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. (John 13:34)Jesus had a special dialog with His disciples on that last night in the upper room -- 4 whole chapters of the Gospel of John (John 13-16). In that time, He gave them this "new commandment." Love one another. Now, we all know that wasn't a new commandment. Jesus had quoted it back when He was asked what was the great commandment of the law (Matt 22:36-40). Jesus quoted it because it was from Lev. 19:8. This wasn't new. So why did He call it "a new commandment"?
The command to "love one another" wasn't new. What was new was the standard by which that love was measured. In the Old Testament, the standard was "as you love yourself." Of course, in today's society that's ambiguous, because we're all worried that some people don't love themselves enough. Scripture (no surprise) disagrees. Paul told husbands to love their wives as they loved their own bodies. "For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church" (Eph 5:29). That is, the simple fact that we feed ourselves means we love ourselves. That was the standard back then. Jesus called for a new standard. What was it? "As I have loved you." Hmmm, and what does that mean? You may have figured it out, but He didn't leave them to guess. In that same upper room dialog, He repeated His command and gave clarification.
This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. (John 15:12-13)The assignment for each and every believer is to love one another in that way -- to lay down our lives for one another. In fact, if you think about it, Jesus had been doing that His whole ministry. He fed Himself and prayed alone at times -- took general care of His physical and spiritual health -- but everything He did was about others, not Himself. He didn't seek a career, find a wife ... do any of the things we all consider normal human behavior with our personal preferences at the center. He was about His Father's will (John 5:30; John 6:38). He was about the people to whom He was ministering. And, in the end, He physically gave up His life for His friends. He served as a living example of what He commanded.
We're all (or, at least, mostly all) aware of the command for believers to love one another. We're aware that it's supposed to be the hallmark of every believer (John 13:35). And we nod and think, "Well, I think affectionately of some of my fellow believers." And we miss the point. Jesus did not command affection. He commanded sacrifice. He didn't command warm feelings. He commanded death to self. We are supposed to be a people who are known for laying down our lives, literally or figuratively, for each other. I'm not entirely sure that's widely practiced enough among us to be something for which we are known.
2 comments:
I think there is a two-fold cause to this failing of ours. We live in a culture of independence that is progressively isolating us mentally and physically. The old church community was a local community where everyone knew everyone and where they lived and what they did. It was simply organic. Now, we can drive for miles to our churches and see so many people that we only know from church. We have to be intentional about our community now, and that simply takes more effort than we're mostly willing to put in. Combined with our culture is a lack of theological education in the church. Most Christians only get a half hour to 45 minute sermon a week, and that is all their Bible teaching they receive. The really devout ones will have their daily bible readings or devotionals. But how many go so far as to truly study and understand what Scripture teaches, what the Church has taught for millennia, what different positions their are and how they came about? We are woefully undereducated as a people. So much so that we have many Christians claiming that they "don't need doctrine, only Christ". That is a tragic failure and anti-scriptural. We need to know doctrine so that we aren't swayed by every new idea that comes our way. Untill we have churches that are actual communities that interact on a daily basis, and people that are devouring and digesting Scripture, we're going to continue to fail to love one another as Christ loved us.
I know that “love” is the first fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22) and that Christians are to love one another (1 Joh. 3:10, 23; 1 Joh. 4:8, 21). Beyond that, I know Jesus tells me that sacrificial, self-denying love should be the “hallmark of a believer,” as you say; yet I admit that I oftentimes have difficulty enough just loving others--without that deeper requirement to love them enough to die for them. Jesus’ model is truly matchless--yet inspiring for those of us who wish to be Christlike.
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