John 13:31-35 A New Commandment

Well you would think that in the last day or so before Jesus was to be crucified, some of His most important words to us would be spoken. Wouldn't you?

So here He tells us that there is a "new commandment".  Love one another. Is that really "new"?

It seems we have heard this before.

Didn't He say that all the law and commandments are contained in Love God and Love each other?

I think there is a message in His words we so easily glide right over. That is why I really wanted to bo a journal through John this way. One section at a time. Not through the Bible in a year or month or week. Slowly, surely, just to be sure I didn't miss anything.

Yes I know if I broke it down by word and got out my concordance and lexicon etc I would learn even more. I am not that smart. This fits my purpose just fine.

I guess what I would say is "new" is that part where we are to love each other as He loved us. Now that is a new thought.

I have heard this quoted so many times but never explained.

40 years in church and never really explained to me (that I recall).

Jesus knows where He is heading in the next few days. He is not just saying feed each other fish and pray for each other once in awhile.

Jesus is heading to the cross to die for us. I think He is saying this "new commandment" because He wants us to understand it is not going to be easy. It is not going to be optional. It is a "commandment" after all.

Love in other in the way that I am loving you! Laying down my life for you. Preferring you before me. Making things easier for you by taking the burden on me.

Is that how we are loving each other? Is that how we are loving Christians in other congregations? Is that how we are showing the the world that we are truly His disciples?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Big Answer

So perhaps this was more to me than it might be to you but I will reveal as much as I can in perspective. Somewhere along the way I came to a belief system that only allowed God generic emotions regarding preferences or choices as they were. The problem with that belief is the are scriptures that reflect a very emotional God with preferences and likes or dislikes that are not defined by mere logic. Case in point. Psa 87:2  the LORD loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. This verse has bothered me for many years.....Yes, I accept the weirdness of it all but that is my world. Why does God love one town more than another? Especially when you remove the criteria of the residents. Does God really care where we live? I mean other than the sake of ministry? I have asked about this many times but I didn't just want the pat answer that we have a tendency to lean toward when logic escapes us. While reading the other day I came across this scripture....
Read more

John 17:1-26 The High Priestly Prayer

I feel like I found a new chapter in my Bible this morning. I must of read this chapter 100 times but it all seemed new today. What an amazing prayer! There is so much here it may take a few days to digest it. So get this. Jesus is at the end of His ministry here on Earth. This is like the closing prayer before all the announcements are made, the chairs put away, the lights turned off. The stuff in this prayer is so rich with love and theology and promise. Things that stand out to me. 1. God had given Jesus all authority over all flesh. (yes, He said all) 2. Knowing God and Jesus translates to eternal life. (no coupons needed) 3.Jesus basically says that the work was done in the disciples (except for that whole sanctification thing). 4. Jesus said He didn't lose one that the Father had given Him (except for Judas).  I may have to come back to this one at a later date. 5. As the Father sent Jesus into the world, He is sending us. 6. Jesus glorified the Father h...
Read more

John 11:1-16 Jesus raises Lazarus (Part One)

My Bible program on my Nook separates the raising of Lazarus into two parts. I thought that was weird until I took a closer look. There are so many key points from part one that are different then the points in part two. I call this The Raising of Lazarus - The Going We can tend to skip some of the detail here because of the huge finish of the story, but don't do it. Jesus says some very key statements here. One of them is found in verse 4  But when Jesus heard it he said, "This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it." This really speaks of our lives having purpose for God and not just our own life events. Granted, death is a pretty big event in our lives but God has purpose even for that. I remember being a baby Christian and declaring to Jesus that "I would die for Him" "I would go to the ends of the Earth for Him", all he had to do was ask. Now, if I am being p...
Read more