Growing in Love

to the Gospel of John.

And for some of you who are new or visiting,

we have been working through the Gospel of John.

I actually look back to see when the start of this series was,

and it looks like it was the start of January 2020.

So we've actually been working through this Gospel

for three years now, and here we are going on to year four.

So there's a lot in this book of the Bible,

and we've tried to really slow it down and linger

over the words that are here.

We want to understand what did Jesus mean

when he said some of the things that he said,

when he did some of the things that he did.

What's it all about?

Right now, we're in John chapter 15,

John 15 · chapter mention

and this is where we're at in the story of Jesus,

in case you're kind of just joining us this morning.

Jesus is right now speaking to his disciples

on the evening prior to his crucifixion.

So all the public ministry of Jesus,

that's already all happened.

We heard John talk about the many miraculous signs

that Jesus did,

and the teachings that he gave to the crowds.

We heard about the tensions rising

between Jesus and the religious leaders.

It's estimated that from the time that Jesus was baptized

in the Jordan River and began his public ministry

till this point in the story,

it's been about three years,

and Jesus has now made his last trip

down to Jerusalem

for the week-long Passover festival.

He entered the city to joyful shouts

of, blessed is the king of Israel.

But then all through the week,

tensions have been rising

between Jesus and the religious leaders

and some of the Jews who were there.

And we're here now at the end of the week,

and Jesus has just eaten that Passover meal

with his disciples.

Judas has left

to put his plan into motion

to betray Jesus.

Jesus has been giving some of his last words

to the disciples before his death.

He's been encouraging them.

He's been comforting them.

He's been giving them instructions

about how to live in these days

that are upon them.

First, they were at the place

where the supper was eaten.

Now they're likely somewhere else in the city

or just outside the city,

perhaps at a vineyard

where they stopped

before heading to the Garden of Gethsemane.

So we pick it up this morning

in John chapter 15, verse 9.

John 15:9

I'm just going to read this paragraph

so we can get a little bit of context here.

This is Jesus talking to the disciples.

As the Father has loved me,

so have I loved you.

Now remain in my love.

If you keep my commands,

you will remain in my love

just as I have kept my Father's commands

and remain in His love.

I have told you this

so that my joy may be in you

and that your joy may be complete.

My command is this.

Love each other

as I have loved you.

Greater love has no one than this

to lay down one's life

for one's friends.

You are my friends

if you do what I command.

I no longer call you servants

because a servant does not know

his master's business.

Instead, I have called you friends

for everything that I learned from my Father

I have made known to you.

You did not choose me

but I chose you

and appointed you

so that you might go and bear fruit.

Fruit that will last

and so that whatever you ask

in my name

the Father will give you.

This is my command.

Love each other.

As usual, there is a lot here

that we could ponder

but this morning

we want to focus in on one thing

Jesus seems to emphasize

perhaps the most

in this paragraph

and it's this command

that He gives to His disciples

in verse 12.

Love each other

or love one another

as I have loved you.

Now you might be thinking

oh man

love each other?

That's the most obvious thing here.

We all know what that means.

Let's go on to the

other interesting things

that Jesus has to say here.

I mean we already talked about

love one another

back in chapter 13

verse 34.

If you'll recall

Jesus earlier this evening

said

a new command I give you

love one another

as I have loved you

so you must love one another.

So why do we need to hear

this same basic thing

again?

Well

maybe you could tell me

why does Jesus

the master teacher

the greatest teacher

who ever walked the earth

feel the need

to repeat Himself

and tell them

to love each other

three times

in the same evening?

There's this one

in 1334

it's here again

in 15

verse 12

and it's there again

in 15

verse 17

this is my command

love each other.

Why does Jesus say it

three times

to the men

who are with Him

that night?

Well I'll tell you one thing

He doesn't have

short term memory loss

it's not as though

He forgot

that He said it earlier

it's that we

the disciples of Jesus

need to understand

the importance

of this.

Probably

like the disciples

we too

are prone to thinking

that we've already got it

we've already understood it

when maybe we haven't

or

we already know that

but are we doing it?

