Love's Connection

31 When he had gone out, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself, and glorify him at once. 33 Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’ 34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

Jesus opening words here....AFTER JUDAS LEFT...

Notice that point. AFTER his betrayer left, Jesus begins his farewell address to his disciples, to those who had truly embraced him, believed in him, and loved him.

NOW is the Son of Man Glorified...

Jesus is speaking toward His death the next day and His subsequent resurrection.

His deep humiliation is also his highest glorification.

Let me remind you of the words we read last week....

Philippians 2:5-11.

Philippians 2:5–11 ESV

5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. 9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Jesus’ deep humiliation IS His highest glorification. Period.

He is being glorified by His coming sacrifice. As Jesus will explain to his disciples later (John 15:13), there is no greater love than one lay down his life for his friends - sacrifice. Thus, there is no greater glory to be had than this.

And because of who Jesus is and who he dies for, there is no greater contrast, no greater glory.

We understand that this is what he referring to by his words in verse 33.

John 13:33 ESV

33 Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me, and just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’

He is going where they cannot follow....death.

His death is His highest glory.

Which is why it is the centerpiece of our worship NOW and in ETERNITY.

So, NOW is the Son of Man Glorified....through His death.

In the same context he says....

John 13:34.

John 13:34 ESV

34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.

How does this command fit here in this context? Why was Does Jesus give it here?

Love is inseparably connected to service. You cannot serve without love…not authentically and genuinely anyway. It may have the outward appearance of service but if you are doing it with selfish motive, you are not serving....at least not others…you are only serving self.

A heart that is not postured in a stance of selfless service is not really serving…it is only seeking selfish ends.

You will NOT serve without love.

You CANNOT serve without Love.

Love WILL LEAD to service.

Love will be evidenced by a fruit of serving.

John 14:15.

John 14:15 ESV

15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

John 15:14.

John 15:14 ESV

14 You are my friends if you do what I command you.

Love LEADS to service.

Service flows from love.

They are inseparably linked.

So it makes sense that a “new command is given to love.”

Is this command new?

Then why does he call it a new command?

New in terms of connecting it to servanthood.

New in terms of applying it in a way that they have not before made the connection.

New in the sense of presenting a higher view of love, a higher standard - one that will be exemplified by Jesus death; one that was exemplified by his washing of their feet.

John will later write in his first letter....

1 John 2:7-11.

1 John 2:7–11 ESV

7 Beloved, I am writing you no new commandment, but an old commandment that you had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word that you have heard. 8 At the same time, it is a new commandment that I am writing to you, which is true in him and in you, because the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining. 9 Whoever says he is in the light and hates his brother is still in darkness. 10 Whoever loves his brother abides in the light, and in him there is no cause for stumbling. 11 But whoever hates his brother is in the darkness and walks in the darkness, and does not know where he is going, because the darkness has blinded his eyes.

It is new....because darkness has fallen upon the command, because it has been veiled, hidden, forgotten BUT NOW is being revealed again as the darkness is fading and the true light is shining.

It is NO NEW COMMAND, but one being reapplied, brought it the light once more, being given with new understanding and application.

All other fruit of faith, of repentance, of salvation can be traced back to this on concept…love.

1 Corinthians 13:13.

1 Corinthians 13:13 ESV

13 So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Love is the motivate, the source, the foundation of all other fruits.

LOVE connects us to the MOTIVE for a lifestyle of servanthood.

What is love?

Unselfishly choosing for another’s highest good.

That is the very essence of servanthood.

And by the way, the Greek word for “love” here is “agape.”

What is the command?

Love another.

How?

As i have loved you

How has He loved them?

Sacrificially, humbly, vulnerably, purely, obediently, and faithfully.

He washed their feet. He served them. He will die for them.

How then are we to love others?

The same way. BECAUSE of His love for us.

1 John 4:7-12.

1 John 4:7–12 ESV

7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. 8 Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

We love others BECAUSE HE LOVED US.

God’s love IS OUR MOTIVE for serving others.

God’s love for us IS the reason and foundation of why we are to love others.

Love connects us to the motive, the source, the root of a heart that is committed to a lifestyle of servanthood.

THUS, if we are not serving others well, if we are not living a heart of servanthood, we are not loving God or dwelling in His love for us enough. The root problem of a lack of servanthood is a worship, love problem.

There is a reason that the greatest commandment is loving God and the second is loving others.

Therefore, we must return to the source and strengthen our love for God, to dwell in His love.

