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John 15:9-17

⁹ “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. ¹⁰ If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. ¹¹ These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. ¹² “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. ¹³ Greater love has no one than this, that someone 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 servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all 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 should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you. ¹⁷ These things I command you, so that you will love one another.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Husbands, when was the last time you told your bride, “You are my wife, if you keep the house spotless, have supper ready at 6:00, and let me go fishing on Mother’s Day”? Wives, when was the last time you told your groom, “You are my husband, if you let me go shopping every day, send me for weekly spa treatments, and do everything I tell you”? Parents, when was the last time you told your children, “You are my kids, if you make your bed every morning, keep your room clean, and do your homework on your own”? Hopefully, the answer is, “Never. I’d never say something like that to my spouse or kids.” If you have, let me know after the service. We’ll set up a time for private confession and absolution.

Jesus’ words in v. 13, are well-known, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” But did you catch what Jesus said In v. 14? “You are my friends, if you do what I command you.” If anyone besides Jesus ever said this to us, we would ask, “How petty can you be? What kind of friendship is that?”

Last year, one of my children (who shall remain nameless so I don’t have to pay her for using this illustration), this child had a lot of ”girl drama” in her four-year-old preschool class. The girls in the class would get on each other’s nerves one way or another, and the constant threat was, “If you keep doing [whatever],” or, “If you don’t do [whatever], I won’t invite you to my birthday party.” Many tears were shed at our house over all hostage parties. But I am sure my child was not innocent either.

“You are My friends, if you do what I command you.” Those words should be enough to scare us straight. Jesus – the Man who can cast out demons, heal diseases, feed the hungry, and raise the dead – He’s a good friend to have. And He only gives one command, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” You would think we would trip over ourselves to obey Him. “Sure Jesus, whatever You say, I’ll do it. You want me to love others, I’ll do that. I will obey Your command so that I can be Your friend.” And yet, we don’t obey Jesus. We do not love one another.

The disciples didn’t either. Remember, Jesus is speaking these words to the disciples just moments before He is betrayed and delivered to be crucified. The disciples did a poor job of loving Jesus that night. They did not stay awake and watch with Jesus even one hour as He prayed. The disciples all fled, abandoning Jesus when He was arrested. When a little servant girl asked Peter if he was one of Jesus’ disciples, he denied it three times.

Did that cause Jesus to wipe His hands of the disciples? Did Jesus refuse to go to the cross for those unloving, faithless disciples? No! Jesus knew all of this would happen. In fact, moments before Jesus spoke these words of our text, He told the disciples they would all fall away (Mt. 26:31).

Moments before the disciples’ greatest failure, Jesus says to them, “I have called you friends.” Some friends they proved to be. Their friendship failed Jesus, and they fell away. But Jesus loved the disciples. He called them friends. He laid His life down for them, and He lays down His life for you because He loves you. And Jesus makes sure He puts this love in the proper order, “As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Abide in My love.”

With these words, Jesus is calling both the disciples and us to faith. These verses are all about faith, even though Jesus doesn’t say the word ‘faith’ a single time. We hear Jesus talking about commandments, and our sinful minds can only think about all the, “Thou shalt,” and, “Thou shalt not’s.” But all God’s commands are first eternal truths that must be believed.

Actions are the fruit of belief. We first must believe God’s word in His commandments before we can obey. Adam and Eve failed to believe God when He said, “In the day you eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, you will surely die.” It was their unbelief that resulted in the action of eating.

When God created Adam and Eve, He said that they were good and needed nothing more to be complete. But Satan told them that they could be something more, something better – they could be like God. They believed Satan rather than God. They took from the tree and ate. They did become something more. After they ate, they knew what evil was, but it was not better.

Look at all the wonderful things Jesus says to you. He says, “Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you. Abide in My love. Remain connected to me, connected to My love and My promises.”

“Abide in My love.” Jesus does not say, “Work really hard, do everything I command you. Then and only then will you earn My love.” Jesus says we are already in His love. He is the vine; you are the branches. But we do not believe Him. We think that we have to do all sorts of things to earn the love of God. We think that God’s love of us is contingent on our actions.

God’s love for us is not contingent upon our actions. Jesus has already laid down His life for you. Because He was crucified for you, you know that He loves you. He loved you while you were still His enemy. While you were a sinner, Christ died for you (Ro. 5:8). Jesus commands you to do nothing more than believe that His death is for you. Jesus commands you to do nothing more than abide in His love.

When our epistle text (1 Jn. 5:1-8) says that God’s commands are not burdensome, it is true. All of God’s commands are simply to believe what is He says is true.

So believe Jesus when He says that you are His friends, even when you don’t see yourself being especially friendly to Jesus. Believe Jesus when He tells you that already you are clean because of the word that He has spoken to you because God’s word always creates what it says. Believe Jesus when He tells you that He loves you as the Father loves Him because it is true. Believe Jesus when He tells you that you did not chose Him, but that He chose you and appointed you to bear fruit, fruit that would abide.

All these things Jesus has spoken. He has promised and you can believe. That faith will result in the fruit of love for one another because it is the natural fruit of abiding in His love. Amen.

Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.