PODCAST

Frenemies

December 24th, 2022

1 John 4:7-16

Have you ever had a person who acted like he or she was your friend, but was also, in some ways, an enemy or rival? If so, that person could be considered your “frenemy,” or “friend/enemy.” Many of us have experienced something like a frenemy.

1 John 4 is very clear: we are to love others as God has loved. We know from this passage, and others throughout the Bible, that God is not our frenemy. God cares for us, sets healthy boundaries for us, goes with us through the ups and downs in life. God never pretends to be a friend, only to work our destruction behind our backs. God loved each one of us, all of us, so much that “He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him” (v. 9b). There is no mistaking what loving looks like: sacrificial, caring, and life-changing. 

Too often folks in church get a reputation for being more like a frenemy than a friend. Pray and think of ways that you can be a friend of God and others this week. Allow God to show you opportunities to love!

Author: Stefanie Hendrickson