If you want to know how to build godly friendships that last and are based on loyalty, honesty, and faithfulness, then this post is for you.
A godly friendship or godly friend is indeed a blessing from God as such a person or friendship has a profound impact if your life which is positive.
God never created us to be alone and live in isolation this is why we need to surround ourselves with godly friendships that will help us grow in the Lord and bring the best in us as well as give us the godly companionship we need.
By the end of this post, you will have understood why a godly friendship is important in your life and you will learn how to be a godly friend whose a blessing to others as well.
With that said, let’s look at how to build godly friendships that are based on Christ in 10 practical easy steps that even a 10-year-old can do. Let’s dive in.
10 Ways Of Building A Godly Friendship.
Below are the 10 simple practical steps you can take in your Christian life to build a godly friendship that stands the test of time and encourages you to grow in the Lord.
- Be Faithful.
- Be Loyal.
- Practice Honesty.
- Choose Friends Carefully.
- Pray For Your Friends.
- Practice Forgiveness.
- Avoid Bad Company.
- Read The Bible For Guidance On Godly Friendships.
- Practice Agape Love.
- Follow Jesus Christ’s Example.
1. Be Faithful.
The first thing you need to do to build a godly friendship that lasts is that you need to be a faithful friend who’s dependable to others. This implies that you need to be truthful to others.
Being a faithful friend also implies that you won’t break the promises you make to others without any apparent reason. This is why our Lord Jesus Christ tells us in John 1:5 that we must be faithful to our friends and do faithfully to people we claim to be our friends.
Sadly, not many friends today including those who claim to be Christian are faithful but don’t join the bandwagon of unfaithful friends who don’t value their friendships. Remember, you can’t have a godly friendship without faithfulness.
2. Be Loyal.
You also need to be loyal to others if you want to have a Christian friendship that is godly and based on honesty and loyalty. A true friend is always loyal to you and will support you in whatever you do as long as it doesn’t contradict scripture.
If you are loyal, you will find it easy to build godly friendships that last. Remember, a true friendship is based on loyalty, which means that you must not betray a person you call your friend by backstabbing them or betraying their trust.
Ecclesiastes 6:5,6 in the old testament tells us that a faithful and loyal friend is like a shelter and if you found one, you have a priceless treasure and don’t take any loyal friend in your life for granted by being disloyal to them as they are not easy to come by.
3. Practice Honesty.
Honesty is key in any godly friendship if that friendship is to stand the test of time. If you claim to be a true friend, you will be honest with your friends and won’t practice deceit or dishonesty for your selfish gains.
An honest friend will always be transparent to you and won’t hide anything from you that’s important. Sadly, we have too many dishonest friends in the church today masquerading as true friends that is why there is no shortage of betraying even among so-called Christian friends.
Proverbs 24:26 tells us that honesty or an honest answer is one of the signs of a true friendship. So, if you are dishonest, forget about building godly friendships that last.
4. Choose Friends Carefully.
If you want to build a godly friendship you desire that is a blessing to you and brings out the best in you as well as help you to grow, you need to choose your friend carefully as not everyone can be your friend.
You need to choose godly friends that share similar Christian values and faith with you if you are to have a biblical friendship that is Christ-based. Implying that you must not choose evil friends as such people will only ruin your life and draw you away from God.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 12:26 that a righteous person or a friend chooses friends carefully as that person knows that not everyone is worth befriending. This is what you need to do if you are pursuing godly friendships.
5. Pray For Your Friends.
Prayer is very crucial in building a godly friendship that stands a test of time, which is what you will do if you are a good friend as a good friend always prays for their fellow friend so that all is well with their friends.
Prayer is what will help the Christian friendship you have to be strong and wither any storm Satan may bring on your friendship to make you separate which can come in form of disagreements or misunderstandings between each other.
The Bible in James 5:16 tells us that we must pray for one another and confess our faults to each other. Doing so will strengthen the bond you have between each other as friends and make you closer to each other.
