In our current series of blogs,
we will look together at John 13.1-30 and see what a church that loves God’s people looks like.
How can we have a heart that
loves like Jesus…not Judas?
To
live this way takes a miracle. We need something
or someone to break in and take the poisonous heart of Judas out of us and give
us a new heart.
Behold
the gospel! What we need, God has
done. In Ezekiel 36 we read of God’s
glorious response to a betrayers heart is to say, my heart beats stronger than
yours. And the world was about to see
the full extent of his hearts powerful love – on the cross he would wash us
clean by his blood and gift us with a
new heart by his Spirit…
And
it is his Spirit that says to us, his children, with his heart, this then is
how to live, v.34… A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
Our hearts have a new authority
If
you are a Christian, now set apart from Judas, your heart is shaped by the will
of another…Jesus!
He
walks into your life and says, I’m you’re your king and here is my command, a
new command – not a new suggestion…or life-style option… a command – love
Our hearts have a new object
The
new heart is radically re-directed, from self to other. Jesus commands you to love one another. It
was command given in an era of massive division, huge fault lines in society – master/slave…Jew/Gentile…man/woman…As
the first disciples obeyed this command, the world was turned upside down. It was this new command that saw the Christian
community bring the gospel to the whole world.
It was not with some grand
strategy…some clever 5 point 5 year plan…but loving one another as they had
been loved. Nothing has changed…this is
how we will win Wahroonga…
Left
to ourselves, we seek our own. But when
Christ comes, everything changes. As we
beging this church we will gather with people we may well not choose to gather
with, if left to ourselves. But here’s
the difference Jesus love! This is a miraculous community, a place for
all comers. Here is aa community curved
out to love the other, rather than ourselves.
The
more our hearts submit to his authority, the more the object of our love is one
another, the more diverse this community will be and the more fully extended
our love. The more this is true…the more Wahroonga …Sydney…will marvel at this
community…and know we are his!
Don’t
underestimate the power of obedience to this command…
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