“As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love…This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” (John 15:9-10, 12 ESV)
You get that what Jesus is asking us to do is impossible, right? How is it humanly possible to love like the Father loves or as Jesus loves? Yet, that’s our commandment, and the Lord never asks us to do something He’s not willing and able to equip us to do. We may never fully “get it,” but we should go to our graves giving it our best effort.
Why do you think it’s so hard to love our brothers and sisters in Christ? And I can almost hear some of you thinking – “It’s not that hard for me. What’s the big deal? I sincerely and genuinely love my brothers and sisters in Christ.” And I’m not here to rain on your parade. I sincerely hope you can and do, but in my more than 60 years of walking with Jesus I’ve run across more than a couple I’ve really struggled to love.
And yes, I’ll admit, it’s pretty easy to love those who are like us – same church, same beliefs, same backgrounds, etc. But what about those who carry a different banner or who hold to a different doctrine? How about those of a different race, ethnicity, language, or who hold to beliefs that we don’t?
What if I’m a strict Calvinist and I meet someone who is a strict Wesleyan-Arminian? What if I meet someone who holds fast to Eternal Security, but I believe someone can forfeit their salvation. Or they believe in the Rapture or they speak in tongues or have a different view of the Millenium? Or what if they do believe those doctrines, but I don’t? How about those who profess faith in Christ but have adopted an openly homosexual lifestyle? Or what if I meet a couple who believe in Jesus, but who live together out of wedlock? Or what if I travel to other countries and can’t speak the language of someone whom I’m told is a Jesus follower? How easy is it to love them?
Have you ever wondered why there are thousands of little churches of the same denomination or persuasion? When I was pastoring, I had “brothers and sisters” leave the church because I wanted to adopt a more Biblical approach to church governance or because we painted over the beloved (but far outdated) paneling in the sanctuary. What does it even mean to love like Jesus loves?
Doesn’t it make sense to figure this out if it’s a commandment that Jesus has given us to follow? Does His command assume we have to agree on every detail? Does it mean we have to believe exactly alike or follow the same pattern for worship? Do we have to sing the same songs or use the same translation of the Bible?
He tells us to abide in His love, then sets the measure of what that looks like by saying: “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love…” All of the original disciples were Jewish, as, of course, was Jesus. There was a big battle as the Church began to grow, between Jews and Gentiles, but, miraculously, the Church came to agreement on the basic structure of what the Gospel should contain, which became foundational for much of Christendom today.
But as the Church began to grow and many people of different cultures, races, and religious backgrounds began to be saved, the writers of much of the New Testament were busy putting out fires and trying to keep the Church on track. Then factor in the false prophets who were deliberately bringing false doctrine into the Church and add a couple of thousands of years to the mix, and you begin to see more clearly why we’re in the shape were in today.
Let’s continue this conversation in tomorrow’s post.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 