Strength 2026
Engaging God as a Friend
Sunday, October 11, 2026
We know God as Father, as Lord, and by many other names, but what about knowing Him as a friend? When we engage with God as a friend, we do so because we genuinely want to know Him. Remember, God walked with Adam in the garden. God was Adam's friend.
Discussion Point #1: What does it mean to know God as a friend, and how can we develop that kind of relationship with Him?
John 15:14-16 (AMP)
14You are my friends if you keep on doing what I command you. 15I do not call you servants any longer, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you [My] friends, because I have revealed to you everything that I have heard from My Father. 16You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed and placed and purposefully planted you, so that you would go and bear fruit and keep on bearing, and that your fruit will remain and be lasting, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name [as My representative] He may give to you.
True friendship involves mutual respect. When you have a true friend, you don't want to hurt them. You want to bless them, help them, and spend time with them.
Discussion Point #2: As you've spent time with God as a friend, how has He revealed things to you differently?
Psalm 25:14 (ASV)
14The friendship of Jehovah is with them that fear him;
And he will show them his covenant.
Fear in this Scripture does not mean being afraid; it refers to a reverential fear of God, our Creator. When we approach God as a friend with that reverence, honoring the sanctity of our relationship with Him, He will reveal things to us.
Look at Abraham. He was God's friend.
Isaiah 41:8 (AMP)
8“But you, Israel, My servant,
Jacob whom I have chosen,
The offspring of Abraham My friend, [Heb 2:16; James 2:23]”
Without that relationship with God, our focus can shift from Him to natural circumstances. For example, when a storm comes and things get messy, we can become so overwhelmed that we can't see the forest for the trees. It all comes down to where we place our attention and focus.
“We love You, Jesus... but God, what about this?”
“I trust You, Lord... but God, what about that?”
“I want to obey... but God, what if I do it this way?”
The word “but” negates everything you just told God.
Discussion Point #3: When we trust our earthly friends, we're willing to do what they ask of us. But people are fallible, and God is not. How much more, then, should we trust God and do what He says?
Numbers 23:19 (AMP)
19God is not a man, that He should lie,
Nor a son of man, that He should repent.
Has He said, and will He not do it?
Or has He spoken and will He not make it good and fulfill it?
God cannot lie. Knowing this, how much more can we trust Him? God's Word is more real than our reality.