that we named our son Jonathan Jonathan because we knew he was a gift from God. And Jonathan has, as his mother and father have grown older, he has been there for us. Not that the others aren't too, but Lauren's in Australia, too far away to be of any appreciable help. And of course, Leigh Ann is limited in what she can do. And Jonathan has been the one that has had to really help out in certain regards. And of course, Leigh Ann, when Angela had her surgeries and all, Leigh Ann was over here every weekend that she could be to help out.

But what was the caliber? What was the quality? What was the measure of the man Jonathan and his friendship? Let's take his caliber. Let's look at his measure. Let's look at the quality and the quantity, all of it. 1 Samuel 14. 1 Samuel 14.

Now, the setting of this, the Philistines in Israel are kind of, you know, they're at odds. And there's war pending and, of course, fighting that's been going on. But anyhow, there's a stalemate. There's a stalemate. And Saul's men have kind of bled back into the woods and the hills and the valleys and left the area, and he's down to 600 men. And the way he sees it, you can't do a whole lot of fighting with 600 men, especially when the enemy has a whole lot more than that.

Well, Jonathan was a man of courage. He was convicted of God. He was willing to sacrifice. 1 Samuel 14. Verse 1. Now, it came to pass upon a day that Jonathan's son, Saul, said to the young man that bore his armor, his armor bearer, just the two of them.

Hey, let's go. Come on. Let's go over to the Philistines garrison. Let's go over to that garrison that's on the other side, but he didn't tell his father. He knew his father would try to stop him. You two, going over there? Uh-uh. Verse 4. And between the passages by which Jonathan sought to go over to the Philistines garrison, there was a sharp rock on the one side and a sharp rock on the other side.

And I'll skip the names. The forefront of the one was situated northward over against Micmash and the other southward over against Gibeah. And Jonathan said to the young man that bore his armor. Now, I want you to notice. I guess I said, take the caliber. Take the caliber of the man. Take the measure of him.

He said to the young man that bore his armor, come on, let's go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised. It may be that the Lord... He didn't say it may be. We can whip one or two of them. He said it may be that the Lord will work for us. Notice this statement of faith.

For there is no restraint to the Lord to save by many or by few. And we definitely are few, just you and me right now. But God's not limited by that. So let's go.

And his armor bearer, who also was a courageous man, said to him, do all that is in your heart, go ahead. Turn, you go ahead. I'm with you. I'm with you.

Then said Jonathan, verse 8, we will pass over to these men and we will reveal ourselves to them. We'll let them see us. If they say to us, wait till we come down to you, then we will stand still in our place and we'll not go up to them.

But if they say, come on up here, come on up here, then we will go up because that will be our sign, see, that the Lord has delivered them into our hand. That shall be a sign to us. And both of them discovered themselves, stood out in the open to the garrison of the Philistines, and the Philistines said, look, the Hebrews, they're finally coming forth out of the holes where they've been hiding because they knew that the army had melted away. And the men of the garrison answered, Jonathan and his armor bear, and said, hey, come here, come on up, we'll show you something. And Jonathan said to his armor bear, come after me, follow me, for the Lord has delivered them into the hand of Israel.

And Jonathan climbed up upon his hands and upon his feet. He had to use his hands and his feet to climb that rock. Pretty steep place he was going up. And his armor bear followed him. And notice, they fell before Jonathan. And his armor bear, picture this, Jonathan is laying them down, and his armor bear is walking behind him, following, finishing them off.

And that first slaughter, which Jonathan and his armor bear made, was about 20 men within, as it were, a half acre of land, which a yoke of oxen might plow. And then God got even more involved. And there was trembling. God used, Jonathan was willing to be used to initiate something. God was with him. And God got more involved.

