Fruit-Full Friendship - Series on Friendship

"You didn't choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you could go and produce fruit and so that your fruit could last. As a result, whatever you ask the Father in my name, He will give you." John 15:16 CEB

For Jesus, friendship with the Father and His disciples implied shared understanding and commitment to a common, higher purpose.(Doyle Theimer) 
Jesus chooses us and then assigns us the task of producing lasting fruit. As the Holy Spirit infuses the soul with righteous living, a new nature with new characteristics evolve.Being ambassadors for Christ, we must accurately represent Him. The depth of our relationship with Christ is expressed in our relationships with others. Jesus invites us into a radial faith and reveals infinite possibilities. 

But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, He will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." Galatians 5:22-23

Faithfulness to the Father, obedience to Christ, and response to the Spirit produces a fruit-full garden. These fruits of the Spirit become our testimony, our mission, our common purpose with Christ. In sharing these fruits with others, the door to God's intention swings wide to righteous living. Henri Nouwen gives clarity to Jesus choosing us with we are called to give our very lives to one another and that, in so doing, we become a true community of love. Jesus chooses us to be fruit-full friends, and promises us a personal, intimate relationship that exceeds imagination! ~ dho

We are called to give our very lives to one another and that, in so doing, 

we become a true community of love. 

Henri Nouwen, Life of the Beloved, Spiritual Living in a Secular World, p.115