Erin Seigmiller
John 13 31 - 35 A New Command
Good morning! What a roundup of lessons we have to ponder today! Our psalm this morning a joyous parade of praise! I can just see it - the birth of the new order - all things new as in our second lesson from Revelation. Who’s there? Well,everyone actually. Our first lesson this morning from Acts has God busting open his covenant to all peoples, extending the promise to the gentile! All creatures great and small, all people far and near, giving praise and being joyfully alive in God’s love. What an awesome way of showing thanks and honouring God’s promise than by honouring Jesus’ command for us to love one another and all creation, as he has loved us.
So Nancy tells me that I need to start with the bad news. I have read and reread this passage, it’s kinda complicated, and here’s what I learned: God does things differently. Really different.
1) Our gospel lesson today starts with a preamble to the bad news. It is an explanation, a foreshadowing of what has happened (Jesus marks the one who is to betray him, and send him on his way to commit the deed and seal the deal) and is about to happen, his death and subsequent glory. And in saying all this, Jesus also gives credit to God
2) The “bad” news here - Jesus announces his departure and tells his disciples that he is going where they can not, and they will be unable to find him, is not really bad news - not to us it isn’t because we know how it all plays out. They must have been confused and devastated. But we know this is really the Good News in disguise.
3) So if the bad news is really good, then where is the bad news here?
I don’t really want to say, The bad news is love. What ??? But love is easy. Isn’t it?
Love, love, love. It makes the world go round, can stop you in your tracks! and will keep us together. Powerful stuff this love. But, it’s everywhere! So much so, that love has almost become flippant and fickle. A cavalier, almost throw away word. “I love that dress” “Try it, you’ll love it” “Just love your new hair cut”
Jesus says, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another.” Ouch, Clearly I don’t love your new hair cut as much as Jesus has loved us, me. These are really two different ideas. Maybe we need some new words. Agape is the love meant here. Practical love. A desire to share love with those around you. But be careful - Jesus makes his most difficult challenges look easy. If you mistook “I love your new hair cut” for agape, Jesus’ difficult command, don’t worry, it’s easy to do. I don’t know about you, but I think of “loving” the world full of people, I try and buy fair trade, we contribute to charities and volunteer, but really, does it measure up to Jesus’ example? No way, and in no way could I ever hope my efforts to measure up. Jesus asks us to love even the ones who don’t love us, who hurt us, who betray us. The new command comes at the last supper, after Jesus washes the feet of his disciples, setting the example. Set yourself in the scene - the disciples, Jesus and the women have gathered for the passover meal. Jesus, who knows what’s about to happen, and how, and by whom, gathers his followers for a final time. He shows them with a powerful example how they are to live their lives in service to others. He washes their feet. All of them. Even Judas. Remember, Jesus knows that Judas is about to betray him, knows that Judas will set in motion events that were going to be difficult to face. Even for Jesus. So, that’s saying a lot. Yet, Jesus loves Judas, and shows this love to Judas and the others present as a lasting example of the cost of this love. It’s humbling.
Jesus goes on to say “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples - when they see the love you have for each other.” Ohh, ouch. Double ouch actually. I KNOW that I haven’t always been guilty of this one. And taking a larger view, many outside the church point at this hypocrisy and won’t have it, won’t listen to the good news because we’re not living it, so, what’s so great about it? Fair question. In addition to infighting and the like, those outside the church stay away because they feel they aren’t welcome. Fair enough argument when Westburo baptist church people run around with “God hates fags” signs. We know this is not the case, but a few noisy bad apples have affected how the outside world sees us Christians. I don’t know how to make those who use God’s name to justify hate, violence oppression and injustice disappear. What I do know is, Jesus is calling me to go out into the world and one small act of agape at a time, show who we really are. Show who Jesus is, and like Jesus, love even the ones who hurt us.
4) Nancy also tells me I should end with the good news. The good news is we have the resurrection promised us, or at least the foretelling and advancement on the events that end in the events of Easter. AND we have a new command to follow AND an example of what to do. Promises, instruction and guidance. All good, but, since we already decided the good news is bad, and the bad news is good I find myself in a bit of a quandary. But don’t worry, as we are told in the passage from Revelation, God has things well in hand. The good news is difficult, but still good. But Erin, you say, I can’t love the lunatic who cut me off in traffic, or the stupid woman who stole my place in line, or the boss who bullies, or the friend who isn’t. How can I love that jerk? Here’s a suggestion that was given by me from a wonderful and devout anglican lady. A mentor to a friend who had seen plenty of grief and difficult people in her life. And here is what she said. Take a moment to think about someone in your life who challenges you to love them. Maybe it’s someone in your past, maybe not. Here is the good news - the solution to our quandary - pray for help with this situation. Resolution, forgiveness, peace - ask for whatever it is you need to be able to love this person. Sometimes, when the hurt is deep or comes from close quarters, that love is really hard to get ahold of, impossible almost. And sometimes, the best we can do is ask God to love them, because we just can not right now. I know there is other good news here. The foreshadowed resurrection is just one example. But no doubt, others could talk passionately about that. But I was struck once again by how God jumbles things up, one more example of how God gets things done differently. The good news is bad or at least super hard, and the bad news turns out so good. But once again, God provides the example in Jesus, gives us our marching orders and the help we need to meet the challenge. That sounds pretty good to me.
I want to leave you with this poem;
“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.”
