Verse: The friendship of the LORD is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant. Psalm 25:14

Thought:  Jesus in His prayer, in John 17, Jesus called God “Father” 6 times in this chapter (17:1, 5, 11, 21, 24, 25). 2 times Jesus calls God, “Father,” add the adjective “Holy” (17:11) or “Righteous” (17:25). Thus, calling God, “Father” means we are approaching Him with reverence (sovereign Lord) and relationship (generous giver of grace – Savior). The combination “Heavenly Father” helps us to remember both reverence and relationship and is compatible with the Lord’s model prayer in Mt 6.

How do we know, if we are God’s friend? – Let us study what the Bible teaches

1. Obedience: So the relationship to the Lord is extraordinary, Jesus said in John 15:14: “You are my friends if you do what I command you” This is the proof that the children of God have a friendship with the Lord if they obey the word of God, James warned us – James 4:4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.
2. Believe & Fear the Lord: The Bible calls Abraham as God’s friend, James 2:23: Abraham was called the friend of God because he believed God, and the Bible again says Psalms 25:14: The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him 

Our Assurance: The Lord is our friend we are in a relationship with the Lord, as a bondservant, child of God, a friend of God, and we have one ambition to please God, as Paul says in 2 Cor 5:12 [Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.]. Two promises on how the Lord looks at us

• Psalm 62:8: God is a friend who listens and wants to hear all your troubles 
• Psalm 32:8-9: God is a friend who wants to help and guide you along the path of your life