And there was trembling in the host, in the field, and among all the people, the garrison and the spoilers. They also trembled. The earth and the earth quaked. So it was a very great trembling. And in Hebrew it says, a very great trembling of God. And the watchmen of Saul and Gibeah of Benjamin looked, and behold the multitude melted away, and they were beating down one another. I mean, they even turned on each other, evidently, maybe running over each other, trying to get away. Interesting. A man of courage, a man of conviction, convicted of God, willing to sacrifice, willing to pay a price. And thus, 1 Samuel 18 and verse 1. See, again, when you take the measure of who we're dealing with when we talk about Jonathan, a courageous man, convicted of God, a man of faith, willing to sacrifice. Then when we read, it came to pass when he, David, had made an end of speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was nipped, and he was bonded with the soul of David, and Jonathan loved him as his own being. Jonathan was a man who felt and gave deeply, and he recognized and attached to a kindred spirit. The man who climbed the cliff to take on a garrison with just his armor bare with him saw a kindred spirit. And a young man that was quite a bit younger than him stepped out and faced a 9-foot, 9-inch giant. He bonded in friendship, and it was a friendship that was true, and it was dedicated, and it was sacrificial. 1 Samuel 19 is looking at just a few highlights. And again, remember, there was a stretch of time of years that obviously went by. 1 Samuel 19, verses 1-7, verse 1, time's going by. Saul's jealous. Saul's getting envious. There's a bad spirit that's been moving in on Saul because he has moved further and further away from God. And Saul spoke to Jonathan, his son, and to all his servants that they should kill David. But Jonathan, Saul's son, delighted much in David. And Jonathan told David, saying, Saul, my father seeks to kill you. Now, therefore I pray you, take heed to yourself. Be careful until the morning, and abide in a secret place and hide yourself. And I will go out, and I will stand beside my father in the field, verse 3, where you are, where I know you are, where I know you're hidden. And I will commune with my father of you, and what I see, that I'll tell you. And Jonathan spoke of David to Saul, his father, and said to him, Let not the king sin. Let him not sin against his servant, against David. Because he's not sinned against you. And because his works have been toward you, very good. For he did put his life in his hand, and slew the Philistine. Remember? Remember, Father? And the Lord wrought a great salvation for all Israel. You saw it, and you did rejoice.

Why then will you sin against innocent blood to slay David without a cause? Because you don't have a cause. And Saul harkened to the voice of Jonathan. And Saul swore, as the Lord lives, he shall not be slain. And Jonathan called David, and Jonathan showed him all those things, and Jonathan brought David to Saul, and he was in his presence, as in times past, restored for the moment.

Again, Saul wasn't stable. He didn't stick to it. He didn't last. 1 Samuel 20, verses 1 through 3, chapter 20, verses 1 through 3. And David fled from Neoth in Ramah, and came and said to Jonathan, What have I done? What is my wrong? What is my iniquity? What is my sin? What is my sin before your Father that He seeks my life?

And Jonathan said to him, God forbid, you shall not die. Look, my Father will do nothing, either great or small, but what He will show it to me. Why should my Father hide this from me? It's not so. He didn't realize just how much so Saul was deeply reverting to that. And David swore more over and said, Your Father certainly knows. He's not dumb. He knows that I have found grace in your eyes.

And he says to himself, Your Father says to Himself, Don't let Jonathan know this, lest he be grieved. But truly, as the Lord lives, and as your soul lives, there is but a step between me and death. 1 Samuel 23. Actually, before I move over there, let's go back to chapter 20 and read 30-34. Chapter 20, verses 30-34. Notice what Jonathan is up against now. Then Saul's anger, verse 30 of chapter 20 here. Then Saul's anger was kindled against Jonathan, and he said to him, You son of the perverse, rebellious woman. Don't you know that you have chosen the son of Jesse to your own confusion? So the confusion of your mother's nakedness for as long as the son of Jesse lives upon the ground, you shall not be established nor your kingdom. You're the one in line. He'll sit there instead of you. Don't you realize that? Now send and fetch him to me, for he shall surely die. And Jonathan answered, Saul his father, and he said to him, Why? Why shall he be slain? What's he done? And Saul cast a javelin at him, to spite him. He was going to pin him to the wall. And by that, Jonathan knew he was determined of his father to slay David because he tried to kill his own son. So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger and did eat no meat the second day of the month, for he was grieved for David because his father had done him shame. So 1 Samuel 23, verses 14 through 18. 1 Samuel 23. And again, time has moved on. More and more events happening. Getting closer to the time of Mount Gilboa, getting closer to the time of David, becoming 30 and having the throne. So in verse 14 of 1 Samuel 23. And David abode in the wilderness and strongholds and remained in a mountain in the wilderness of Ziph. And Saul sought him every day, but God delivered him not into his hand. And David saw that Saul was come out to seek his life, and David was in the wilderness of Ziph and Ahwud. And Jonathan, Saul's son, arose and went to David. Always seem to know, in one sense, how to find a way to make that contact.

