我乃称你们为朋友。（约十五15）
除非我们在每一方面都舍己，否则不能真正体会献上的喜乐。自我的降服是最难的事——“如果……我就肯了！”“或许我也该把生命奉献给神。”其中是没有丝毫舍己的喜乐。待我们真的完全舍弃了，圣灵就叫我们尝到主耶稣的喜乐。舍己的最终目标是为“朋友”（主耶稣）舍命。圣灵一来，最大的心愿就是为耶稣舍命；以往舍己的意念从不会触动我们的心，因为舍己是圣灵的爱。
主舍己的一生是我们的榜样——“我的神，我乐意照你的旨意行。”主的舍己是满有喜乐的。我已经完全降服耶稣基督了吗？耶稣基督若不是我们的目标，我们的舍己奉献就毫无益处；我们的奉献若是专注在他身上，慢慢地且确定地，那模造的影响力就必逐渐明朗地显明。
当心别让私欲阻碍你行在神的爱中。扼杀人性的爱最残酷的方法之一，源自渴想追求个人私欲而否定别人需要。圣徒唯一的吸引是主耶稣自己。对神的爱并非情感用事，因为圣徒以神的爱去爱，是最实际不过的事。
“我乃称你们为朋友。”这友谊的根基是我们里面新造的生命。这新生命只与神的生命相连，与旧生命没有半点关系，是无可言喻的谦和，没有玷污的洁净，绝对忠于神。
August 25: The Fruitfulness Of Friendship
“I have called you friends.” John 15:15
We never know the joy of self-sacrifice until we abandon in every particular. Self-surrender is the most difficult thing – I will if . . . ! Oh, well, I suppose I must devote my life to God. There is none of the joy of self-sacrifice in that.
As soon as we do abandon, the Holy Ghost gives us an intimation of the joy of Jesus. The final aim of self-sacrifice is laying down our lives for our Friend. When the Holy Ghost comes in, the great desire is to lay down the life for Jesus, and the thought of sacrifice never touches us because sacrifice is the love passion of the Holy Ghost.
Our Lord is our example in the life of self-sacrifice – “I delight to do Thy will, O my God.” He went on with His sacrifice with exuberant joy. Have I ever yielded in absolute submission to Jesus Christ? If Jesus Christ is not the lodestar, there is no benefit in the sacrifice; but when the sacrifice is made with the eyes on Him, slowly and surely the moulding influence begins to tell.
Beware of letting natural affinities hinder your walk in love. One of the most cruel ways of killing natural love is by disdain built on natural affinities. The affinity of the saint is the Lord Jesus. Love for God is not sentimental, for the saint to love as God loves is the most practical thing.
“I have called you friends.” It is a friendship based on the new life created in us which has no affinity with our old life, but only with the life of God. It is unutterably humble, unsulliedly pure, and absolutely devoted to God.