Who Are Your Friends?
Philippians 1:3-8
Sermon Notes
April 12, 2015
I. Why are friendships so important?
A. Friends can help improve your mood.
(Phil. 1:4; cf. II Cor. 2:3b)
B. Friends can help motivate you to reach your goals. (Heb. 10:24)
C. Friends can support you through tough times.
(Prov. 18:24; Eccl. 4:9-12)
D. Friends can have tremendous influence in our lives. (Prov. 27:17; cf. I Cor. 15:33)
II. Four levels of friendship
A. Level one: Acquaintance.
B. Level two: Casual friendship.
C. Level Three: Close friendship.
D. Level Four: Intimate fellowship.
III. How do I make deeper friendships?
A. Deeper friendships require spending quality face to face time together. (Heb. 10:25; cf. Phil. 1:5)
Dr. Larry G. Shelton • • • Contemporary & Classic Service
A copy of today’s sermon can be purchased at the Information Center
and is also posted on our web site, paradisecma.org.
Paradise Alliance Church • 6491 Clark Rd • Paradise, CA 95969 • 530-877-7069
Taking It Home
1. Review the reasons why friendships are so important. In view
of their high level of importance, are you satisfied with the amount
of time, energy and effort (resources) you are investing in your
friendships? Explain your answer(s).
2. From your outline, review the different levels of friendship
becoming familiar with the descriptions of each. How many friends
do you have? At what “level” are they?
3. Are you satisfied with the number of friends you have? If not,
what do you think needs to be done to improve the number and
quality of friendships you have?
4. What are some of the descriptive terms Paul uses to describe
the character or actions of his list of friends in Romans 16? What
can be learned about “friendship” from these descriptions and/or
actions? And/or in the Bible, share as many of the “one anothers”
you can find. What do they tell you about the nature of deeper
friendships?
5. Share with each other what you might be willing to do to go
deeper in your friendships with each other. Then together, take
time to cover your friendship pursuit in prayer.