Went to David into the wood and he strengthened his hand in God. Jonathan was used to strengthen the heart of David to encourage him. And he said to David, Don't fear, for the hand of Saul, my father, shall not find you. And you shall be king over Israel. And I shall be next unto you. Think about it. He was the one that was supposed to inherit the throne.

And as we speak of the sacrificial love, he is willing to play second fiddle. He is willing to accept and live with and be happy about David being the king, and he'll serve next to him. You shall be king over Israel. And I shall be next unto you. And that also Saul, my father, knows. And they too made a covenant before the Lord. And David abode in the wood, and Jonathan went to his house. See, this kind of friend and friendship has always been very rare.

It's very rare. Jonathan's friendship with David probably stands for all time as the classic and most powerful example of what friendship can and should be. Given a choice, which would you pick? Given a choice, which would you pick? A throne or a true friend? Now, in David's case, in one sense, he was given no choice. But he was given both. And he could do without the throne for a time. In fact, he had to do without the throne for probably around 13 years. But he could do without the throne for a time better than he could do without a true friend.

I don't think any of us, do we? Think it's strange or odd to be without a throne? I've never had one. You know, I don't miss it. We don't necessarily feel anything missing. But if we don't have a friend, a real good friend, we feel left out, don't we? Friendship is what gives us connection. Friendship is what gives us belonging. Friendship is what gives us involvement.

Remember the, was it the Beatles that had the song, One is the Longliest Number? I don't get the monkeys and the Beatles and others mixed up from long ago. I don't know who the Beatles were and the monkeys were, but sometimes I get their songs crossed up. But you know, the song long ago in the 70s or late 60s, whatever it was, One is the Longliest Number, and it is.

You know, to share life through deep and meaningful friendships, that's one of the greatest blessings there is. To experience true friendship. If you can live your lifetime and in the end look back on it and say, I had one really, really solid true friend.

You have shared in some of the greatest riches there are. And if you have had more than one, if you're able to look back and say, I had more than one, that's even greater. But one of the greatest poverty and tragedies is to have none. To talk with somebody and say, do you have a really true friend? True friend. Or have you ever had really a true friend? You know, from 30 on, David could say, I had a true friend. I don't know what he had for sure beyond that.

Men are women. I don't know if he ever had a truly true friend that would measure to the trueness of Jonathan. I don't know. Someday, as Paul Harvey would have said, we'll get the rest of the story. One of the greatest poverty and tragedies is to have none. You know, a true friend, of course, what's often counted as friends today, is simply poor company. Go through Proverbs sometime. There's 31 chapters. Half of the months at least have 31 days. And as we've told our young folks at camp and other places, what's today? Okay, let's see. Today is the 29th.

This is May the 29th. Okay, read Proverbs 29 today. Tomorrow is the 30th. Read Proverbs 30. Memorial Day, of course, 31. Read Chapter 31. And then start over, June the 1st. Now, June's only got 30, so you'll have to double up at the end. But the point being that if a young person were to at least read one chapter of Proverbs every day, it's amazing how much the smarts would increase.

