Tag Archives: servants

Unknown's avatar

Who Should We Love?

by

“Who Should We Love?”

John 15:9-17 (15:12) – May 5, 2024

            Children are great examples for us all. Children can make friends so easily! Of course, as children get older, their views of friendship and how to be a friend vary and mature with their growing and becoming more understanding of their friends.

A good example: “At five [years old], a friend is someone to play with now.  Whoever will play and work with me now is my friend.  They will proclaim adamantly to be friends forever, but then move on to other friends without recognizing what they are doing.  By the time they are ten these same children have a strong sense of the loyalty due friends, appreciate nuances of friendships, and experience deep pain in making and losing friends.  So, at different ages children respond to Jesus’ statements about being his friends differently.” [1]

Here in this Scripture reading today, our Lord Jesus talks about friends. Jesus calls His followers friends! Jesus says, “You are my friends if you do what I command. 15 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.”

I suspect that at times the disciples felt inadequate, even felt like servants from time to time, and perhaps more often than that. After all, their Rabbi Jesus was becoming more and more renowned as time went by. More and more people from all over were coming to see Him, hear Him teach and preach, watch His miracles, and even to become His followers.

            Here in John 15, Jesus makes the powerful statement to His disciples that they are not His servants any longer. Servants are seen as less than, they can be subservient, and even denigrated. Instead, Jesus calls them friends!

Let’s take a few steps back. This chapter of John comes from the Upper Room discourse, which happened on that Thursday, the night before Jesus was crucified. Jesus had a Passover dinner with His disciples, and He had a time of intense conversation with them all. He said many really important things at this time, too, like this reading from today.

Jesus starts His command with a few words of preparation: “10 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.” The big thing I get from this introduction to our Lord’s command? Jesus tells us to keep His commands. This ought to be a no-brainer. We all need to keep, or follow, Jesus’s commands. Piece of cake, right? Walk in the park! No problem, Jesus.

But, always keeping our Lord’s commands is not quite that easy, is it?

            Jesus must have known how much of a problem we all would have with this command. He said, “IF you keep my commands.” I am assuming we are not braggarts and blowhards like some people. No, we really mean to try to keep God’s commands and to love others. So help us, God! But, I will say it again. It is not so easy.

            When Jesus announces that His disciples are no longer called servants, that means us, too. As we are followers and disciples of Jesus, we are called friends of Jesus, too! Except, it is He who has chosen us, not we Him. And, the commands of Jesus are a call to obedience. His command to love others is also a call to respond to God’s love! [2]

            I want to return to the idea of friends – Jesus calling the disciples – calling us – His friends. Similar to children and their growing idea of friendship, you and I can sometimes respond to Jesus’ way of calling us friends in different ways. And, the best part about that is that our Lord Jesus understands!

            Jesus gets us. He understands when we are hungry, angry, lonely or tired. He gets it when we are frustrated or preoccupied. Jesus especially understands when there are mental health issues that come up, for us or for our loved ones. And, Jesus continues to come alongside, and will continue to be right by our sides while we are trying to love as best as we can.

            A number of years ago, a commentator I follow was eating pizza with her youth group one Sunday evening. She asked them what it means to be a friend. She wrote down all the definitions, and here are a few, because they are so on the mark. “A friend is someone who is herself when she’s with you.” “A friend cares about you, listens to your problems, and helps you.” “A friend thinks about you before he thinks about himself.” “A friend cares about other people’s opinions and beliefs, and respects them.” [3]

These definitions are better than I could come up with, for sure! The best part is, if you and I follow these definitions (and suggestions) about making and keeping friends, we will be following the commands of Jesus! And, his number one command is “Love one another, as I have loved you.”

A big part of Jesus’ expression of friendship was by sharing His whole life with us. Living as God intended is community life, where we share all of who we are with others. [4] That is exactly what these teens gave as their definitions for true friends, and that is how we are to love one another, as Jesus loves each of us.

Will we be successful all the time? Unfortunately, no. Can we keep striving to love and keep on loving as much as possible? Yes, we can! With God’s help, and with the help of one another in our church community and our family and friends, we can love like Jesus! We all have the opportunity to follow the commands of Jesus. Love one another. Go and love everyone, in Jesus’s name. Alleluia, amen.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my other blogs: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. and  A Year of Being Kind . Thanks!

[1] http://worshipingwithchildren.blogspot.com/2015/03/year-b-sixth-sunday-of-easter-may-10.html

[2] http://gluthermonson.blogspot.com/2015/05/love-one-another.html

[3] https://melissabanesevier.wordpress.com/2015/05/05/friended/

[4] https://www.churchofscotland.org.uk/worship/weekly-worship/monthly/2024-may/sunday-5-may-2024-sixth-sunday-of-easter-year-b

Unknown's avatar

Friends, Not Servants.

by

John 15:9-15 – May 10, 2015

handshake drawing

“Friends, Not Servants”

How would you like to have no friends? None, at all? According to several recent surveys, a significant number of American adults say that they have no friends. Today, in this fast-paced world with so many people rushing to and fro, and so many things filling our lives, who has the time for real friendship? Who has the commitment? How do we meet friendly people? How do we make room in our lives for genuine, honest relationships?