So saying it

three times

in one evening

I hope

gets your attention

it sends a clear message

to us

this command

to love one another

is very dear

to the heart of Christ

it's of the utmost

importance

to us living

as followers of Jesus

in this world

now

I already explained

in my previous message

on June 19th

2022

you can find that sermon

on the church website

I already explained

what makes this command

new

we talked about this

I'm not going to

re-preach the whole thing

but basically

the command to love

people is old

God gave that command

a long time ago

at Mount Sinai

through Moses

love your neighbor

as yourself

and

in that previous message

I said that

what makes this command

new

is that we are now

called to

love one another

by a new standard

not as

we love ourselves

but as

I have loved

you

said Jesus

there's a new standard

Christ has defined

he has modeled

how we should love

one another

and if you were here

in that sermon

on June 19th

you'll recall

that I opened it

right up for discussion

in the middle of the sermon

and I asked the question

how did Jesus love

his disciples

and you guys were

telling me all kinds of things

we talked about

how he

washed their feet

how he spent time

with them

how he chose them

and initiated

with them

how he was patient

with them

when they didn't get it

how he spoke the truth

to them

even when it was hard

for them to hear it

we talked about

how he

kind of just

invited them along

for the ride

for this great adventure

wherever they went

he revealed

who he was to them

he encouraged them

like a father

does his children

one day he made

breakfast for them

on the beach

a little thing

but a token of love

he forgave them

when they sinned

against him

he cared about

their needs

even when he was

going through

his own time

of struggle

and suffering

he did all kinds

of wonderful things

for them

he loved them humbly

rather than

lording it over them

he cared for them

when they were sick

he loved them

when they were proud

and argumentative

having fights

with each other

he bore with them

when they said

hurtful things

behind his back

he went to their

funerals

and cried

with them

he went to their

weddings

he celebrated

with them

he helped out

with that supply

shortage in the back

without drawing

attention to himself

there were some

who followed Jesus

who were considered

untouchables

unclean

Jesus was not

afraid to touch

them

to give that

human contact

and connection

that we all

need

he loved them

despite their

lowly professions

he loved them

despite their

low social status

he never played

favorites

he didn't give

extra time and

attention to the

wealthy or the

prominent ones

he spent time

with the kids

and loved the

kids

he treated the

women with

absolute purity

he kept his

promises

and the list

goes on and on

and on

we could just

go on all day

here

these are all

the ways in

which Jesus

loved his

disciples

and of course

most important

of all

he died for

them

he gave up

his life

for them

to atone

for their

sins

so

what's new

about this

command to

love one

another

is that we're

commanded

by Jesus

now to

love one

another

as he

has loved

us

and as I

said in that

previous message

this is it

this is the

most important

thing in the

Christian life

except of course

for the call to

love God

himself

this is it

this is

Christianity

at its core

this is why

Jesus says

it

commands them

three times

in the same

evening

because once

and even

twice

isn't enough

this is just

too important

to say just

once or

twice

this is the

thing that I

want my

followers to

keep coming

back to

as the most

important command

I've given

aside from

loving God

love one

another

as I have

loved you

it's one of

the most

important

and at the

same time

it's one of

the things that

we just struggle

with at times

and wrestle

with

I know

if I was

to ask

any of

you

what does

it mean

to love

one another

what does

that look

like

I'm sure

that probably

all of you

could answer

that question

even the

kids

we know

what that

means

we know

what love

looks like

but this

is a command

we need to

go beyond

understanding

the question

is are we

actually living

this command

are we

loving one

another

like Jesus

has loved

us

you know

what really

struck me

as I was

meditating on

this in the

shower

I do a lot

of meditation

in the shower

it's a great

place of

solitude

there's a

direct

connection

here

between

our

relationship

with Jesus

and our

relationship

with each

other

do you see

that

there's

meant to be

a flow

here

as I

know and

experience

Jesus love

for me

it comes

to me

first

and then

it's meant

to flow

out of me

to you

to one

another

do you

see that

here

I'm

commanded

to love

