Did you see the Mir Space Station the other night? It was supposed to be visible on Thursday night for a very short time in the south-west at about 6.48pm and again on Friday night in the south for about five minutes around 5.38pm. We missed out on both nights.
Mir is a permanently-manned Russian space station. It has a regular crew of two to three cosmonauts, with up to six on board for shorter periods. They are able to study the effects of living in space on the human body as well as perform a number of other experiments. As a craft, it consists of a number of modules which can be added and moved around.
The most striking thing about Mir is that it has brought together the cooperation of Russian and United States space agencies. Already NASA has sent eleven shuttle missions which have docked with Mir. These are stepping-stones towards the present goal of constructing an International Space Station.
To all of us who recall the space race as well as the arms race, it seems so incredible that this friendly co-operation is be taking place. It is still a comparatively short time since the collapse of the former Soviet Union. One wonders where it is leading, and where it will all end. One senses that the collapse of communism has not necessarily made the two world powers the closest of friends at all times. We are thankful for whatever level of friendly co-operation they can sustain.
In 1 Samuel 17 we read of how David the shepherd-boy defeated the Philistine warrior Goliath. It has been suggested that, when the Israelite soldiers saw Goliath, they thought to themselves, "He is so big that we can never kill him." But when David saw Goliath, he thought to himself, "He is so big that I cannot miss him." To be more precise, of course, he said, "I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the Israelite armies, which you have defied. This very day the Lord will put you into my power" (vv. 45-46).
After David had been presented to King Saul, "Saul's son Jonathan was deeply attracted to David and came to love him as much as he loved himself" (18.1). This was the beginning of a friendship that lasted over a number of years until Jonathan died in battle. None of the present-day issues regarding same-sex relationships entered into this friendship, though some have wrongly tried to suggest them. There is not even a hint of such things. We can learn, however, a number of elements that have a rightful place in true friendship.
Notice the kind of love described here. Jonathan came to love David "as much as he loved himself" (v. 1). Leviticus 19.18 instructed the people, "Love your neighbour as you love yourself" - words quoted by Jesus in summing up God's Law (Mt. 22.37-39). This wasn't romantic love. Jonathan had a genuine respect and care and appreciation that reached out beyond himself to David.
But love involves us in sharing. It never occurs in a vacuum. And Jonathan "took off the robe he was wearing and gave it to David, together with his armour and also his sword, bow, and belt" (v. 4). Because he was the king's son, his gifts could be expensive. How do we show love? Often our most valued gift may be our time.
We notice that David and Jonathan's friendship involved commitment and loyalty. In v. 3 - "Jonathan swore eternal friendship with David because of his deep affection with him." Literally, Jonathan "cut (made) a covenant with David." It was more than a promise to be good loyal friends. They would stick together through bad times as well as good. The old saying was that "A friend in need is a friend indeed." These would be hard times requiring true commitment and loyalty. In chapter 19 we hear Jonathan arguing David's case before his father Saul who had just told "Jonathan and all his officials" that he planned to kill David. We read that "Saul was convinced by what Jonathan had said and made a vow in the Lord's name that he would not kill David" (v. 6). We know that wasn't the end of the matter, for Saul later threw his spear in an attempt to pin David to the wall as he played his harp (vv. 9-10). As Jonathan attempted to find out the depth of his father's anger against David, he himself came quite literally into the firing line (20.30-34). There is true friendship!
Friendship is based on trust. David the shepherd boy was a hero and he wasn't boasting about himself. He had gone out against Goliath without the king's armour - carrying just his shepherd's stick and bag, his only weapon five smooth stones and his sling. He was trusting God and this was part of what attracted Jonathan's attention. Perhaps he sensed a difference from his father's attitude. He trusted David and David trusted his life to him. Before Jonathan was going to question his father about David, he promised, "If his attitude towards you is good, I will send you word. If he intends to harm you, may the Lord strike me dead if I don't let you know about it and get you safely away" - with a curious added blessing, "May the Lord be with you as he was with my father!" - a perception that the Lord was no longer with his father (vv. 12c-13)? Their covenant promises to one another were re-affirmed, "if I remain alive, please keep your sacred promise and be loyal to me; but if I die, show the same kind of loyalty to my family for ever. And when the Lord has completely destroyed all your enemies, may our promise to each other still be unbroken" (vv. 14-16a).
David was true to his word. Following the death of Saul and Jonathan, David became king, first over the tribe of Judah, then over all of Israel. He asked his officials, "Is there anyone left of Saul's family? If there is, I would like to show him kindness for Jonathan's sake" (2 Sam. 9.1). Striking, isn't it? David had lamented the deaths of both Saul and Jonathan (2 Sam. 1). Just as he had spared Saul's life when being pursued, so now we see his generosity extending beyond the literal words of his covenant with Jonathan. When the cripple Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan, was brought to the palace, he came in fear - rulers then were likely to eliminate all the members of their predecessor's family. But David was committed to be kind to him for the sake of his father, restoring to him all the lands that had belonged to Saul and extending a welcome to dine at his table (9.7-10). These two friends' trust in one another was not misplaced.
But how far will friendship go? It is tested at the point of sacrifice. David had to leave his friend for a life in hiding and danger. He could have fought back, turned on Jonathan, persuaded him to leave home with him - but he did none of these things. For Jonathan too it would have been easier to be with his friend. However, in 1 Sam. 23 we find him going to David's hiding place in the wilderness of Ziph to encourage him with assurances of God's protection. He tells him, "Don't be afraid. My father won't be able to harm you. He knows very well that you are the one who will be the king of Israel and that I will be next in rank to you" (vv. 16-17). Jonathan accepted that this was the Lord's will and the personal sacrifice this meant for him.
True friendship involves many things - love, sharing, loyalty, trust, sacrifice… How far do we go in true friendship?
For the fullest expression of friendship, however, we turn to Jesus Christ himself. He risked his reputation to become "a friend of tax-collectors and other outcasts" (Mt. 11.19).
He said to the eleven in the upper room, "The greatest love a person can have for his friends is to give his life for them. And you are my friends if you do what I command you" (Jn 15.13-14).
Yet when Judas came with the Temple guards to capture him, "Be quick about it, friend!" (Mt. 26.50). (These words may be either a command - "Friend, do what you have come for!" - or a question - "Friend, what have you come for?")
John, one of those disciples, wrote, "We love because God first loved us" (1 Jn 4.19). It is not just that he set the perfect example of love. His sacrifice has opened up for us the very possibility of love - forgiving our sinfulness and pouring his Spirit of love on us. Paul lists love as greater than faith and hope (1 Cor. 13.13) - it is their fulfilment. And he puts love first in the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5.22-23).
Just how far the new-found friendship of USA and Russia will go we cannot predict. Yes, there is sharing, but how deep are loyalty and trust? To what levels will sacrifice go? In the affairs of nations, friendship tends to be very pragmatic - it must be mutual and reciprocal, bringing back benefits.
"God has shown us how much he loves us - it was while we were still sinners that Christ died for us" (Rom. 5.8). Amazing love! So Christ's ambassadors go out with the call, "Let God change you from enemies into his friends!" (2 Cor. 5.20) How have you responded to such love and a gracious call?
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