John 13 (2) A New Commandment
- Read John 13:34-35
- Pray
In Exodus 20 we read:
20 And God spake all these words, saying,
2 I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.
3 Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
5 Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the Lord thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
6 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
7 Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
8 Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.
9 Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work:
10 But the seventh day is the sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates:
11 For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
12 Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee.
13 Thou shalt not kill.
14 Thou shalt not commit adultery.
15 Thou shalt not steal.
16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.
17 Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any thing that is thy neighbour’s.
Thousand’s of years before, Moses, leading God’s people out of bondage in Egypt, and toward freedom in their promised land, goes up on top of Mount Sinai, and there receives 10 laws, engraved by the finger of God in stone. The first 4 laws, refer to man’s relationship with God.
+ No God’s before our’s
+ No idols
+ Don’t take God’s name in vain
+ Remember the Sabbath
The second group, 6 laws, deal with man’s relationship with man.
+ Honor your father and mother
+ Don’t murder
+ Don’t commit adultery
+ Don’t steal
+ Don’t lie
+ Don’t covet.
For more than 1,300 years, from the time of Moses to the birth of Christ, mankind has lived with those 10 laws, and from them come most of the other laws man has today. Moses is recognized as so significant a law-giver because of those 10 commandments that as you walk up the steps to the building which houses the U.S. Supreme Court you can see near the top of the building a row of the world's law givers and each one is facing one in the middle who is facing forward with a full frontal view ... it is Moses and he is holding the Ten Commandments!
As you enter the Supreme Court courtroom, the two huge oak doors have 2 stone tablets on them, with the Roman numerals 1-10 representing the Ten Commandments engraved on each lower portion of each door. It is the Law of Moses. As you sit inside the courtroom, you can see on the wall, right above where the Supreme Court judges sit, a display of the Ten Commandments!
10 Commandments, and yet Jesus sees the need to give us a new commandment.
Not only that, but it isn’t even a commandment relating to His Father. It is a commandment relating to how man interacts with man.
In the original 10, God only gave us 4 commandments dealing with how we relate to Him, and 6 dealing with how we relate to one another. Now, after 1,300 years, He adds another commandment and it is another one dealing with how we relate to each other.
How I treat other people is very important to God. Let me say that again, “How I treat other people is very important to God.”
Say that with me, “How I treat other people is very important to God.”
Turn to someone near you and tell them, “How I treat other people is very important to God.”
Love one another as I have loved you.
As we think of this command this morning, I would like to address it 4 ways. First, who are we to love as Christ loved us? Second, what does it mean to love one another as Christ loved us. Third, why do we love each other as Christ loved us; and forth, how do we love each other as Christ loved us.
First, who do we love like Christ loved us?
I. WHO DO WE LOVE LIKE CHRIST LOVED US?
1. We love the church family.
First, we would have to agree, that Jesus is telling us to love the church family, both local and worldwide. We are to love the church. We are to love Christians, people, who like us have been called out by God. People who have made a commitment to set aside their preferences, to follow Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior.
We are to love those in our local church. We are to love people within our denomination. We are to love believers in our country and we are to love believers around the world.
Remember what Paul wrote to the Christians in Ephesus? In Ephesians 5:25 he wrote,
> Ephesians 5:25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself for her.
It is obvious that Jesus loved the church and we are to do so as well.
Let me ask you, is your love for the church and for your church family reflected in the way you talk about other members of this church? Is your love for the church reflected in the way you talk about brothers and sisters in Christ who are members of other churches?
2. We love other people
I believe, also, that our love cannot be limited to only those within the church family, but we must love other people, not in the church family as well.
Do you remember when the attorney asked Jesus what he had to do to inherit eternal life? In Luke 10 we read:
Then an expert in the law stood up to test him, saying, “Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the law?” he asked him. “How do you read it?” He answered, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind,” and “your neighbor as yourself.” “You’ve answered correctly,” he told him. “Do this and you will live.” But wanting to justify himself, he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
This man, wanting to justify himself, tried to limit as much as he could, the span of people he had to love, so it would look like he was doing a good job. In reply, Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan.
At the end of the parable Jesus asked him, “Which of these three do you think proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?” “The one who showed mercy to him,” he said. Then Jesus told him, “Go and do the same.”
There is no way you can limit your love to only people in the church and claim you are obeying the command of Jesus. We are to love one another in a special way, because we are family, but our love does not end at the church door.
> John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son. That whosoever believeth on Him should not perish but hath everlasting life.”
Who do we love like Christ loves us? Our span is as great as His. If He loved everyone in the world, then we must as well.
II. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO LOVE AS CHRIST LOVED US?
What does it mean to love one another as Christ loved us?