Because it's the book of wisdom. It's a book of wisdom and wisdoms. And of course, Proverbs speaks of poor company. How so much of what's considered friendship is just simply poor company. For instance, a true friend will not introduce you to drugs. It just won't. She won't. A true friend will not. A true, and again, the emphasis on true. A true friend will not introduce you to drugs. A true friend will not make fun of you when you get in your vehicle and you buckle up.

What do you think is going to happen? Why are you buckling up, man? Are you scared of my driving? I have known of those, especially macho guys, make fun of somebody buckling up. And I've also known of those who died because they weren't buckled up. A true friend will not dare you to do something that will hurt you. I had a cousin that, he's not alive now, but you didn't dare him to do something dangerous because he would do it.

Even if he ran the risk of getting him killed, he would do it. So if you had any real concern for him as a true friend cousin, you didn't dare him to do certain things because you knew you could get him killed. See, a true friend knows that... take the word friend. The word R, you know what the R stands for in a true friend, with a true friend, in true friendship? The R in friendship, or friend, stands for responsibility. That's what it stands for. Without the R or the responsibility, what happens with the word friend if you drop the R out?

You can write it on your paper if you want to, or you can see it in your mind. Write it in your mind. What happens to the word friend if you drop the R out? Fiend. And when the responsibility goes out of a friendship, it's fiendship because bad things happen. And you're actually hurtful to the person, or the person's hurtful to you, not beneficial.

A true friend is thinking about your welfare, truly concerned for you. And because of that, sometimes, sometimes, a true friend will... We've got terms we use like, crawl your case, call you on the carpet, get on your back. You hear people say, ah, get off my back. Quit crawling my case. They'll ride you, so to speak, etc., because they will tell you what you need to hear. They'll tell you... Again, key word, true, true. They'll tell you what you need to hear. They will say what needs to be said. Notice with me in that wonderful book of Proverbs, Proverbs 27.

Proverbs 27 will tell you what you need to hear. It will say what needs to be said.

Proverbs 27, verse 6, verse 6, first sentence, Faithful are the wounds of a friend. Faithful are the wounds of a friend. They might do or say something that could hurt a bit, could sting, but because they're a true friend and they care about you.

I could plug in a number of examples, but let me move on here. See, the reason it says, Faithful are the wounds of a friend is because it's coming from the depths of their concern for you. If you were a true friend, and you're a friend, that you are a true friend to, and had a little bit too much to drink, I'm sorry, Charlie, I'm not giving you the keys. I'll drive you home, I'll drive your vehicle, and I'll get you home, but I'm not giving you the keys.

If you're a friend, you'll give them to me, that's my vehicle. You're not much of a friend, I am your friend, that's why I'm not giving you the keys. Well, I'll take them from you. No, you won't. In your state, you can't catch me. Well, I'll get you back. Well, that's okay if you think that's what you've got to do. Maybe you'll feel better about this tomorrow. But you won't surrender the keys if you're a true friend. You'll keep them. And he'll either compromise and say, Yeah, okay, you drive my vehicle, take me home.

Or, you have to, as we say, get Uber now. Verse 9, Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart. I think I'll go back to verse 6, because that second part, it's like faithful are the wounds of a friend, because he's looking out for you. But the kisses of an enemy are deceitful. Oh, let me just give you a hug and say, Well, you shouldn't have overdrank and you're not in the best shape to drive, but you're right.

It's your vehicle and here's your keys. And be safe going home. That's deceitful, see? The kisses of an enemy are deceitful. And you're not an enemy, but you may as well be, because you just did an enemy-type thing. Verse 9, Ointment and perfume rejoice the heart. So does the sweetness of a man's friend by hearty counsel. Your friends light you up. You run into a friend and it just puts a smile on your face.

One of my absolute best friends that I went through four years of college with, he's from Alabama. I'm from Mississippi. We went through four years of college with in East Texas. He came through here in recent times. Had to attend a funeral over in Alabama. And we hadn't seen each other for years. And he contacted me. Let me know he was going to be coming through. Wondered if it would work out for us to get together for a hamburger or something.

