Marks of Christian discipleship #4

March 5, 2021 (Friday)

 

The fourth mark of Christian discipleship is found in John 13:34 – 35, “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. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” [ESV]

 

This mark is found in context to Jesus’ prayer for His disciples then and now. He calls them “little children” as far their ability to understand what is about to happen. Spoiler alert: Jesus will be crucified and raise from the dead in three days!

 

The command Jesus gives is not a new command, yet it is. How is this possible? I am glad you asked. When asked what the greatest command is (by a lawyer) Jesus gave a very lawyer like response. “And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” [Matthew 22:37 – 39 ESV]

 

Smelling the possibility of a loophole, the lawyer then asks Jesus, “But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” [Luke 10:29 ESV] Could it be this expert in the Law felt the beginning of his awakening? Could the Holy Spirit have been speaking to him; offering this well trained and deep thinker an opportunity for salvation?

 

Then again, maybe Jesus just pointed out his hypocrisy. The trouble with hypocrites is they are unwilling to look in the mirror. They are so eager to accuse others and pick out the speck when there is a log sticking in their own eye. But this is typical of the self-righteous…. Paying attention only to what they choose, because it justifies themselves.

 

Truth hurts. If you read the rest of the story in Luke, Jesus uses the most unlikely person in a bad situation to demonstrate the principle of the neighbor. It was a Samaritan. They were partially Jews and had created their own religious system (see John 4). They were Catholics (to Protestants… and vice versa). They were Progressives (to the conservatives). They were Muslims (to Christians). They were the gay (to those who perceive themselves flawless).

 

What is NEW about the commandment is that Jesus sets Himself up as the example. The OLD commandment was to love others like we love ourselves. Jesus shifts that and unequivocally states this self-oriented love falls short. Later Jesus is going to make clear how we are love others, “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 ESV]

 

King Jesus’ standard of love is the kind which is sacrificial. Think about the people Jesus loved. There was a tax collector, considered by the culture as traitors and thieves. Thomas, who doubted His resurrection. There was a traitor Jesus loved, his name was Judas Iscariot. There was a man bent on destroying the church, his name was Saul (we know him as Paul). The people who crucified Him, Jesus forgave them.

 

Love is the one characteristic and quality that will survive into eternity. It is the surest sign of a follower (disciple) of Jesus. Love in action leaves no doubts. Opps, almost missed that part. What Jesus is saying is not a feeling. People cannot see feelings. People see actions.

 

Gold is tested by acid. People are tested by action.