How the mighty have fallen in the midst of battle! Jonathan lies slain upon your high places.
--2 Samuel 2:25
In today's brief reading, the shepherd boy-turned-King, David, laments the death of his friend, Jonathan. For David, Jonathan was more than mere acquaintance.
We all have folks we're acquainted with. With some, we might even have some kind of "relationship." Relationships, in and of themselves, are always linear. Point A is always connected to point B. The connection is the relationship, and the connection may be economic, vocational, social, and/or familial.
With David and Jonathan, though, there was friendship, or, to use the Bible's definition of friendship, brotherly love. A former professor once exclaimed: "Few people have a friend anymore -- as in you and me. Instead, they have some third thing called a relationship."
David didn't grieve the loss of relationship. He lost his friend. Friendship, Biblically understood, is on a far deeper, more meaningful level than acquaintance or even relationship.
How great is our rejoicing, then, when Jesus calls us His friends. We are not "mere acquaintances" of Jesus. Neither are we in some ill-defined "relationship" with Him. We're His friends. Keep it simple, and celebrate that!
PD
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