Another name for having no friends is being disconnected, or cut off. This idea of being cut off, with no friendships or relationships, to my mind, is like living without love. It is exactly what condition I am in without God.

Without God in my life, without a vertical relationship with my loving Heavenly Parent, I am lost. I am hard-pressed to find any joy in my life. This makes it very difficult for me to connect with other people in a horizontal way, in any meaningful way.

Let’s turn to our gospel reading for today. One of the important points He makes when He is talking to His disciples, our Lord Jesus mentions servants. As the Greek word doulos is translated, slave. Jesus describes His disciples being called servants, or slaves.

That image struck me. I know something about slavery at the time of the 1st century of this common era, when our Lord Jesus was here on this earth. I know about the imagery that the Apostle John brings up here in chapter 15 of his gospel: the image of slavery. Bondage. This image was very familiar to the people of the first century; ancient society was built on slavery. This image is less familiar, even distasteful for us, here in 21st century America, but John uses it several times in his gospel, including here.

If I consider a similar passage about believers being servants—slaves in Romans 6, where the Apostle Paul also talks about being a servant, a slave, I find out some interesting things. Slaves became slaves through a number of different ways: through economic hardship, by becoming prisoners of war, or by being children of slaves. Slaves were utterly dependent on their masters, and were looked upon with scorn in the world of the first century. Slaves have no rights, no voice, nothing at all except to do the will of their master. The Apostle Paul says sin is our master. So sin claims our allegiance and service.

Except—Jesus through His death on the cross has transferred us from being slaves, or servants of sin to servants of God. To me, that is good news indeed!

But wait, there’s more. Much, much more.

Jesus talks with His disciples for the last time here in the room where they ate the Passover dinner, just a few hours before He is arrested and tried. He tells them all kinds of really important things, like how to be close to Him, how to treat each other, and even commands them to love each other. Here, in this reading today, our Lord Jesus makes a tremendous statement: “I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends.” That’s friends! Of our Lord Jesus!

When I was doing some study last week and preparing this sermon, I happened upon a biblical reflection about this particular passage from John 15. A pastor named Melissa Bane Sevier made the following observation.

A few months ago this pastor was eating pizza with some of her church’s youth on a Sunday night at youth group. She asked them what it means to be a friend. She wrote down all the definitions, because they were better than any she could come up with. “A friend is someone who is herself.” “A friend cares about you, listens to your problems, and helps you.” “A friend thinks about you before he thinks about himself.” “A friend cares about other people’s opinions and beliefs, and respects them.” Astute descriptions coming from these teenagers. They are showing wisdom beyond their years.

Just imagine: that’s what these teens thought were the attributes of a good friend. Here, in this passage from John 15, Jesus is offering us friendship, a relationship, intimacy with God! I repeat Jesus’ words: “I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends.”

The Greek verb in this verse is significant, too. The Greek word for “called” is the verb “ereo.” This verb means “to declare,” or “to promise.” So, our Lord Jesus is not only calling or mentioning we are friends, He is declaring, or promising that we are now friends. This change in our status did not happen because of anything that we did or said. No. This change in status was totally up to Jesus. It’s all Him. He decided, He declared that we are now the friends of God!

This was rare in the Hebrew Scriptures. “The Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to a friend,” the book of Exodus says (33:11). Absolutely, the Lord extends His friendship and favor to Moses. In the book of Isaiah it is God and God only who says the same thing of Abraham. “Abraham, my friend,” God says of him (41:8). It is a staggering thought. Think about it! The friendship of God?

During the time of the first century, there was a special designation for certain, very special people. They were called Friends of the Emperor, or Friends of the King. They had the privilege to have access to him at any time, day or night. The Friends of the King had the closest and most intimate connection with him of anyone.

I have news for you—we are friends of the King. The King of Kings. We have the ability to talk to our Lord Jesus at any time, night or day. That is a tremendous opportunity, a wonderful privilege. You and I no longer have to stand afar off like servants, with our eyes lowered and faces to the ground, like servants who have no right to enter into the presence of the master. No! Jesus gave us this intimacy with God, so that God can be our best friend, our heavenly Friend!

We can see from our Lord’s words that God wishes to reveal Godself to us. Jesus tells us that He has revealed the things of God to us. That is what a friend does. How many people can you go to, can you reveal deep troubles to, or share wonderful joys?

Jesus wants to be friends with us! Good friends, the best there is!

And Jesus not only is friends with us, but He wants us to be friends with each other, to love one another. We know from experience what kind of friend Jesus is to us.  His command to us is to be that kind of friend to others. “Love one another,” He says.

And friendship is a two way street. Relationships go both ways, otherwise they are not much of a relationship. I urge you to think about yourself, about your friendship with Jesus. What kind of a friend are you to Jesus? And consider: what kind of friend is Jesus to you?

What an opportunity to have the relationship of our lives!

Praise God that God has sought us out, and offers us the opportunity to be friends with God. Good friends, the best friends there is. We can tell the Lord anything—absolutely anything at all, and we will receive understanding, help and encouragement from a loving, caring God.

What a tremendous gift! And what a tremendous God.

Alleluia, amen.

@chaplaineliza

(Suggestion: visit me at my daily blog for 2015: matterofprayer: A Year of Everyday Prayers. and my other blog,  A Year of Being Kind .  Thanks!)