And we did. And it's just the same as it was back in the college days. In college, we'd run into each other. We'd change in classes or wherever. We did a lot of things together. But even if we were just changing classes and we weren't in the same class on something, just seeing him or him seeing me, it always put a smile on our face. It was a day brightener for us. We were kindred spirits. We always thoroughly enjoyed each other's company.

And when he came through, it was the same. A true friend will light you up. And again, the result is good. Verse 17. This famous verse in Proverbs, here, chapter 27 and verse 17. Iron sharpens iron. So a man sharpens the countenance of his friend. And again, realities are realities. And sadly, one of the realities in our day and age is that it is true that some people would rather have poor company than true friends.

That's sad that some people don't want to go to the depths of real true friendship. They would just rather have poor company. And of course, again, we deal with our camps. We emphasize, number one, relationship with God, the Father and the Son, Jesus Christ. That's where the focus, that is the prime focus. Relationship with God, with the Father and the Son. And secondly, following right along with that, relationship with each other, friendship. Because that's what life is about, relationships. And you know, teens as well as others. It's not just teenagers who want to have fun. And of course, sometimes you find that you talk to a teenager and it's like, well, what are you doing Saturday night?

Well, just going to hang out with my friends. What are you going to do? Well, I don't know. Just want to be with them. Just want to hang out. And I know one of the common things in Huntsville when we were there and our kids were finishing their growing up is that our home was one of the places where the teens and the young folks would hang out. They just wanted to be together.

They'd come over and, you know, be popcorn-popped and maybe they'd watch a movie or they'd have Scrabble or some game and they would play. Just spending time together and just being together. And of course, going back to the days when Worldwide broke up and United was young and new, our youth group was devastated. And so the younger adults took the teens under wing. And again, there were certain locations in our houses, one of them, where they would do things together.

Or they would go to Little River Canyon on a Sunday. Or they'd go speed-lunking with some of the caves that were around. I speed-lunked one Sunday with them. Went way back in underground somewhere and had a great time of it. But just hanging out and doing stuff together and that's good and that's fine as long as it's the right place and the right situation. So again, a true friend is a strength, a support. And who doesn't need strengthening? Who doesn't need support? It's not an accomplice to weaken you.

And again, remember that saying years ago, a friend doesn't let a friend drive drunk. Remember that? A friend does not let a friend drive drunk. And the caliber or the quality of our friendships is going to be based on the caliber and quality of our friends. And another thing about a true friend is going to be there for you. She's going to be there for you in your ups and downs, not just for the good times. We talk about fair weather friends. Okay, boys, belly up to the bar. Drinks are on me. You can always get the bar to fill up. You can get enough to belly up.

Well, he just spent his last dollar on drinks for us. Well, I guess that's that. I'm out of here. A true friend will help strengthen your character. They won't do or try to do or get you to do things that will tear your character down. And a true friend will be there when you need him. He will be there for you. You can trust a true friend. He can be understanding without agreeing. There is a difference.

He can be objective without being condemning. And he doesn't write you off. And a true friend will not use you. At least, they won't consciously or knowingly or deliberately use you. A user will, but they're not a true friend. But a true friend will not use you. Because a true friend is on a give basis, not on a get basis. It's a powerful thing through friendship. It brings support. It brings strength. It brings comfort. It brings companionship. And there's a tremendous power and comfort in it. Have you ever asked yourself, Why did Christ do what he did in Matthew 26? In verse 37.

Matthew 26. In verse 37. The Garden of Gethsemane. He knows in a short time, there's going to be those who come to arrest him. In a night and day of horrors. The rest of that night into the daylight, the next day, a whole series of horrors are going to begin. And he's got to go faithfully through them. Successfully through them. So in Matthew 26, verse 37, in the Garden of Gethsemane. Well, let's look at chapter 26, verse 36. Then came Jesus with him to a place called Gethsemane.

And he said to the disciples, to the disciples, Sit here while I go and pray yonder, or over there. But, verse 37, he made an exception. He took with him Peter and the two sons of Zebedee, and began to be sorrowful and very heavy.