you

Charles

and my

template

my example

is right

here

in how

Christ

has loved

me

there's a

flow

there's a

connection

here

but here's

the trouble

all too

easily

we as

followers

of Jesus

struggle

with

a

disconnect

here

we want

to enjoy

and live

in

Christ's

wonderful

love for

us

but then

sometimes

the flow

stops

right there

and we

don't treat

one another

the same

way

Jesus

was the

one to

highlight

this

problem

this

tendency

in all

of us

listen to

what he

said

in

Matthew

Matthew 18:23–35

chapter

18

verse

23

to

35

it's

the

parable

of the

unmerciful

servant

he said

therefore

the kingdom

of heaven

is like

a king

who wanted

to settle

accounts

with his

servants

as he

began

the

settlement

a man

who owed

him

10,000

bags

of gold

was brought

to him

since he

was not

able to

pay

the

master

ordered

that he

and his

wife

and his

children

and all

that he

had

be sold

to repay

the debt

at this

the servant

fell on his

knees

before him

be patient

with me

he begged

and I will

pay back

everything

the servant's

master

took pity

on him

canceled

the debt

and let

him go

but when

that servant

went out

he found

one of his

fellow servants

who owed him

100 silver

coins

he grabbed

him

and began

to choke

him

pay back

what you

owe me

he demanded

his fellow

servant

fell to his

knees

and begged

him

be patient

with me

and I will

pay it

back

but he

refused

instead

he went

off

and had

the man

thrown

into prison

until he

could

pay the

debt

when the

other

servants

saw what

had

happened

they were

outraged

and went

and told

their

master

everything

that had

happened

then the

master

called

the servant

in

you wicked

servant

he said

I canceled

all that

debt of

yours

because you

begged

me to

shouldn't

you have

had mercy

on your

fellow

servant

just as

I had

on you

in anger

his master

handed him

over to

the jailers

to be

tortured

until he

should pay

back

all he

owed

this

is how

my heavenly

father

will treat

each of

you

unless

you

forgive

your

brother

or sister

from

your

heart

wow

what

was

Jesus

getting

at

when

he

told

this

parable

of

the

unmerciful

servant

I mean

isn't it

ironic

that

a man

who had

been

forgiven

a massive

debt

10,000

bags

of gold

was

unwilling

to forgive

the much

smaller

debt

of his

buddy

in

this

parable

we

see

the

disconnect

between

the

king's

mercy

coming

to

that

servant

and

the

mercy

flowing

from

that

servant

to

his

fellow

servant

Jesus

is

saying

this

disconnect

that

happens

with

people

it's

a

problem

in

fact

he

says

it's

wicked

God's

love

God's

mercy

has been

given

to you

so

graciously

so

freely

so

generously

would

you

now

withhold

love

and

mercy

from

your

brother

or

your

sister

now

it's

easy

for us

to look

at this

little

parable

and

agree

and

say

how

could

he

do

such

a

thing

what

a

wicked

servant

but

you

know

this

is

not

a

story

that

Jesus

you

know

he

didn't

see

somebody

that

actually

did

this

he

made

this

parable

up

to

teach

us

a

point

the

point

of this

parable

is to

tell

you

and

me

what

we

all

too

easily

do

it's

to

convict

us

of

our

lack

of

love

toward

one

another

it's

to

show

us

the

irony

and

the

audacity

of

our

own

attitudes

and

behaviors

when

we

have

been

loved

and

forgiven

by

God

so

much

and

yet

how

easily

we

stop

the

flow

of

love

and

forgiveness

to

one

another

so

this

is

why

I

think

Jesus

repeats

this

simple

command

three

times

in

one

night

love

one

another

as

I

have

loved

you

because

it's

rooted

in

our

sin

nature

to

turn

off

the

taps

towards

one

another

and

the

disciples

of

Jesus

did

this

a

lot

they

fought

with

each

other

they

argued

with

each

other

they

jockeyed

for

position

amongst

each

other

wanting

to

be

first

wanting

to

be

the

greatest

and

it

broke

Jesus

heart

when

they

did

that

because

it

was

so

out

of

sync

with

the

love

of

God

and

with

the

love

of

Jesus

here

he

was

loving

them

so

purely

so

deeply

despite

who

they

were

despite

the

things

that

they

had

done

and

there

they

were

all

too

happy

to

soak

in

Jesus

great

love

for

them

but

then

turn

around

and

treat

each

other

with

contempt

harboring

grudges

getting

into

fights

and

arguments

giving

each

other

the

cold

shoulder

and

silent

treatment

and

it

wasn't

just

back

then

that

this

disconnect

happened

in

the

hearts

of

Jesus

followers

it

happened

years

later

among

the

Jesus

followers

in

Corinth

Paul

wrote a

letter

to

address

the

divisions

that

were

going

on

in

the

church

there

it