We cannot fix the problem of a lifestyle that lacks servanthood simply by forcing ourselves to serve more. The lack of servanthood in our lives must be dealt with at the heart....in our love for God.

This kind of love literally rocks the world to its core. It is supernatural and other worldly.

But when we live with Christ’s kind of love, it connects the gospel to the world.

Love Connects the Gospel to the World - John 13:35.

John 13:35 ESV

35 By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

BY THIS...

By living out Christ’s display of love.

The world will know we are his disciples AND they will see God.

Because Christ’s love for us is so radical, so total....when we live like it....the world will take notice.

When we love the “unlovely...”

When we unselfishly choose for our enemies highest good, even when that comes at our own personal expense....

When we unselfishly choose and DO NOT repay evil for evil....

When we unselfishly choose and DO NOT demand our own way....

When we unselfishly choose and DO NOT demand our rights and privileges...

When we unselfishly choose and CHOOSE forgiveness and reconciliation instead of isolation and separation....

When we unselfishly choose and reject self protective measures and instead serve....

When we unselfishly choose and humbly put others before ourselves…especially when they do not deserve it....

We exemplify Christ’s love...

and the world sees God.

Does the world see God through the way you and I love?

Consider the way you respond to an argument. Do you become defensive, angry, retaliatory?

Consider....how quick are you to forgive?

How quick are you to pursue reconciliation? ESPECIALLY when you are not in the wrong?

How quick are you to gossip/talk about the wrongs done to you to others?

How quick are you to joke at another’s expense?

How quick are you to slander another’s name?

How quick are you to complain about others?

How quick are you to dwell upon wrongs?

How quick are you to sacrifice and put yourself out there for others?

Does the world see God through the way and I love?

Love connects us to the motive for a lifestyle of servanthood.

Love connects the gospel to the world.

HOWEVER....

Personal Agenda Disconnects love - John 13:21-30.

John 13:21–30 ESV

21 After saying these things, Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified, “Truly, truly, I say to you, one of you will betray me.” 22 The disciples looked at one another, uncertain of whom he spoke. 23 One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved, was reclining at table at Jesus’ side, 24 so Simon Peter motioned to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25 So that disciple, leaning back against Jesus, said to him, “Lord, who is it?” 26 Jesus answered, “It is he to whom I will give this morsel of bread when I have dipped it.” So when he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. 27 Then after he had taken the morsel, Satan entered into him. Jesus said to him, “What you are going to do, do quickly.” 28 Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. 29 Some thought that, because Judas had the moneybag, Jesus was telling him, “Buy what we need for the feast,” or that he should give something to the poor. 30 So, after receiving the morsel of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.

It seems inconceivable that one who had walked so closely to Jesus could do what Judas did.

Yet, it happened.

It had to. It was necessary for the plan of God to unfold. and regardless of whether it was preordained or not, Judas was responsible for his own actions.

In his actions is a dark and terrible reality of the hardness of men’s hearts.

Judas was controlled by his own personal agenda and desires and had never surrendered to Jesus.

Understanding a little more about Judas may help us, physically speaking to understand....

Judas’ actions placed him in a place of scorn for the early church. In all NT lists of the disciples he comes last, except for Acts where he is not listed at all.

We know little of him before he became an apostle. His father was Simon Iscariot (John 6:71; 13:2, 26). We believe he was likely from the village of Kerioth (either from Moab or the one in Judah, more likely, that was just south of Hebron - Josh 15:25).

Judas was the only one of the 12 not from Galilee. He was an “outsider” of sorts. Which perhaps made his deceit and betrayal more justified in his own mind.

He would have been the least known entity among the 12, thus making it easier to hide his treachery from the others.

That the others trusted him implicitly is seen in that the made him treasurer. Which we know from John 12, he helped himself to whenever he wanted, for he was a thief.

Even when Jesus revealed who would betray him here in John 13, the disciples still did not grasp what was happening.

Why, if Judas was never attracted to Christ on the spiritual level, did he continue to follow him?

Curiosity at first, perhaps.

Personal gain? He did have access to the money purse.

Power, prestige, personal gain?

The signs and wonders “convinced” him that Jesus was the Messiah and he followed him in the hopes of seeing him deliver them from Rome.

It is most likely, his greed and desire for power and position that drove him.

What do you think happened when, after time, Jesus failed to be the political Messiah he thought him to be?

Disillusionment and anger.

What do you think was the thing that finally shattered it for Judas?

Mary.

Her “waste” of the ointment and Jesus justification of it.

