This Sunday, we will continue our series in 1^st Samuel, looking at chapter 18 verses 1-4.  Here we are told of Jonathan and David and their deep friendship.  This will be a 2-part message as there was just too much helpful information in the intro that becomes a great message for us to think about God’s blessing of close, intimate friendship.  The simple lesson though, from this text, is that God designed friendship to enable us to see God’s goals accomplished in others.  Jonathan and David are great examples of what it takes to be a good friend.  They were not in it for themselves, but for what they could give.  They give us some great principles in this text that we should be doing as we see what made their friendship so great.    

In our scripture reading, John 15:1-13, Jesus teaches there about the vine and the branches.  That He is the vine, and that we are the branches, and that we must abide in Him to be able to bear much fruit.  When we get our “fruit” from the vine [Christ], we are commanded, and we are able, to love one another: friendship!