Why? Because that was a strengthening factor for him. It was a comforting factor. There was a companionship. And we know that he dealt most closely with those three. It wasn't that he loved them more than he did the others. But there was a bond there that somehow was stronger. And Christ wanted them to go further with him when he prayed, because it was a strengthening effect. And remember his words that evening previous, when he told them, You are my friends? And of course, we could say, Jesus Christ obviously is the truest friend, he and the Father. The truest friends we could ever possibly have. But we look for someone to stand with us. We look for someone to share with us. Consciously or unconsciously, we are searching for such, because we all need comfort. We all need support. We all need companionship. We all need connection. We all need involvement. We all need acceptance. And true friends supply that. And without true friends, there is a vacancy or an empty spot in you. There's nothing in this life on a human level that we will need more than a true friend. What a true friend should be and is, sometimes that's a brother, a physical brother. Sometimes it's a mother. It could be a sister. It could be a father. Obviously, all of those should be true friends. And we, as such, whatever role we fit, we should be a true friend, yes. It could be your mate. And ideally, ideally, it should be our mate. I mean, that is the one that should be our closest true friend. And if you have any doubt who my closest true friend is on the human plane, then go again and listen to my sermon, Tribute to Marriage. And I'll share something with you. That sermon had numerous marital points in it. But that was something that I wanted Angela to very deeply and fully know while I had the opportunity to share that with the congregation, and with her. And as I said in that sermon, she is my one greatest and deepest true friend. And again, ideally, it should be our mate. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. I wonder about David. Was there ever a woman in his life? Because I'm sorry, you corrupt your opportunities when you have multiple wives.

You corrupt your opportunities for the deepest intimacies and bonding and companionship. I just wonder if he ever had a wife who cared about his welfare as deeply as Jonathan cared about David's welfare. You know, a true friend softens a hard world. Take some of the edges off it, but take some of the sting out of life, out of hurt. The skies are bluer with a friend. The grass is greener. The valleys are more green and beautiful. And your connection with life is simply richer and more full. And that brings me to a very important point as I wrap this up. Be there for someone. Whether, you know, your mate and somebody else, and somebody else, and somebody else, it doesn't have to just be that you're a true friend to one. You can be a true friend on your part to any number. Be there for someone. Be a friend. Be a true friend. And here's the thing. Don't go looking for friends. There are some people that are so looking for friends, they'll compromise their values or standards, whatever, to get friendship. And that's not true friendship. And again, that goes back into usership. Proverbs 18.24. A man that has friends must show himself friendly. And there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother. Don't go looking, trying to quote, find friends. Set yourself to be a friend, and I think you will find that you will automatically have friends. And in all likelihood, you'll automatically have a true friend in a reciprocal way. But even if you should not, you will be a true friend. And again, that's on the give basis. And others will be blessed by your true friendship. And to be such, here's what you have to be if you're going to be a true friend. Here are some things you have to be. You've got to be strong in courage and conviction. Jonathan was. You've got to be strong in courage and conviction. You've got to be strong in character because you've got to be able to hold the line. Your holding the line might be the difference between your friend or friends being hurt or not being hurt. You've got to hold the line. So you've got to be strong in character. And you've got to be strong-minded for what is good. Strong-minded for what is good for you and your friends. And that automatically means you've got to be strong in the Lord. And you don't boast and brag about it or wear it like a spiritual badge of vanity. But that way, your companions and your friends get a true friend. And so does God. Let me go back to David in closing. Before God gave David...

I'll wait a minute.

Let me go back to David in closing. Before God gave David a true friend in Jonathan. Guess what? David was a true friend of God. Otherwise, he couldn't have faced the bear. He couldn't have faced the lion. And he could not have faced Goliath. He was a true friend of God before God gave him the true friend of Jonathan. And so it was with Jonathan also, and that's why their bond was so strong. Be a true friend, and God will bless you with sufficient friendship and friendships over the years. And most of all, you and God will be truest of friends.