― Mother Teresa
Good morning! What a roundup of lessons we have to ponder today! Our psalm this morning a joyous parade of praise! I can just see it - the birth of the new order - all things new as in our second lesson from Revelation. Who’s there? Well,everyone actually. Our first lesson this morning from Acts has God busting open his covenant to all peoples, extending the promise to the gentile! All creatures great and small, all people far and near, giving praise and being joyfully alive in God’s love. What an awesome way of showing thanks and honouring God’s promise than by honouring Jesus’ command for us to love one another and all creation, as he has loved us.
So Nancy tells me that I need to start with the bad news. I have read and reread this passage, it’s kinda complicated, and here’s what I learned: God does things differently. Really different.
1) Our gospel lesson today starts with a preamble to the bad news. It is an explanation, a foreshadowing of what has happened (Jesus marks the one who is to betray him, and send him on his way to commit the deed and seal the deal) and is about to happen, his death and subsequent glory. And in saying all this, Jesus also gives credit to God
2) The “bad” news here - Jesus announces his departure and tells his disciples that he is going where they can not, and they will be unable to find him, is not really bad news - not to us it isn’t because we know how it all plays out. They must have been confused and devastated. But we know this is really the Good News in disguise.
3) So if the bad news is really good, then where is the bad news here?
I don’t really want to say, The bad news is love. What ??? But love is easy. Isn’t it?
Love, love, love. It makes the world go round, can stop you in your tracks! and will keep us together. Powerful stuff this love. But, it’s everywhere! So much so, that love has almost become flippant and fickle. A cavalier, almost throw away word. “I love that dress” “Try it, you’ll love it” “Just love your new hair cut”
Jesus says, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another.” Ouch, Clearly I don’t love your new hair cut as much as Jesus has loved us, me. These are really two different ideas. Maybe we need some new words. Agape is the love meant here. Practical love. A desire to share love with those around you. But be careful - Jesus makes his most difficult challenges look easy. If you mistook “I love your new hair cut” for agape, Jesus’ difficult command, don’t worry, it’s easy to do. I don’t know about you, but I think of “loving” the world full of people, I try and buy fair trade, we contribute to charities and volunteer, but really, does it measure up to Jesus’ example? No way, and in no way could I ever hope my efforts to measure up. Jesus asks us to love even the ones who don’t love us, who hurt us, who betray us. The new command comes at the last supper, after Jesus washes the feet of his disciples, setting the example. Set yourself in the scene - the disciples, Jesus and the women have gathered for the passover meal. Jesus, who knows what’s about to happen, and how, and by whom, gathers his followers for a final time. He shows them with a powerful example how they are to live their lives in service to others. He washes their feet. All of them. Even Judas. Remember, Jesus knows that Judas is about to betray him, knows that Judas will set in motion events that were going to be difficult to face. Even for Jesus. So, that’s saying a lot. Yet, Jesus loves Judas, and shows this love to Judas and the others present as a lasting example of the cost of this love. It’s humbling.
Jesus goes on to say “This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples - when they see the love you have for each other.” Ohh, ouch. Double ouch actually. I KNOW that I haven’t always been guilty of this one. And taking a larger view, many outside the church point at this hypocrisy and won’t have it, won’t listen to the good news because we’re not living it, so, what’s so great about it? Fair question. In addition to infighting and the like, those outside the church stay away because they feel they aren’t welcome. Fair enough argument when Westburo baptist church people run around with “God hates fags” signs. We know this is not the case, but a few noisy bad apples have affected how the outside world sees us Christians. I don’t know how to make those who use God’s name to justify hate, violence oppression and injustice disappear. What I do know is, Jesus is calling me to go out into the world and one small act of agape at a time, show who we really are. Show who Jesus is, and like Jesus, love even the ones who hurt us.
4) Nancy also tells me I should end with the good news. The good news is we have the resurrection promised us, or at least the foretelling and advancement on the events that end in the events of Easter. AND we have a new command to follow AND an example of what to do. Promises, instruction and guidance. All good, but, since we already decided the good news is bad, and the bad news is good I find myself in a bit of a quandary. But don’t worry, as we are told in the passage from Revelation, God has things well in hand. The good news is difficult, but still good. But Erin, you say, I can’t love the lunatic who cut me off in traffic, or the stupid woman who stole my place in line, or the boss who bullies, or the friend who isn’t. How can I love that jerk? Here’s a suggestion that was given by me from a wonderful and devout anglican lady. A mentor to a friend who had seen plenty of grief and difficult people in her life. And here is what she said. Take a moment to think about someone in your life who challenges you to love them. Maybe it’s someone in your past, maybe not. Here is the good news - the solution to our quandary - pray for help with this situation. Resolution, forgiveness, peace - ask for whatever it is you need to be able to love this person. Sometimes, when the hurt is deep or comes from close quarters, that love is really hard to get ahold of, impossible almost. And sometimes, the best we can do is ask God to love them, because we just can not right now. I know there is other good news here. The foreshadowed resurrection is just one example. But no doubt, others could talk passionately about that. But I was struck once again by how God jumbles things up, one more example of how God gets things done differently. The good news is bad or at least super hard, and the bad news turns out so good. But once again, God provides the example in Jesus, gives us our marching orders and the help we need to meet the challenge. That sounds pretty good to me.
I want to leave you with this poem;
“People are often unreasonable and self-centered. Forgive them anyway.
If you are kind, people may accuse you of ulterior motives. Be kind anyway.
If you are honest, people may cheat you. Be honest anyway.
If you find happiness, people may be jealous. Be happy anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow. Do good anyway.
Give the world the best you have and it may never be enough. Give your best anyway.
For you see, in the end, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.”
― Mother Teresa
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