What Does the Bible Say About Friendships?Sýnishorn

Created by the God of Friendship

You can’t shuffle a modern playlist without hearing song after song praising human independence. I don’t need anyone else because I are strong. True identity comes from within. The thing that makes a person most desirable is their ability to do life alone.

So why is the next song so often an anthem of anxiety and depression?

Perhaps it’s because we were created for more.

Our God is a God of friendship, and He created people for friendship too.

Check out the pronouns used in Genesis 1:26-27: us, our, his, and he.

Moses, the writer of Genesis, wanted the original readers to know there is one God. He used singular pronouns like "he" to describe the creator. But if God is one God, why does He also describe Himself with words like "us" and "ours" in verse 26?

This is one of the first places in the Bible where God reveals Himself as a Trinity. Through the rest of Scripture’s pages, God makes Himself known as three persons in one God: God the Father (1 Corinthians 8:6), God the Son (Isaiah 9:6), God the Holy Spirit (John 15:26).

Since before God created the world, He has been a God of friendship. He had perfect community within Himself as the Trinity, which means He is both three persons and one God. God created everything and everyone from an overflow of love. Before God created skies and seas, fish and birds, light and darkness, He loved. The Father loved the Son and the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit loved the Father and the Son, and the Son loved the Spirit and the Father. Jesus affirms this when He prays in John 17:24, “Father … you loved me before the world’s foundation."

Our hearts long for friendship because we were made to reflect a God whose nature is community. He created us for friendship with Himself, and He created us for friendship with other people.

When we are tempted to believe we don’t need anyone other than ourselves, let’s remember we were made by a God who is three in one. Should we be tempted to feel pathetic in our longing to be known and loved by someone else, let’s remember that God Himself put that longing in our hearts.

When we do friendship here on earth—when we recognize the strength in communal love—we reflect the God of heaven.

Questions

• Have you ever thought about God as a God of friendship?
• Where do you need friendship in your life? Pray that God will provide friends who point you to Him.
• How often do you believe the lie of self-reliance? How can you change your prayer life to acknowledge that God created you to have friendship with Himself and with other people?