Calvary Presbyterian Church
The Rev. Debra May Cerra
May 2, 2010

Psalms 148:1-14 (NRSV) Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise him in the heights! 2 Praise him, all his angels; praise him, all his host! 3 Praise him, sun and moon; praise him, all you shining stars! 4 Praise him, you highest heavens, and you waters above the heavens! 5 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for he commanded and they were created. 6 He established them forever and ever; he fixed their bounds, which cannot be passed. 7 Praise the Lord from the earth, you sea monsters and all deeps, 8 fire and hail, snow and frost, stormy wind fulfilling his command! 9 Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! 10 Wild animals and all cattle, creeping things and flying birds! 11 Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! 12 Young men and women alike, old and young together! 13 Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his glory is above earth and heaven. 14 He has raised up a horn for his people, praise for all his faithful, for the people of Israel who are close to him. Praise the Lord!

John 13:31-35 (NRSV) When he had gone out, Jesus said, "Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified in him. 32 If God has been glorified in him, God will also glorify him in himself and will glorify him at once. 33 Little children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I said to the Jews so now I say to you, 'Where I am going, you cannot come.' 34 I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35 By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

Love for One Another

          How would you define a Christian? The most fundamental description of a Christian would seem to be as simple as “someone who follows Jesus Christ.” But, after doing some research, most of the world does not agree with this.
You see, my question assumes that there is only one correct definition of the term “Christian.” However, that is not the case. Different Christian groups have different understanding of the truth about Christianity and the criteria for claiming to be CHristian. For instance, to conservative Protestants, Christians are often defined according to their salvation status. This group believes that one must have a “born again” experience to be saved. To Roman Catholics, Christians are often defined according to their baptism status. The nature of sacraments is very important to the Catholic church’s tradition. Even the very early Christian movement, before churches were invited, had a rather confined definition of Christian. For them, to be a Christian, a person needed to be baptized and had to proclaimed “Jesus is Lord.”
          In North America alone, there are over a thousand faith groups – orthodox, conservative, mainline, liberal, and progressive which consider themselves to be Christians. Each has understanding of what it means to be Christian based on personalized beliefs about the nature of the Trinity, Scripture, and prayer as well as church tradition, written texts, evolved theology, doctrines and creeds. There appears to be no way to compromise on a single definition of Christian that is acceptable to all.
          This morning our reading from the Gospel of John begins with the exit of Judas, the betrayer. With his action, the foretelling is now a reality: Jesus’ time has come; there is no turning back.
          Jesus knows what he is facing. However, he also knows that the disciples will not have the strength to weather what they must face. Even though they love Jesus and have followed him for three years, the disciples are going to turn on each other and doubt their commitment. This time the disciples are going to run.
Jesus recognizes that this is his last opportunity to talk to the disciples about what is to happen. But, instead of making this another teaching moment for them, Jesus chooses to talk to the disciples with tenderness.
There are times in our lives when we need to hear tenderness; we need to experience gentleness; we need to be embraced by kindness. My mother was a 23 year breast cancer survivor but in her last months of life she struggled to hold onto her sanity. The cancer has metastasized in the meninges of her brain and it became difficult to decipher between real and imagined thoughts. Her days were tough but there was one day that remains vividly burned in my memory. My family had been keeping vigil at Mom’s bedside for a couple of weeks because she no longer was able to get up. On this particular day, it was late but we all were still chatting in the kitchen. When Mom stirred, we again gathered at bedside. We were surprised to find a radical difference in Mom’s mental state. It was as if she was back – the old Mom that cared for us and looked after us – long into our adult years. As I recall, for the next hour or so Mom had each one of us sit near her as she pronounced a blessing on us, giving us kudos, and telling us how much she loved us. As the oldest I was first to be blessed. Even though I was close to 50 years old, I found myself transported back to childhood. Mom spoke words that cuddled and coddled me. This gift was just what I needed. This was sacred time that I will remember for the rest of my life.
Isn’t that what Jesus does with His disciples? He knows that they don’t need another teaching moment. So, Jesus addresses these grown men by saying, “Children, I am with you for only a short time longer. You are going to look high and low for me. But just as I told the Jews, I'm telling you: ‘Where I go, you are not able to come.’” (33) In this final, intense conversation, Jesus gives the disciples a sacred time that they will remember the rest of their lives.
Jesus then makes a bold statement, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other." (34-35) Jesus was direct – to the point – love others as I love you! Isn’t this the perfect definition of a Christian?
“As one modern New Testament scholar observed: ‘[This] new command is simple enough for a toddler to memorize and appreciate, and it is profound enough that the most mature believers are repeatedly embarrassed at how poorly they comprehend it and put it into practice.’
“How embarrassing it is for many of us who call ourselves Christian to recall that Jesus wanted to make it easy for us by having us focus on this one thing; yet we have found so many other ways to identify true believers and often have a hard time putting this commandment into practice even in our own family lives.”
It’s important to note that Jesus does not command us to “like” one another. “Liking someone is rooted in our emotions and emotions do not respond to commands. The “love” of which Jesus speaks is a way of acting toward another. It is action that says, “I want the best for you and I will do whatever it takes to help that happen.” Christians are not called to feel love for one another. The love that Jesus commands us to share is something he wants us to do for one another.
Let’s go back to my opening question: How would you define a Christian? I said a Christian is “someone who follows Jesus Christ” but that is far from being a complete definition. We can follow Jesus and not be a Christian. Think about how Jesus defines a disciple. He says, “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other." (34-35)
The command is to love others as Christ loves us. That is a broad and lofty standard indeed! The love that Jesus has for his disciples begins with a willingness to ignore the limits of society. He does not content himself with a little group made up of only his "own kind" - he reaches out to ALL kinds, and especially to those whom the rest of the world would shun. Jesus’ love enables Him to take on tasks that would have been thought to be beneath Him - servant work like washing dusty feet, for example. The love of Jesus is able to encompass the hypocrisy of Peter, the self-serving ambition of James and John, the vicious self-righteousness of Paul. It is a love that knows no limit.
Jesus loves them and us so much that he was willing to die for all. Friends, that becomes our standard for obedience. That becomes our litmus test for loving. Sisters and brothers, when we are willing to love one another – to work for the good of our neighbor, to seek justice and mercy, to offer forgiveness and grace – we can claim the title of Christian.  Remember Jesus’ command, "As I have loved you...so you must love one another."
Amen and amen!