1. Loving like Jesus means that we care for other people, even if they don’t care about us.
It is so easy to get angry and bitter at people. It is easy to get upset at people who are only out for themselves. You see them, people who drive like they are the only people on the road, who drive like no one else in the world matters, people who live like the whole world revolves around them.
You know the ones I’m talking about. The people who get in the passing lane of the interstate, set their cruise control, and care nothing about the traffic backing up behind them, or having to pass on an inner lane because they are blocking the passing lane.
You see them, the folks who like at Lowes yesterday, park a little mid-sized truck in a Pro-trailer parking spot, not caring at all for the folks who have trouble finding a place to park with a large truck pulling a trailer.
Or, go beyond the inconsiderate, think of those who are intentionally trying to hurt you; like many in our government today. Or, the people calling you several times a day with spam calls. I’ve had a guy give me a second notice about my car warranty about to expire, at least twice a day for the past several weeks. When you reach my age, it’s nice to know someone cares about you and wants to check up on you.
Or, think of those who have looted, and burned, and rampaged through the streets of our country for months. Are we to care about such people?
I remember Jesus, looking over the city of Jerusalem, at a city, a people who He knew were about to crucify Him; and as He looked, He cried. “Jerusalem, Jerusalem. You who have slain the prophets. How I have longed to gather you to Me, like a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But, you would not.”
Loving like Jesus means we care for them, even when they don’t care about or even hate us.
2. Loving like Jesus means we pray for them.
I know this one should go without saying, but sometimes we do need to be reminded that love requires prayer.
Do you remember Jesus’ words from the cross?
The Bible records 7 times Jesus spoke during His time on the cross.
Think about it. Jesus has been arrested for nothing. He has been beaten. A crown of thorns has been cruelly forced onto his head. He has been forced to carry a cross through the streets of Jerusalem. He has been laid on those rough-sawn beams and spikes have been driven through his hands and his feet. His cross has been raised and dropped into the hole with a jolt. After catching His breath Jesus looks at the officials who because of their jealousy, caused all of this. He looks at the soldiers who with extreme cruelty carried out their assignment. Then He looks toward heaven and prays, “Father forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing.”
> Matthew 5:44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you
> Luke 6:28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Loving like Jesus means you pray for them.
3. Loving like Jesus means we serve them
If you look there in the earliest part of this chapter, you will find Jesus, the creator of all things, wrapping a towel around His waist, taking a pitcher of water, and washing His disciples feet.
I remember when we first worked to start this church, we were very active in Servant Evangelism. We would go to gas stations, and to the park and ride places and wash folks windshields. We went to K-mart, and the dollar tree and would wrap peoples’ Christmas presents for free.
Why did we do this? We did it because true Christ-like love requires service.
Do you remember when the mother of James and John came and asked Jesus if her boys could sit at His right and left hand when He established His kingdom? The other disciples got ticked. But Jesus told them in Matthew 20,
> Matthew 20:26b-28 whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave; just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
One of the reasons Jesus came was to serve, and so, loving like Jesus requires us to serve.
What does that service look like? It looks like someone taking the time to prepare a lesson or teach, when they are bone-weary with more things to do today than they can possibly accomplish.
It looks like someone taking the time to feed the needy. It looks like someone taking the time to call or write to someone lonely. It’s putting away your shopping cart, so that person can park closer to the door. It’s picking up your laundry, or putting away your dirty dish so someone else doesn’t have to.
It’s talking to that unloved teen and reminding him that there is someone who cares. It’s telling that young girl who feels that she can’t measure up, that she is fearfully and wonderfully made, created in the image of God and love by a heavenly father who will never leave her nor forsake her.
It’s taking the time to help someone with her homework. It’s sitting with a shut-in, so their caregiver can go shopping or visit with a friend for a while. It’s watching a couple of children so that tired mom can take a nap. It’s raking an elderly neighbor’s lawn or perhaps mowing it for her.
Loving like Jesus means serving.
Together we have looked at who we are to love like Jesus, and how we are to love like Jesus. Let’s think for a moment about why we are to love like Jesus.
III. WHY DO WE LOVE LIKE CHRIST LOVED US?
There are several reasons we are to love like Christ loved us.
1. We love like Christ because He told us to.
The first reason we love like Christ is because He told us to. It’s a command. He told us to do it.
When you are a child and your parent tells you to do something, and you ask “why”? How does your parent answer? “Because O told you to.” Before we are able to reason or understand the why’s of a situation, we first obey because of the authority of the person telling us to do something.
Jesus said, “If you love Me you will keep My commands.”
So first, we love people this way because Jesus told us to.
2. Second, we love like Jesus because He is about to leave the world.
- Read John 13:33
Christian love, the love of Christ, is a unique love. It forgives when it has the power to get revenge. It cares, when caring makes no sense. It serves, when it has the right to be served. Christian love is different than another love in the world, and that love was about to leave the world. Jesus was about to depart, so He tells His disciples, you guys keep on loving like I have been.