And his clear pointing forward to his death.

For Judas, this was the final straw.

In Matthew’s account of Mary’s anointing, we have this little tid bit....

Matthew 26:14-16.

Matthew 26:14–16 ESV

14 Then one of the twelve, whose name was Judas Iscariot, went to the chief priests 15 and said, “What will you give me if I deliver him over to you?” And they paid him thirty pieces of silver. 16 And from that moment he sought an opportunity to betray him.

The moment AFTER the anointing when Judas realized that Jesus was not the Messiah he had been hoping he was.

Judas was driven my personal agenda, selfishness, pride.

He wanted a political messiah that would not only free them from Rome but that would be his pathway to power and prestige.

And it in that environment and attitude, biblical love or servanthood cannot exist.

When he realized that Jesus was not the pathway, his usefulness to Judas as gone and he found another way to profit from him.

His rejection opened him up to a vessel for Satan to enter and twist for his own ends.

A heart of servanthood and love cannot exist when we are driven by our own personal agendas.

What personal agendas do we tend to live for?

Comfort.

Pleasure.

Ease.

Power.

Prestige

Acceptance/Affirmation

Possessions/Money

Love connects us to a heart of servanthood.

Pursuit of our own agenda disconnects us from it.

Self Protection Disconnects Love- John 13:36-38.

John 13:36–38 ESV

36 Simon Peter said to him, “Lord, where are you going?” Jesus answered him, “Where I am going you cannot follow me now, but you will follow afterward.” 37 Peter said to him, “Lord, why can I not follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.” 38 Jesus answered, “Will you lay down your life for me? Truly, truly, I say to you, the rooster will not crow till you have denied me three times.

When Peter denied Jesus, why did he do so?

Fear.

He was afraid to be connected to Jesus because of his arrest in the garden and his current illegal trial that was being conducted.

Peter was suddenly self focused and self protective. By denying he knew Jesus and that he was he a disciple of Jesus, he sought to protect himself from harm.

Unfortunately, in that moment, he also failed to love and serve…anyone but himself that is.

Peter claimed that he would be willing to lay down his life for Jesus, to die for him. His claim? I will love you and serve even if it claims my life.

And yet, when that was tested, his self protective desire overrode the assertion and he yielded instead to self.

And can’t we say the same happens to us far more often then we are willing to admit?

Love will not thrive; service will not thrive IF we are being controlled and compelled by a desire to protect ourselves in the face of all harm. It can’t. The only person we will end up serving is ourselves.

Do we hesitate to love and serve God and others when there is a potential for hurt or harm? Do we stop entirely? Do we refuse to serve if there is threat of personal harm?

We cannot protect ourselves from all harm in this life. And when we commit ourselves to a life of obedience, a life of servanthood, a life motivated by biblical love, we will face hurt, but it is hurt we will willingly embrace because our love for God and his glory makes us willing to endure it.

God calls us to a life of servanthood, driven by love.

When we are more intent on protecting ourselves than we are upon loving and serving, it will derail us from that life purpose and God’s glory will be marred.

Conclusion

Big Idea: Love connects us to a servant’s heart.

Love Connects Us to Motive - John 13:31-34.

Love Connects the Gospel to the World - John 13:35.

Personal Agenda Disconnects love - John 13:21-30.

Self Protection Disconnects Love- John 13:36-38.

Church, will we vulnerably, humbly service out of heart of love for the glory of our God and allow His grace to flow through us as we seek to be ever growing together to become more like Jesus for the glory of God?

Application

Why is love the only pure motive for servanthood?

Biblical love is the only true foundation and motive for willingly putting another’s needs above your own.

How do we foster a richer heart of love?

Learn about God’s deep love.

Deepen one’s understanding of God’s deep love.

Foster humility in our own hearts.

Live a lifestyle of regular confession and repentance.

Invite accountability and community into our lives, granting others permission to speak into our lives in intimate ways.

Why did God design love to the most powerful way to connect love the world?

Because it is not natural the flesh and needs the Spirit to truly live it out and thus when it happens, it stands out to a world does fails to understand the mystery of biblical love.

How do we learn to live with such a humble display of love?

Read, study, memorize, and mediate MUCH on the word of God.

Pray for a humble heart.

Lifestyle of repentance.

Lifestyle of worship.

What personal agenda’s do you need to confess and repent of today in order to live out a life of love and servanthood?

In what way(s) are you more concerned about protecting yourself than you are about serving? How is it being manifested in your life?

Related Media

Related Sermons