Reflecting the Light of Love

*Call to Worship

L: The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed.

P: It is a small seed, but has some surprises in store for us.

L: When it is grown, it is a very large shrub.

P: Even the birds can find places in its branches for their nests.

L: God’s transforming love begins in small ways to enter our hearts.

P: Lord, plant those amazing seeds of transforming love in us that they may grow into deeds of service to others in your name. AMEN.

Scripture Reading - John 13:34-35

34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

The Holy Bible: New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1984), Jn 13:34–35.

Message

Do you think Jesus ever lied to His disciples? Do you think He ever misled them? Ever tricked them? How many of you are concerned that I would even suggest such a thing? But if Jesus wouldn’t do any of those things, how do you explain the verses we just heard?

Jesus says to His disciples, “A new command I give you.” Now, if I say to you, I’m going to tell you something new, you would expect me to tell you something you haven’t heard before at least not from me. Like, “I’ve got a new joke”. But if I tell you a joke that I’ve used before, you would wonder, why I called it a “new joke”.

And if these verses, with Jesus talking to His disciples was taking place at the beginning of His ministry, we could understand why He would say this is new to His disciples, but He is in the upper room on Maundy Thursday. He is at the end of the three-year ministry He has had with His disciples.

And according to Matthew’s gospel, Jesus was asked by a teacher of the law what the greatest commandment was and “Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

And in Luke, we have another expert in the law who asks Jesus “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” And in typical form, Jesus responds with a question, “What is written in the law? How do you read it”. And this expert’s response was identical to Jesus’ in Matthew. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

And do you imagine that Jesus was alone when He said this or do you think His followers were with Him? Do you think these were the only times Jesus had ever told those around Him to love God and love each other? So how can Jesus say, “A new command I give you?”

Maybe you think Jesus used one Greek word for love the other times but He changed it this time. Maybe Jesus said, “Love with a brotherly love God and neighbor” and here Jesus said, “Love with a Godly love”. But no. In all three statements, the Greek word for love being used is “agape”, Godly love.

So what makes this a new command? Maybe it’s that now instead of measuring how well we do when we compare ourselves to one another, we compare how well we do up against Jesus Christ. What does Jesus say, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Jesus sets the example. I can’t compare how well I love others with how well you do it. And you can’t compare how well you love others with how well I do it.

But there is something else new about this command and it is that people will identify you as being His follower by the way you love one another. If you love like Christ loves, you will be recognized as His disciple. And by being recognized as His disciple, we wqqreflect His character into the world around us.