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I've heard Christians say that an appropriate title for a Christian is, "friend of God." I've also heard preachers (e.g. Beth Moore) say that this is inappropriate: only certain people (Abraham and the Disciples) can be called friends of God.

What is the Biblical basis for saying modern Christians are generally "friends of God"?

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I believe we can be friends of God. (And not just because I'm a fan of the song)

Jesus tells us if we do what he commands we are his friends.

John 15:13-15 NIV
13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. 14 You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

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  • Both the answers here were great: I chose this one because "friends" is used in the NIV. Footnote: reflecting on this, my first thought was, so is His friendship conditional? Doesn't sound like much of a friendship. Then I realised that us obeying Him is evidence of our friendship. In other words, when we are His friends, then we obey Him. – Reinstate Monica - Goodbye SE Sep 3 '11 at 6:05
  • Note that Jesus didn't call them his friends until he said this. Until that, they were his servants and not his friends. The servant doesn't know what the master is planning and I think this is true for many Christians today. Many have lost the focus on the personal relationship with God, instead focusing only on what he can do for us. I'd strongly recommend Drawing Near by John Bevere. – Shathur Jan 13 '12 at 14:30
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Yes we can; In the Old Testament Abraham was an exception. For example, Paul wrote:

Romans 5:10 (NIV)

For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!

or another translation (NLT)

For since our friendship with God was restored by the death of his Son while we were still his enemies, we will certainly be saved through the life of his Son.

So yes, we can believe that Christians are God's friends.

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