Whose Friend Am I?

John 19:12 KJV

And from thenceforth Pilate sought to release him: but the Jews cried out, saying, If thou let this man go, thou art not Caesar's friend: whosoever maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar.

The thought occurred to me this morning, "Whose friend do I want to be; the Lord's or the Caesar's?"

It is obvious who these Jews had chosen.

Though they would have been quick to say their loyalties were in Israel, their actions here betrayed something else. They were friends of Caesar because they would not stand up to Caesar.

Pilate's choice too becomes obvious.

Having received his position at the pleasure of Caesar he was not about to choose a king other than Caesar.

The question that remains is whose friend will we be?

Will we choose:

·       The world over the Lord?

·       Riches over righteousness in Christ?

·       This life over eternal life?

·       Favor over faith?

The Roman Caesars have all passed into history but there are kings aplenty in this life. The crowds around us will taunt us with their threats; to choose Christ means you are no friend to their king. But God in response says that friendship with this world is enmity with God.

Resorting Together

John 18:2 KJV

And Judas also, which betrayed him, knew the place: for Jesus ofttimes resorted thither with his disciples.

There was a place where Jesus often went with His disciples. He went there frequently enough that Judas knew the spot. He went there, the Bible says, with His disciples.

We like to sing the old hymn, "I come to the garden alone…" It is certainly important that we have quiet time alone with the Lord.[1] But Christian living cannot be done in a vacuum.

I see an application for regular, predictable assembly in our local church. Resorting together with other disciples stirs spiritual growth. The cycle between regular quiet times with the Lord and frequent fellowship with the saints is dynamic; each depends and thrives upon the other.

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[1] These “Daily Visits” I record are the result of regular, daily time spent one on one with Christ and His Word.

Happy Song

Exodus 15:13 KJV

Thou in thy mercy hast led forth the people which thou hast redeemed: thou hast guided them in thy strength unto thy holy habitation.

The Jews were elated. Their enemy had been destroyed and in such a way as could never have been but by God.

·       The armies of Egypt were all drowned

·       The nation of Egypt was separated from them.

The Red Sea would forever serve as a barrier between them.

Israel celebrates and sang.

·       Of victory

·       Of redemption

·       Of deliverance and

·       Of salvation

As much music does, much is said in a short space. This one verse speaks of

·       God's motivation-mercy

·       God's ministry-redemption

·       God's manifestation-guidance and

·       God's destination -His holy habitation

The Bondage of the Old Nature

Exodus 14:5 KJV

And it was told the king of Egypt that the people fled: and the heart of Pharaoh and of his servants was turned against the people, and they said, Why have we done this, that we have let Israel go from serving us?

Jameison Fausett and Brown comments:

 "Alas, how soon the obduracy of this reprobate king reappears! He had been convinced, but not converted - overawed, but not sanctified by the appalling judgments of heaven. He bitterly repented of what he now thought a hasty concession. Pride and revenge, the honor of his kingdom, and the interests of his subjects, all prompted him to recall his permission to reclaim those runaway slaves and force them to their wonted labor. Strange that he should yet allow such considerations to obliterate or outweigh all his painful experience of the danger of oppressing that people. …”

The bondage of sin and the old nature are so powerful that, though a soul may appear to have made a turn around, that old nature quickly "brings them to their senses" where they ask, "What have we done?" As quickly as our hopes were up that they would follow the Lord, they have turned again to the beggarly things of this world.

·       Shallow conversions

·       Hollow confessions

·       Emotional repentance and

·       Hasty cries to God at the urging of a believer

These are not the makings of eternal children of God.

·       Something deeper

·       Something more grounded

·       Something supernatural

These are the things that tend to earnest converts to Christ. It may appear that the soul that is truly converted makes that transformation in a heartbeat but examination will always confirm that years of spiritual process led to that moment of salvation.