Friends of God, a handout

God desires to restore His friendship with us through the death of His Son Jesus

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Friends of God

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God Created Us to Be His Family

This is the book of the generations of Adam. In the day that God created man, he made him in God's likeness. He created them male and female, and blessed them, and called their name Adam, in the day when they were created.

Genesis 5:1-2 (WEB)

For whom he foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers....

Romans 8:29 (WEB)

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God Calls Us to Be His Friends

No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn't know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I heard from my Father, I have made known to you.

John 15:15 (WEB)

God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord.

I Corinthians 1:9 (WEB)

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But We Went Our Own Way

The LORD God commanded the man, saying, "From any tree of the garden you may eat freely: but from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die..." When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable to make one wise, she took from its fruit and ate; and she gave also to her husband with her, and he ate.

Genesis 2:16-17 & 3:6 (NASB)

All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all.

Isaiah 53:6 (WEB)

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We All Became God's Enemies

Then the eyes of them both were opened, and they realized that they were naked... Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the LORD God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the LORD God among the trees of the garden.

Genesis 3:7a, 8 (NIV)

There is no one righteous. No, not one. There is no one who understands. There is no one who seeks after God. They have all turned aside. They have together become unprofitable. There is no one who does good, no, not, so much as one.
Romans 3:10-12 (WEB)

Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior...

Colossians 1:21 (NIV)

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Jesus Died to Make Us Friends Again

But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation...

Colossians 1:22 (NIV)

Greater love has no one than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends..

John 15:13 (WEB)

Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ... But God commends his own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us... For if, while we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we will be saved by his life.

Romans 5:1,8,10 (WEB)

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Receive His Friendship!

But as many as received him, to them he gave the right to become God's children, to those who believe in his name...

John 1:12 (WEB)

You are my friends, if you do whatever I command you.

John 15:14 (WEB)

Pray. Speak to God. He is only an enemy in your mind, not in His. Tell Him you know you have turned against Him, gone your own way, and sinned. Thank Him for giving His Son Jesus to die to take the punishment for your sins and to permit you to become His child and friend. Tell Him you will now receive Jesus into your life, accept His offer of peace and friendship and become His child.

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Now Live as His Friend

If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.

I John 1:6-7 (WEB).

Now that you are God's child, keep in touch with Him and do what He says. Keep praying, He wants to hear from you. Study His Word, the Bible. And find and spend time with His other children, your new brothers and sisters. You will find some of them at the place given below.

Availability and Circulation of this handout

Feel free to download, reformat, print, copy and circulate this handout.

We disclaim copyright and encourage publication and wide circulation.

Ian Johnson & Jonathan Brickman
Please do email us!

For Ian:	ian4christ41@yahoo.com
For Jonathan:	jeb@christian-oneness.org

Bible Version Copyrights Information

Scriptures marked "WEB" are taken from the World English Bible, a translation in the public domain published by Rainbow Ministries, with a disclaimer of copyright, at World English Bible.

Scripture marked "NIV" taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Amigos con Dios, the Spanish version of this tract.

The Simple Gospel, another tract.

The Message of the Gospel

God is love, a longer theological essay.