Crazy Glue
Today’s Verse:
A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. ~Proverbs 18:24
Krazy Glue® is the brand name of an adhesive substance that bonds things together very well. I have used Krazy Glue® to bond broken items. Its very name speaks of its ability to bond the most difficult things together well. Our devotion this morning speaks to us about relationships that are exhorted to be like Krazy Glue® in its results.
We see the camaraderie.
“A man that hath friends….” Friendships are associations with people we enjoy being with. There is a mutual affinity among friends. Good friends rarely tire of each other’s company. They synergize well when it comes to doing projects or solving problems. They spend free time together, talking and laughing. The mutual interests they share leave them with such a sense of satisfaction that they will repeat doing the same thing again. There is a confiding and loyalty that good friends have with each other.
We see the consummate.
“A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly.” The phrase “must shew himself friendly” is one word in the Hebrew. It means “to be broken or perish.” In studying this context, it literally means that a true friend must be willing to do the ultimate sacrifice for his friend. It is implying that if you have friends, you must be willing to even die for them. Jesus expanded on this when He said, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). When we think about this description, it changes how we really should think about friendships and who the people are that we really deem our friends. This description is a mutual commitment between friends. It is not a one-sided philosophy, but the defining aspect of a friendship relationship.
We see the closeness.
“A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly: and there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother.” Solomon is saying that a true friendship is one that is like Krazy Glue®. “A friend that sticketh closer than a brother” means that you are a friend whose soul is knit with the soul of your friend. It is like the friendship that Jonathan and David had. The love in this friendship was that “he loved him as his own soul.” True friends do not take advantage of the other. They are giving, even of their honor. Jonathan gave David his robe, his garments, his sword, his bow, and his girdle. They are inseparable in heart and mind. The whole world might walk out on you, but this Krazy Glue® friend is with you. “Sticketh closer” is the Krazy Glue® effect in this friendship. When you know that you have a friend that would die for you, that is a friend that you know “sticketh closer than a brother.”
We see the connection.
There are two connections from this. The first takes us back to Proverbs 18:22, regarding husbands and wives. Marriage should be a Krazy Glue® relationship. A man finds his ultimate cause in life when he gets married. His cause is to cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh. He must be committed to laying down his life for his best friend. The second connection is that of our Lord Jesus Christ. “Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you” (John 15:15). The Lord Jesus is our Friend “that sticketh closer than a brother.” His love for us is Krazy Glue® that makes our relationship inseparable.
Think about your relationship to your spouse, our Lord, and the people you call your friends. Make a point to put a Krazy Glue® effect on these relationships and let it stick.
Have a committed God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: 2 Kings 9-11