One
of the most common words Christian’s use to describe the nature of their faith
is love. In today’s scripture Jesus
instructs his disciples, and by extension us to focus on love, like the love of
God for him. We are to love like God and
Jesus, wonderful words, what exactly do they mean?
This post is intended to help the reader personalize
the words and thoughts in the scriptures.
It works well if shared between two or more people as a topic of
discussion but there is much to be gained by considering the questions
yourself. Commentaries for these
scriptures can be found on Textweek through this link http://www.textweek.com/mkjnacts/jn15b.htm.
The first
part of today’s scripture focuses on the word love:
John 15:9-10"I've
loved you the way my Father has loved me. Make yourselves at home in my love.
If you keep my commands, you'll remain intimately at home in my love. That's
what I've done—kept my Father's commands and made myself at home in his love.
11-15"I've
told you these things for a purpose: that my joy might be your joy, and your
joy wholly mature.
· First look at love – how did God show love toward
Jesus. Think about the high points – his
baptism, the gifts and talents, the mountaintop transfiguration – how was Jesus
blessed? How has God’s love touched your
life? How have you, like Jesus, had your
life blessed by your spirituality?
Things like talents, relationships, experiences, or new beginnings.
· On the other hand while under the umbrella of God’s love the
way has not been easy (Jesus speaks these words just prior to his crucifixion). What do the gospels tell us were challenges,
for instance the time in the wilderness, and the horrible crucifixion he was to
undergo as an act of faithful obedience?
Was he wealthy, did he have a huge following, was he held in high
respect by people of influence? Does
being loved by God mean that the way is clear, the road is smooth, and that we
will find all of the blessings of life?
What are we guaranteed comes from God’s love? Paul gives some ideas to get our thinking
started:
You'll
be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and
quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down
to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops
well-formed maturity in you. Romans 12:2-3
· What does Paul tell us happens as a result of a focus on
love of God? It seems to speak of
transformation; being a different person with newly discovered values. How does this compare with your experience,
has your faith caused you to see and value some things differently than the
secular culture might?
· A second focus is on Jesus’ commands/commandments, how and
why are they important? Does this say
that Jesus has given us a listing of behaviors that if followed to the letter
guarantee his love for us? If so where
do we find that listing, what do you consider to be his commands? When asked specifically about commands Jesus
responded this way:
Jesus
said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and
intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is
a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These
two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from
them." Matthew 22:37-40
· What do Jesus’ words in Matthew tell
us about the source of the commands/commandments, what do they flow from? How will focusing our love on God bring us
understanding and what are we to use as instruments of our love? Where should we direct the fruits of our
passion, prayer and intelligence? Did
Jesus show us how that is to be done? What
stories involving those who might be considered outcasts do you remember from
the gospels? How has your spirituality
impacted the way in which you perceive and deal with others?
· What is the result of focusing on
love and obeying the commands; what do we reap from sowing love and obedience? When have you found joy in the practice of
your faith, when you were moved to respond in a loving way to someone or
something that initially gave you pause?
What other joyful moments have you experienced during your faith
journey? Would you agree with Jesus that
one of the outcomes of faithful living is joy?
What might it mean if joy is absent, what might be the cause?
In the second section of the
scripture Jesus turns the focus to a specific command and reminds the
disciples, and us, of some important things to remember:
This
is my command: Love one another the way I loved you. This is the very best way
to love. Put your life on the line for your friends. You are my friends when
you do the things I command you. I'm no longer calling you servants because
servants don't understand what their master is thinking and planning. No, I've
named you friends because I've let you in on everything I've heard from the Father.
16"You
didn't choose me, remember; I chose you, and put you in the world to bear
fruit, fruit that won't spoil. As fruit bearers, whatever you ask the Father in
relation to me, he gives you. 17"But remember the root command: Love one another.
· What is the root command?
Seems simple doesn’t it, love one another? When is it easy for you to love another;
times when it feels like a natural response to another? When is it difficult? What situations have caused you to either
hesitate or withhold love from another?
Does Jesus ask us to like everyone?
How is loving different from liking?
Can you think of some examples of people you would say you would not
necessarily want as friends or even found objectionable toward whom you have
performed a loving act? Say a panhandler
or someone incarcerated or in trouble with the law for some illegal action, or
a person whose lifestyle you find objectionable?
· God unconditionally loves us and for most this is an unattainable
level of love and compassion. Does this
in any way give us a pass on trying to broaden our capacity to love? What have you done to try and increase your
compassionate response to others? What
examples of loving acts by others have inspired your faith life?
· Two words Jesus uses to describe his disciples are friends
and fruit bearers. How does the idea of
being thought of as Jesus’ friend impact you? What can we count on from a friend and what
how do we relate to a friend? What words
would you use to describe your relationship with God?
· We also carry the title of fruit bearer which connotes doing
useful and loving things; this is the place where faith meets real life. With all of our other priorities and
pressures how hard is it to focus on this important component of faithful
living? How do you work the important
commandment of loving others into your daily life? What are some struggles? What do you use to help strengthen and
inspire your faithful loving response to others? It truly seems to be part of that
transformation that Paul wrote of in the scripture from Romans above. You'll
be changed from the inside out.
Closing Litany
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