Related: Why Is Prayer Important To Christians? [+ Animation].
6. Practice Forgiveness.
Forgiveness is very essential in maintaining any godly friendship because none of us is perfect and we will wrong one another knowingly and unknowingly, as we are just humans.
If you are a true Christian friend who understands what true Christian friendship is all about, you will willingly forgive others or your fellow friend who does you wrong in one way or another as a godly friendship can’t be without forgiveness.
The Bible tells us in Ephesians 4:32 that we must forgive each other just as God through Christ’s sake has forgiven our trespasses. If most Christians understood this all the hatred and divisions, we see in the body of Christ over petty things or disagreements wouldn’t exist at all.
Related: Why Is Forgiveness Important In Christianity? [+ Sermon].
7. Avoid Bad Company.
In 1 Corinthians 15:33 in the new testament, the apostle Paul tells us that we must not be deceived as evil communication or association corrupt good manner and morals.
If you want godly friendships in your life, you can’t afford to be friends with unbelievers who want nothing to do with God and don’t share your Christian faith.
As a believer, you must not be unequally yoked with sinful bad friends who are unbelievers whose only interest is to corrupt your life with their evil and draw you away from the Lord.
8. Read The Bible For Guidance On Godly Friendships.
The Bible is the best place to go if you are seeking the wisdom you are looking for forging and building godly friendships in your Christian life that will bring out the best in you and edify you in the Lord.
And the best place to look for such wisdom for building Christian friendships is in the book of Proverbs which is full of bible verses on godly counsel and wisdom on friendships and what a true friendship is all about and based on.
For example, we are told in Proverbs 16:28 that conflicts can separate even close friends. From that bible verse, we can learn that if we are to be good friends, we need to avoid unnecessary conflicts if we are to maintain our close friendships.
9. Practice Agape Love.
A godly friendship or relationship cannot exist if agape love that 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 which is sacrificial and selfless is missing in your relationship or friendship.
If you have agape love in your life, which is Christ-like, you will sacrificially love your friends unconditionally and won’t love them because of what they can do for you or what you can get from them.
Sadly, many so-called Christian friendships are lacking agape love, which explains why all manner of betrayals due to selfishness exist in such fake friendships that have led to many heartbreaks. Remember all true Christian friendships are based on God’s selfless love.
Related: 12 Practical Examples Of Agape Love [With Illustrations].
10. Follow Jesus Christ’s Example.
Last but not least, if you want to have a godly friendship or godly relationship that’s full of happiness, you need to follow the example of Jesus Christ who’s the very definition of what a Christian healthy friendship is all about.
If you follow the example of our Lord Jesus Christ in building a Christian friendship, you will be a good friend indeed to others and you will be wise when it comes to choosing friends in your life. Also, Christ is the only true friend unlike humans who will never fail you.
Jesus Christ was a good friend to everyone and He Chose His friend carefully, which is why He was able to have disciples who were faithful to Him. He also laid down His life for us which is what we must do to others as there is no greater love than that (John 15:13).
Conclusion.
I hope the above post on how to build godly friendships will help you build long-lasting friendships based on love and honesty that will bring out the best in you and help you progress in life. In closing, if this post was greatly beneficial to you, let me know in the comments below, and don’t forget to share before you leave. Be blessed with godly friendships that will be a blessing to you.
Other Interesting Posts.
- 13 Characteristics Of Godly Friendships (Based On Christ).
- 45 Christian Friendship Quotes For Choosing Godly Friends.
- The Effective Prayer Against Evil Friends [That Works].
Sharing is caring.
most of my friends say they are Christians but they cuss, say God’s name in vain and say bad things . They never talk about their faith or God. Do i stop being friends with them since they don’t have the same concerns and morals?
I think you must keep a distance from them.
do you mean ignore or like don’t start a conversation with them? i don’t understand how to keep a distance because we sit at the same spot and same classes.
Don’t necessarily ignore them just reduce your time and contact with them. God bless.