Are christian friends different? Are you?

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Are christian friends really any different than friends who are not? Are you? Jesus hung out with sinners and tells us not to judge lest we be judged but Proverbs 27:19 tells us that we are known by the kind of friends we choose. How do you interpret this paradox?
 
[17] For you hate discipline,
and you cast my words behind you.
[18] If you see a thief, you are a friend of his;
and you keep company with adulterers. Psalms 50:17-18
 
Jesus hung out with sinners in order to spread His Word. Christ's disciples, who can be though of as His friends, were of the same accord as Jesus; like-minded.

So, if by spreading the Gospel to sinners (or unsaved folk), associating with them isn't considered a bad thing but when we have close relations with them, sometimes, our actions start to mirror their actions, or we become lukewarm.

We should seek [close] friends who have the same agenda as we do: To glorify God.
 
That being said, you shouldn't "un-friend" someone just because they're a Muslim or Buddhist or atheist or w/e. I have friends of all faiths, and many of my fraternity brothers are a rainbow of beliefs. And I feel like, because of all of those different cultures, nationalities and ideas, I have grown as a person.
 
This is a subject that has recently really touched my heart. For me, it seems that a lot of my Christian friends are SO busy they don't have time for friendship any more. I get being about the Father's business, but it seems that when you forsake friendships along the way is counterintuitive. Just something I have noticed lately in Christian circles - was different years ago.

Also, in the case of one of my children - when she had some really bad stuff happen in her life and reacted badly, her Christian friends seemed to disappear. They didn't even TRY to love her through it. It is very sad. Yes, she had made all the bad decisions all on her own and she should own them. But now the worldly friends she has tied herself to are the only ones who will have anything to do with her.

I would say the answer to your question is - they should be and are called to be. But they are human and all humans are flawed.
 
In Colossians 3, verse 13, Paul reminds us to "Forgive as the Lord forgave you." I believe that we should apply this verse to all our relationships. However, in the Old Testament God was very adamant with the Israelites that they shouldn't intermingle with the pagans they were displacing. This was because He knows human nature. He knew that the pagan beliefs would eventually rub off on the Israelites, and they would turn from Him.

Just for the heck of it, I looked up the word "befriend" in the dictionary. Part of the definitions were "to act as a friend; to help; aid". I think that the answer to your question is that we should try to befriend sinners so that we can lead them to Christ as their Lord and Savior. However, we must guard our own hearts and minds to be certain that their ways do not rub off on us. As long as we can maintain our own beliefs, it is alright to have non-Christians as friends. We must hope that our actions and reactions make them want to have what we have; a relationship with God through Christ.

(I just realized that I said in about a kabillion words what lightbliss said in a handful. :) )
 
I agree with Dave. If Believers isolate themselves (been guilty of this) from associating from non-believers - what kind of witness is that? It is saying to them "I'll hang out with ya when you're clean". Thank goodness Jesus didn't feel that way or we would all be doomed.

Oh, and for those who will say that Jesus spent most of his time with his disciples - first, not too sure that is true and his disciples were barely believers. Just sayin'...
 
Thanks everyone. I appreciate your input. Resurrection33, I'm not sure I understand your response. beadmaker, I understand you perfectly. I also find there to be a lack of christian fellowship among christians today. We all lead such busy lives we leave no time for friendship and those special times of coming together outside of the church that bond us together for when times get tough. dmdave17, I like your emphasis on befriending. Thank you for taking the time to look that up and share that with us.
Now the question grows deeper still: If we are to befriend even the ungodly yet set ourselves apart,how can we truly do one or the other and still call ourselves christians?
 
ChoZn -

I don't think we have to do one OR the other - we are to do both. The struggle and the key to all of this (IMHO) is staying close to God on a daily basis so the "worldly" influences from our non-believer associations don't tempt us to make poor choices and therefore damage our witness. The "setting apart" comes from God - it is not something that we do. We are set apart because we belong to Him.
 
I think people are human and the difference between my Christian friends and my non Christian ones is that we talk about the Bible and develop a more in depth friendship that goes beyond just every day talk about the weather. We share our hopes and our dreams and have been friends since elementary and middle school. Even if we haven't seen each other for years its like we just left yesterday. We still laugh and joke and know we can be ourselves because our friendship is based on unconditional love as God showed us by loving us and sending His son to die on the Cross. I thank God constantly for allowing me to have such friends in my life. We might not always have the time to spend with each other but we know that we are just a phone call or email away.

I have other friends that share their dreams with me who are not Christian and I tell them of my dreams but its not the same because I can't look at them and not worry that they might end up in Hell.

I guess that is the difference between my Christian friends and non Christians ones: You have to pray for grace to enter into their lives and show them the saving power of Jesus.
 
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