Hello: Here is this week’s Living Water. Blessings, Christopher
John 13:34-35
How’s My Witness?
“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35
You know those bumper stickers on most trucks and buses today that say, “How is my driving? 1 800…”? I don’t know how many people actually use that, but it does communicate that the company or organization is interested in accountability and its perception.
At the same time, we have often heard that it is important to not worry too much about what people think of us. This is true to some extent.
But as followers of Jesus Christ, we are to be very concerned about the way our words, our appearances, our demeanors, our actions represent…Him. Now there is nothing you and I can do to take away from who He is – God. But as we have all seen, we do have an impact – helpful and destructive – on brothers and sisters in Christ as well as people who have fallen away from faith or have never believed or from other faiths.
Jesus said, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another (John 13:34-35).”
According to this and other Scriptures, we are called to stand out from others and offer a different – radically different approach to living and relationships as well as it needing to be visible. And I would add, within just these two verses is something very important. And that is, the ability to show everyone that we are disciples of Jesus by loving one another flows directly from the knowledge of, and responding to, Christ’s love for us. PS – the root word for love in the original language of this text is “agape” which is understood as sacrificial love. The kind of love that says, “I love you no matter what it costs me, because it is for you.”
My wife Jenny, and frankly my children as well, are those kinds of people – that you notice something is different about them. The principal at the elementary School in Lebanon, NJ, used to say to Jenny in the morning after dropping off Brian, something to the effect of, “Hey, you are so bright and cheery – what is in your coffee?” If you know her that is just the way she is – and as she would tell you and I have seen, it is because of her love for the Lord and for others. It just shines. I can remember meeting her in college and thinking, “She is really happy and joyful – all the time.” It stood out then too.
Love for the Lord and for others can be visible in many others ways too, to be sure. Acts of compassion, caring and serving, joy in worshipping, sympathy cards and many other ways.
At the same time, it can also be rather obvious when we are not loving others. And rightly so, it is pointed out by people rather quickly when Christians are involved. I’ve had many conversations about the hypocrisy of Christians. Like it or not, because of our Jesus’ example and words we are held to a higher standard.
I will be the first to admit that my own witness is not always the best. And when I fall short, I seek forgiveness and understanding. You see something often gets in the way of loving others as Christ would have me love them – me. And the times that I have loved the way Christ would have me love others – I can’t take any credit for it. It was all Him. But I can tell you that those are and were some of the best times of my life.
See, we are talking about a commandment here, as Jesus said. And I think it is okay to point out that we don’t do very well adhering to the original ten on our own power either – that is why we need His grace. This is to say that when Jesus offered this new commandment of loving one another, given His knowledge of our sinful natures, that it would not be easy, and we would have to rely on Him to be able to show people that we were his disciples. And it doesn’t offer any disclaimers. It doesn’t say, “you are excused from loving one another and showing what God is about if – things aren’t going well, or if you are sick, or if a loved one died, or you don’t feel loved or even if someone else was out of line.” Essentially, we always have to be “on,” showing the love of Christ to one another.
Wouldn’t it be easier if Jesus said something like, “Everyone will know you are my disciples – if you know Bible verses, or attend church regularly, or appear holy? No, he had to choose the hardest and the best indication of following Him – loving others, which requires a lot patience, perseverance, forgiveness, losing ourselves, grace, trust, passion, did I say forgiveness – everything He demonstrated on the cross, actually. Almost anybody can memorize words, be somewhere on time and put on a face. But, how many people are willing to love when it doesn’t make sense – agape – through loving Jesus and loving one another in such a visible way that people can see it in a grocery store, on a field, in a school, in a restaurant, on the highway, at the mall, mowing the lawn, walking the dog, in the home and at church – any place people are?
So not only are we invited and called to believe in Jesus Christ; it has to show, especially in the way we love others. I have always remembered this quote from the movie Jerry Maguire, “You can’t love anybody, until you love everybody.” It’s true. How often do we just want to love the people around us and call it a day! That isn’t the kind of love Jesus was talking about. 1 Corinthians 13 talks about how if we have all these gifts and can even move mountains with our faith, but don’t have love (for others), it is nothing. Likewise, if we have gone to church all our lives, and every Sunday we walk into the sanctuary and judge and hold grudges and agendas against brothers and sisters, we have nothing – and worse, we unwittingly confirm all the hypocrisy and play right into Satan’s hands.
But by leaning on Jesus, and remembering His love for us, our loving others in very visible ways, it just might mean everything to someone, someday. Loving beyond ourselves in His name would completely transform our homes, churches and communities and nation. It’s what everyone is watching and waiting for us to do. I think it is clear from this passage that by our loving others wherever we are, the world would see and know God a little better. What a gift that you and I could be used in this way! What a challenging way to live life! What a rewarding way to live life!
It’s probably not a good idea for us to put our phone numbers on a bumper stickers, but we could have them say, “How’s My Walk With Jesus?” or “How’s My Witness?” The old hymn goes, “They’ll Know We Are Christians By Our Love.” Another bumper sticker could be, “Do They Know We Are Christians By Our Love?”
Amen.
Discussion Questions
- How is your witness? In other words, what would people say of your Christian walk?
- Please think about some of the best and worst times of your witness. What can be learned from both sets?
- What do you think about the power of our individual and community witness? Have you ever thought about its importance – or what is at stake before?
- Can people know Jesus through the way you live, work, serve? What are some ways this can be enhanced?
Living Water 