It is not enough just to understand the value of friendship in life. Friends share our burden, they share our joy. True friends love unconditionally and support, in good times or in bad. Solomon’s Proverbs, says in chapter 17, verse 17, “A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for a time of adversity.”  True friends are more like brothers, whereas the word “friend,” whose meaning has now been simplified by widespread use. We know what brotherly love should be like. We avoid hurting our friends in the ways we think we are going to get hurt. When our friend is happy, or when they receive good news, we’re sincerely happy when they come to tell us about it. Who is a partner in our joy, our sorrow? In days when selfishness seems to be increasing, we must appreciate our friends who rejoice with us when we rejoice, or who are companions with us on the journey of life. 

As with all subjects, we learn a lot when we look at the example of Jesus Christ in terms of friendship. You’ve heard of Jesus’ disciples, Peter, John, Thomas and others. They had the privilege of living next to Jesus from the beginning of his service until his death, dividing the bread with Him, walking the same path. They protected him with their lives, and they marched with Him to the end of the road, no matter how dangerous it seemed. The word Apostle  has been passed from the  Hebrew word haver to our language.

Haver contains many meanings, one of which is friendship. Connection of two things comes from the root of the verb lehaver, which means attaching. That’s why friends are connected, members of the same family, interconnected. Just as two interconnected objects fall into a fire at the same time, they both burn; or they both cool down if they are thrown into cool waters at the same time, so it is with friends, affected by each other’s state. Haver also means comrade. Friends are those who have gone down the same path and bear each other’s burdens. That’s who the Galatians were in the 6th century.  Chapter 2 refers to such a friendship, brotherhood, when it says, “Bear each other’s heavy burden.” 

If we walk the same path as those, we are friends with and are similar over time, our relationship as friends is close to that of a relationship with a spouse. We have to be wise when choosing who we go in the same direction with, who to open up to, who to trust. Again, Solomon’s Proverbs are very short and concise in this regard. Chapter 13, verse 20, says, “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.” Proverbs 18:24 says “One who has unreliable friends soon comes to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” 

Our relationship with Jesus shows who is the most loyal, best friend!  He offered the deepest love and made the greatest sacrifices on our behalf.   His friendship is the greatest gift we have. As we get closer to Him, as we open ourselves up to Him, we follow the example of Christ in our other friendships around the world and form much more intimate bonds.  The most useful thing we can do for our lives is to be His faithful haveri; To follow his path is to establish a close relationship with Him. 

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