[John Wyatt]….argues for the recovery of a biblically based understanding of friendship, and uses the relationship of Paul and Timothy, in particular, to spell out what this involves. This is a friendship rooted in our relationship with Christ, who called us friends, and who helps us to grow in Christ-like love. It is expressed in regular prayer for our friends and their true and lasting good. He argues that gospel-shaped friendships should be an important part of the Christian life, and that these can exist without exploitation or abuse.<\/p>\n
In these friendships, there are clear boundaries, so that they do not slip into sexual or romantic relationships; but they can and do include hugs and physical gestures. For examples of this, he looks not just to Stott, but to Evangelicals round Charles Simeon (1759-1836), including people such as William Wilberforce and John Newton the ex-slave trader.<\/p>\n
The title of the book, Transforming Friendship, is meant to indicate two kinds of transformation: first, the way in which such friendships can change our lives, halving our troubles and doubling our joys, as J. C. Ryle put it; and, second, the way in which our whole understanding of friendship in the modern world needs to be transformed. There can be such a thing as a healthy intimate friendship in which two people reveal to each other their deepest hopes and fears, and which is neither abusive nor potentially predatory.<\/p>\n
Read it all<\/a> (subscription or registration).<\/p>\n My new book, Transforming Friendship, is all about how the church can rediscover how to do healthy and safe intergenerational 'Paul-Timothy' friendships in an era of suspicion, abuse and mistrust. Find out how to get 25% off here:https:\/\/t.co\/ekNvuuFVDV<\/a><\/p>\n — John Wyatt (@johnswyatt) December 13, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n \n