Show the world there is something different. Show the world that it doesn’t have to be dog-eat-dog, every man for himself; I’m going to get all I can, regardless of what it doe to others.
I’m leaving boys, show the world there is a different way.
We are salt and light. We are different because we are torchbearers and called to live, love and serve differently than the world.
We are ambassadors of the Lord Jesus Christ. We carry light into a dark world because we have the Holy Spirit living in us.
We love like Christ loved us because Jesus told us to. We love like Christ loved us because He was leaving the world and wanted light to remain. Third, we love like Christ loved us, because it marks who we are.
3. We love like Jesus because it marks who we are.
I remember when I was in college, there was a fraternity on campus where a number of the members had the fraternity logo branded into their shoulders. They wanted to be marked as members of the fraternity.
You see the same thing with bikers wearing similar jackets, or Trump supporters wearing MAGA hats.
Jesus said, “You want to know what will mark you as part of my group? You want to know what will set you apart and let people know you are one of mine? Our gang’s colors is love.
Jesus says, “There is nothing in the world that will set you apart like loving on people.” No church T-shirt, no Christian bumper sticker, no blaring Christian radio station will mark you as one of mine like loving people like I have.
Can’t you imagine Him discussing it with His disciples? He asks them, “Boys, have you ever seen me compromise on the scriptures? No Sir. Have you seen me tell people to go and sin no more? Yes, Sir. Have you seen Me call people out on their hypocrisy and self-righteous attitudes? Yes Sir. Have you seen me refuse to let people get away with trying to justify their sins? Yes Sir. And yet, crowds still flock to me. Why? Because I love them.
And men, you want to know what will set you apart from the world, you want to know what will carry the gospel from place to place and cause people to see that it is real and authentic? It’s love. You can’t fake that.
You can paste on a smile. You can change your language and dress differently, but people will know you’re real when you love them when it does’t make any sense. They will know you’re real when you love them after the world has turned its back on them.
By this may all men know you are my disciples, if you have love one for another.
We love because it sets us apart.
Together we have looked at who are we to love as Christ loved us. Second, we have seen what it means to love one another as Christ loved us. Third, we have seen why we love each other as Christ loved us. Let’s look now at how we are to love others as Christ loved us.
IV. HOW DO WE LOVE OTHERS AS CHRIST LOVED US?
> 1 John 4:8 God is love.
Loving comes naturally to God, it comes naturally to God in the flesh, Jesus Christ, because they are love, but it is not natural to us.
Let’s face it, loving like Jesus is impossible through our own strength and power. A mother may love a child, even a wayward child, through difficult seasons; but that same woman cannot every child, through her own strength. She cannot love a child who hurts her child, with her own strength. That takes a power she does not have. I believe the key to loving like Jesus is found in the 15th chapter of this book, IN John 15.
- John 15:1-8, 12, 17
Again and again Jesus tells us to love one another. But also in this passage He tells us how to do that.
Did you catch that in verse 5? "Apart from me you can do nothing." We can't love like Jesus on our own. In fact, we can't do anything in the Christian life on our own. We love by abiding in the Vine and allowing Jesus to love through us.
The missionary Hudson Taylor called it "the exchanged life." We surrender our life to Jesus to the extent that when we abide in Christ, he loves others through us. We can endure rejection because Jesus is the vine that sustains us. His love heals our hurts and supplies the strength we need to keep going.
So, how do you love like Jesus? In our own strength, none of us can live up to this obligation, but the Lord has provided a way for Christians to do the impossible. The indwelling Holy Spirit works to produce His fruit in us, and first on the list is love (Galatians 5:22). In fact, the other eight qualities are really just descriptions of its expression.
Whenever we demonstrate kindness, patience, or gentleness, we see the Lord’s love at work through us, especially when the other person has been unkind and doesn’t deserve such pleasant treatment. This fruit is not produced by trying harder to muster good will toward someone who is irritating or hard to get along with. Instead, think of the process more like sap running through a branch on a grape-vine. The branch doesn’t make grapes; the sap does. In the same way, the Spirit flows through us, producing God’s love in us, so that we can pass it on to Him and others.
If you want to love others like Christ loves us, you don’t focus on them, you focus on Him. You don’t spend your time in self-examination, wondering what’s lacking in you, you spend time in Christ exaltation and let Him love others through you.
The closer you walk with Jesus, the more time you spend with Christ, the more you will live and love like Him.
A new commandment I give unto you, love one another as I have loved you. By this may all men know that you are My disciples, if you have love one for another.
How do you love like Jesus? You spend time with Jesus.
