{"id":239,"date":"2015-10-04T00:43:39","date_gmt":"2015-10-04T05:43:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/?p=239"},"modified":"2015-10-04T00:43:39","modified_gmt":"2015-10-04T05:43:39","slug":"now-how-are-you-gonna-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/?p=239","title":{"rendered":"NOW How Are You Gonna Act?"},"content":{"rendered":"

In my last article<\/a>, I discussed Jesus teaching concerning what is needed for Him to make our joy complete. \u00a0This was taken from his last teachings to the disciples just before his arrest. \u00a0In this article, we will continue in this study from John 15. \u00a0Let’s dig right into this text.<\/p>\n

In John 15:12-17 we find Jesus saying this:<\/p>\n

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John 15<\/p>\n

12 \u201cThis is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. 14 You are My friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I have heard from My Father I have made known to you. 16 You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you. 17 This I command you, that you love one another.<\/div><\/div>\n

Jesus has just finished teaching that obedience is the key to complete joy (see this article<\/a> if you missed it). \u00a0Also, that HE is the vine and we are to be connected to him. \u00a0It is through this common cause and source that we are all connected one to another. \u00a0Jesus here makes a simple commandment: \u00a0“that you love one another, just as I have loved you.” \u00a0 Well, it is simple to say, but how hard is it to REALLY show a love like Jesus showed? \u00a0I mean, even in this text, Jesus says, “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.” \u00a0 Are we supposed to DIE for each other? \u00a0That is one of the questions that we will explore in this article.<\/p>\n

First things first. \u00a0If Jesus is teaching us that we are to love each other as he loved us, we need to be clear on exactly how that kind of love looks. \u00a0Let’s look over in 1 Corinthians 13 for a description of how God loves.<\/p>\n

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1 Corinthians 13<\/p>\n

4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. \u00a08 Love never fails;<\/p><\/div><\/div>\n

This chapter is very familiar to many of us, but how many times to we act in ways that are out of line with this description? \u00a0Jesus command above is specifically targeted toward the disciples. \u00a0That is, toward those of US who are\u00a0his disciples. \u00a0I have been in church for MOST of my life and I can tell you that there are times, when I have seen behaviors that do not make me see love as described above. \u00a0I have seen petty jealousies cause rifts in churches that split them into multiple churches. \u00a0Let me just say this: \u00a0CHURCH…WE CANNOT AFFORD TO FAIL IN THIS COMMAND! \u00a0We cannot allow ourselves the luxury of NOT loving one another as God loves us. If we are to impact the world as He desires (this is the fruit we discussed last week and will get to in this article as well), then we MUST love each other, so that we can share that love with those outside the church. \u00a0It’s not just jealousy that can be harmful, but we cannot be lovers of unrighteousness or half-truths (which is another way of saying “lies”), either. \u00a0Furthermore, we cannot allow ourselves to become so proud (verse 4) that we fail in loving those who we often view as “less” than ourselves. \u00a0In fact, the simple fact that we view them in that light at all is a sin. \u00a0We should love in such a way that the world around us can see that our love for one another is so deep that we are willing to DIE for each other. \u00a0Yes, that is what Christ’s command says.<\/p>\n

In the early church, it was very common for the members of the local congregation to get together on a regular basis and enjoy one another’s company. \u00a0They ate together, they played together and they prayed together. \u00a0This was NOT just at their weekly gatherings at the church…this was in each other’s HOMES. \u00a0They were intimately involved in each other’s lives. \u00a0I believe that one reason that we have witnessed a recent decline in people staying in church is because this is no longer the case. \u00a0I am guilty here myself. \u00a0I cannot recall the last time I invited someone over to my home for a meal and bible study. \u00a0I cannot recall the last time I was invited into another’s home for this purpose, either.<\/p>\n

Also note the second part of Jesus teaching. \u00a0Jesus calls us “friend”. \u00a0He is able to do so because, as he says, “the slave does not know what his master is doing.” \u00a0How is it that we know what God is doing? \u00a0Jesus reveals this to us as he says in verse 15. \u00a0This is facilitated through both the word of God AND through the person of the Holy Spirit. \u00a0As I discussed in the last article, one part of the fruit that Jesus expects us to bear is that we learn more about Him. \u00a0That is to say, we are to be disciples. \u00a0The simple truth is that if we are to understand God’s calling upon our lives, we must understand, at least a little bit, what it is that He is trying to accomplish. \u00a0Ultimately, the bible teaches that he desires for people to know him. \u00a0Our specific calling will ALWAYS be about bringing people to a knowledge of Christ. \u00a0We are not all teachers, we are not all preachers, we are not all __________ (you fill in the blank), but we are ALL called to this purpose: \u00a0SHOW THEM TO CHRIST! \u00a0Jesus said, “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all men to Myself.” \u00a0So, church, let us lift up Jesus and be about the business of God.<\/p>\n

In verse 16, Jesus says that we were chosen. \u00a0But more than that, we were chosen and appointed to the task of bearing fruit. \u00a0That fruit is the work of showing others to Christ. \u00a0Not only that we bear this fruit, but that it will remain. \u00a0I believe that Jesus is teaching here that as we go out into the world teaching and preaching Christ, that those efforts will NOT remain in the church IF WE FAIL TO LOVE ONE ANOTHER. \u00a0Jesus continued by saying, “so that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give to you.” \u00a0There are some who have taken that out of it’s original context and try to make it into a “success formula” for worldly gain (money, power, etc.). \u00a0 Do not believe that lie! \u00a0Jesus is discussing the work of drawing men toward Christ. \u00a0Jesus is saying that as we continue to grow in our love toward one another, as he commands us to do, our love toward HIM will continue to grow as well (this is what being a friend is all about). \u00a0As we continue to grow in our love for God, we will begin to have our prayers and petitions line up more and more with His purpose. \u00a0God honors and answers our prayers and\u00a0when we pray for one another, for the lost and for strength to fulfill the purpose of God in our own lives, we are truly praying “in [his] name”.<\/p>\n

Jesus closes out this section in verse 17 by reiterating the command “that you love one another.” \u00a0I know that there are times when I wish I could tell my children something once and they will “get it.” \u00a0 Often, I have to repeat my commandments to them in order for them to do what I have asked. \u00a0It is, it seems, true of God speaking to his children as well.<\/p>\n

Let us love as Jesus loved and continues to love. \u00a0Let us be about the business of the Father. \u00a0Let us pray one for the other. \u00a0Let us bear the fruit of that love and let that fruit remain. \u00a0These things are MY prayer for each of you who may read these words.<\/p>\n

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In my last article, I discussed Jesus teaching concerning what is needed for Him to make our joy complete. \u00a0This was taken from his last teachings to the disciples just before his arrest. \u00a0In this article, we will continue in this study from John 15. \u00a0Let’s dig right into this text.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2,33],"tags":[8,36,31,14,17,34,20,26],"class_list":["post-239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-bible","category-christian-living","tag-beliefs","tag-bible","tag-christian-living","tag-god","tag-grace","tag-hope","tag-jesus","tag-love"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3Mji6-3R","jetpack_likes_enabled":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=239"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":242,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/239\/revisions\/242"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/musings.butchevans.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}