“Abraham … came to be called Jehovah’s friend.”

(James 2:23)

The book Life Does Have a Purpose says unambiguously “that we must be friends of God.” (page 181) That is important because the “matter of friendship with God … means life or death.” (Happiness – How to Find It, page 186) Fortunately, we can accomplish this goal; “you too can be God’s friend.” – You Can Be God’s Friend!, page 3.

How can we prove to be God’s friend? “18-year-old James … said: ‘A real friend to me is a person who tells you when you do something wrong.’” (Awake!, March 8, 1982, page 22) Thus, if we want to be a real friend of God, we need to tell him what he has done wrong. We should make him aware of bad design in his creation. We can also tell him that his confusion of languages in Babylon has been a major cause of discord and hence of suffering and death. We should confront him with how much suffering his laws have brought upon mankind until this day. Yes, the following statement also applies to God: “Although any number of people may give you words of praise, only true friends will think enough of you to point out a serious fault.” – The Watchtower, December 1, 2000, page 21.

The work Our Kingdom Ministry adds the question: “Would you hold back from defending a close friend … who was being falsely accused? Jehovah, our closest Friend, has been grossly misrepresented throughout the centuries.” (April 2007, page 1) Definitely people have ‘grossly misrepresented God throughout the centuries’ – for example, they accused him of striking the Egyptians with ten plagues, eliminating the Canaanites, sending the Babylonians to Israel, and appointing a Jewish fanatic named Jesus as King. But regarding all these charges he has been “falsely accused” – since he doesn’t exist at all, he can’t be responsible for any of these atrocities.

If we really want to be a friend of God, not only do we need to tell him about his faults; we must also publicly “promote the truth about God.” (Awake!, November 22, 1999, page 10) So we should ask ourselves: “Will my associates help me to be God’s friend?” (Awake!, February 22, 1997, page 13) Christians and other religious persons are definitely not good company for anyone who wants to be God’s friend.