Jesus Defines The Criteria Required To Be God’s Friends

Romans 15:20 Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man’s foundation:

English “have I strived” emboldened in Romans 15:20 was translated from Greek verb 5389 philotimeomai which was translated into English “we labour” in 2Corinthians 5:9-11 and “that ye study” in 1Thessalonians 4:11-12. Greek verb 5389 philotimeomai is from a compound of Greek adjective 5384 philos and Greek feminine noun 5092 time being value relative to the price God paid in the embodiment of Jesus Christ on a Roman cross. Greek adjective 5384 philos describes and qualifies God’s “seven thousand” “election”. Greek adjective 5384 philos was translated into “friends” in Jesus’ words of John 15:14-15 “Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you” “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”. The “cloud of witnesses” in Hebrews 12:1 represent more than 8 billion human beings, during this earth age, who are the recipients of God’s unconditional love {Greek feminine noun 26 agape} but God neither loves nor likes what they do. They are not God’s “friends” subsequent to not meeting the criteria Jesus noted in John 15:14-15 pursuant to God’s will defined in 1Timothy 2:3-4 “For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour” “Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth”.