happened

also

among

Jesus

followers

in

Philippi

maybe

you

remember

some

of

those

words

in

Philippians

where

Paul

urges

them

to

not

just

think

of

their

own

interests

but

think

of

the

interests

of

one

another

have

the

same

mind

in

you

that

was

also

in

Christ

Jesus

that

humble

love

and

I

plead

with

Iodia

and

Syntyche

to

agree

with

each

other

many

of

the

New

Testament

letters

were

written

to

churches

and

highlighted

interpersonal

conflict

within

the

church

caused

by

sinful

and

selfish

attitudes

and

in

many

of

them

instruction

was

given

again

and

again

for

the

people

of

the

church

to

love

one

another

sincerely

from

the

heart

this

disconnect

was

there

and

it's

been

happening

ever

since

then

among

the

followers

of

Jesus

throughout

church

history

and

this

disconnect

happens

even

here

among

us

followers

of

Jesus

here

in

Davidson

right

here

in

our

own

church

it's

something

that we

participate

in

on a

regular

basis

every

time you

say

something

nasty

to

hurt

someone

every

time you

attempt

to

control

or

manipulate

someone

every

time we

say

something

in

pride

or

arrogance

standing

in

judgment

over

someone

every

time

we

act

selfishly

out

of

disregard

for

others

what I'm

trying to

say is

that this

is a

pervasive

problem

it's not

as though

some of

us are

loving

like

Jesus

did

and

others

are

not

and

let's

figure

out

who's

doing

a

good

job

and

who's

not

no

we

all

wrestle

with

this

disconnect

at

some

level

or

in

some

relationships

in

our

lives

and

some

of us

maybe

still

don't

think

we

have

this

disconnect

maybe

we're

still

pointing

the

finger

at

somebody

else

it's

their

fault

it's

the

things

they're

doing

and

they're

saying

I've

been

treating

them

well

I've

been

loving

them

ironically

just

like

with

the

parable

of

the

unmerciful

servant

there

seems

to be

a

sort

of

blindness

towards

this

disconnect

in

our

lives

the

servant

in

the

parable

seemed

to

feel

absolutely

justified

to

throttle

the

neck

of

his

fellow

servant

even

after

his

own

neck

had

just

been

spared

it's

like

he

couldn't

even

see

what

he

was

doing

how

out

of

sync

that

was

with

what

he

just

received

amazingly

when we

lack

love

it

often

seems

that

along

with

that

we

aren't

aware

of

it

we're

blind

to

it

I'll

give you

an

example

isn't

it

amazing

for

those

of us

who

have

been

parents

how

we

can

feel

so

justified

in

our

frustration

and

anger

and

impatience

towards

our

children

even

saying

things

unkindly

rudely

we

can

be

harsh

you

know

what

I'm

talking

about

I

told

you

that

once

already

how

many

times

do

I

have

to

tell

you

it's

like

we're

expecting

their

hearts

to

change

overnight

or

them

to

become

mature

by the

end

of

the

week

meanwhile

we're

not

becoming

mature

by the

end

of

the

week

we

hear

God

saying

all

kinds

of

things

to

us

and

giving

us

his

commands

and

yeah

I'm

still

struggling

I'm

still

wrestling

with

that

be

patient

with

me

God

thank

you

for

your

patience

but

then

we

turn

around

and

we

don't

show

that

same

patience

to

our

own

kids

it's

just

one

example

this

disconnect

is

something

we

all

struggle

with

and

how

easy

it

is

to

be

blind

to

this

disconnect

in

our

own

lives

if

you

want

to

grow

and

become

a

more

loving

person

just

like

Jesus

commands

here

would

you

do

this

thing

would

you

ask

someone

in

your

life

perhaps

a

family

member

or

a

close

friend

ask

them

this

question

am

I

a

loving

person

do

you

see

me

as

a

truly

loving

person

what

do

you

see

in

my

life

that

that

I

need

to

grow

in

to

become

a

more

loving

person

to

become

more

like

Jesus

to

love

more

like

he

does

am

I

kind

am

I

slow

to

anger

am

I

quick

to

listen

am

I

compassionate

what

do

you

see

in

my

life

now

don't

ask

someone

who

you

know

will

just

tell

you

what

you

hope

to

hear

I

think

you

probably

know

who

some

of

those

people

are

ask

someone

you

know

will

tell

you

the

truth

and

then

just

humbly

listen

and

thank

them

for

whatever

they

share

with

you

blindness

is a

problem

where

love

is

lacking

over

the

past

year

we

conducted

a

membership

review

here

at

the

church

we

sat

down

with

all

of

our

church

members

and

we

asked

them

a

series

of

questions

we

just

wanted

to

get

a

sense

of

where

people

were

at

and

how

things

are

going

with

people

in

the

church

and

of

course

as

we

began

to

do

that

we

started

thinking

about

everybody