The Sixth Sunday of Easter
May 21, 2017
John 14:15-21
Our Christian Obedience
“If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him. (NIV1984)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
I would like to begin today by doing something just a little bit different, something a little more interactive. I am going to say a few words and I want you to tell me whether those words automatically make you think of something positive or something negative. Are you ready? Sunshine. Raise your hand if that word automatically brings positive thoughts into your mind. Now raise your hand if the word “sunshine” brings negative thoughts to mind. Let’s try another word. How about the word “rain”? Positive? Negative? How about the word “vacation”? Positive? Negative? How about “old cars”? Positive? Negative?
In the end, the way in which we react to certain words depends a great deal on how that word fits into the experiences of our own personal life, doesn’t it. For example, if we have a number of days in a row that are unseasonably cold and wet the word “sunshine” can automatically pick us up! But if we live in an area that is experiencing a severe drought the word “sunshine” might be the last thing we want to hear. If a farmer has just planted their crops rain might be welcome. If it’s been a wet spring and they are still trying to get out into the fields rain may not be so welcome. Vacations are great— unless they put a strain on your budget or leave you pulling your hair out because you keep hearing the question, “Are we there yet?” For me the phrase “old car” automatically paints in my mind the picture of a baby blue 1967 Camaro. For someone else the very same term could easily remind them of a rusty old bucket of bolts that always seems to need repairs.
Now, what if I were to say the word “obedience”? Does that word leave a sweet or a sour taste in your mouth? All too often the word “obedience” carries with it at least a little bit of a negative connotation doesn’t it. In fact, Webster’s dictionary includes this statement under “obedience”: “suggests a giving in to the orders or instructions of one in authority or control.”
Today, my friends, you and I are going to focus on the word “obedience.” And no matter whether that word automatically brings positive or negative pictures into our minds, our goal this morning is to see how this portion of God’s holy Word helps us to understand that Our Christian Obedience is not just a good thing but a great thing! There are two things we want to do today. First, let’s see how our Christian obedience is motivated by love. Then let’s see how our Christian obedience is guided by God the Holy Spirit.
Our text for today is a continuation of last Sunday’s text. Jesus and His disciples are still in the Upper Room in
Let me ask you this: What comes to mind when you think of May Day— May 1st. For most of my life I have associated May Day with the power and the might of Russia. May 1st is the day that the television has footage of all the missiles and all the tanks and all the soldiers that parade through Moscow. Whether consciously or unconsciously those May Day parades proclaim the message: Obey— or else! That is not the kind of obedience that Jesus is expecting or wanting from us, His children, when He says, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”
The Greek word that is translated as “love” here in our text comes from the word “agape.” Agape love is an unconditional love. Agape love is a sacrificial love. Agape love is a love that openly reveals itself in actions. The most succinct definition of agape love is John
It is that agape love (pointing to the cross) that motivates our Christian obedience, my friends. In the warmth and safety of the agape love that our God so richly showers upon us we read, mark, learn and inwardly digest these words of Jesus, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.”
Since we’ve looked at the Greek word which is translated here as “love” let’s also look at the Greek word which is translated here as “obey.” A very literal translation of this Greek word includes: “to keep, observe, obey; pay attention to; keep under guard.” If you were given the very first Corvette or the very first Harley that ever rolled off the assembly line, would you bring it home and just leave it parked out on the street in front of your house? I wouldn’t! I would guard it much more carefully than that! If an extremely wealthy relative left their entire estate to you, do you think you would tell the lawyer who came to transfer everything into your name, “I’m kind of busy right now. Can I get back to you later?” Probably not. We would probably pay very close attention to doing everything that lawyer said had to be done.
In the very same way the God who loves us so very much that He was willing to die for us so that we could live with Him has now asked us to “obey,” to “pay attention to,” to “keep under guard” His commands. One might think that in light of everything that the good Lord has done for us, in light of everything that the good Lord has given to us, in light of everything that the good Lord has stored up waiting for us in heaven that our life of Christian obedience would be easy! Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Let me share with you some real life examples.
In my previous congregation I had a young lady who became engaged to be married. During our pre-marital counseling sessions she told me that most of her friends and co-workers were pressuring her to move in with her fiancée. When she told them that she would not do that since that would be living in sin, they were shocked! They could not fathom marrying someone unless you have lived with that person long enough to really get to know what kind of person they are. She stood her ground. Also in my previous congregation I met with a young lady who had been raised in the Lutheran church. She and her family were attending a different church now, but her 12 year old son had been asking her to have him baptized. The church they were attending said that the only way to be baptized correctly was to be immersed— after you made your “decision” to “accept” Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior. Neither she nor her son believed that what the church was teaching concerning Baptism was Scriptural, so they asked me if I would baptize him. When I reminded Mom and her son that this was not the only false teaching in that church, Mom said something like, “Oh, I know. Every time we read in the bulletin that the pastor is going to have a sermon series on the End Times or the Rapture, the Millennium or Armageddon we just don’t go to church those Sundays.” And finally, I knew a young man who had been born, baptized, raised and confirmed in the Lutheran church. But when he got married, he got married in his wife’s church— because that’s what her church required. When they started having children, all of their children were baptized in his wife’s church— because that’s what her church required. He only attended his “home” congregation every now and then with his Mom and Dad. When I asked him what he wanted to do with his membership in the congregation I was serving, he said that he feels that it would be best if he and his family worship together— even though he did not agree with many of the things his wife’s church teaches. Now tell me, which of these three people took to heart Jesus’ words, “If you love me, you will obey what I command”?
There are many churches that require their members to give 10% of their income as an offering to the church. It is not optional. And it works! People do it! Now that might be great when it comes to meeting the congregational budget. But since God Himself gives His New Testament children the freedom to determine for themselves what percentage of their income they will gladly return as an offering to Him, for the church to require a certain percentage can easily mutate a person’s offering into an obligation, a debt, a bill that they pay just like they pay their mortgage or their electric or the insurance bills. If we were to tell the people here at our congregation that in order to remain a “member in good standing,” in order to be eligible to receive Communion, in order to get married or buried by the church, in order to have your children baptized in the church you had to attend church at least six times a year, do you know what would happen? There would be people who would say, “O.K. I already attend on Christmas and Easter so all I have to do is give up four other Sundays over the course of the year…yeah, I can do that.”
When it comes to our life of Christian obedience, my friends, God first and foremost looks at our heart to see why we are doing something. Then He looks at the action to see what we are doing. God doesn’t want us to live a decent moral life simply so that the pastor and the elders, our parents and our grandparents don’t get on our case. God doesn’t want us to put something into the offering plate simply because we are expected to fulfill our obligation to the church. God doesn’t want us to warm a spot on a chair just so that we can remain a “member in good standing.” The Lord our God first points us to the cross on
Secondly, our text for today reminds us that our Christian obedience is guided by God the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “If you love me, you will obey what I command. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counselor to be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.”
The word translated here as “Counselor” is sometimes transliterated as “Paraclete.” A paraclete is someone who calls you to his side so that he can give you counsel, advice, help. While Jesus was here on this earth He “counseled” and “advised” and “helped” His disciples. He taught them and reminded them of God’s Truth and God’s will for their lives. Now Jesus was going away. After He finished His work of paying for the sins of the world He would return home to heaven as the Victor. But He promised that He would not leave His disciples as “orphans” to fend for themselves in this sinful world. He promised His disciples that He would send them the gift of the Holy Spirit who would serve as their “Counselor,” as their “Paraclete.”
We, of course, know that Jesus fulfilled this promise to His disciples on the day of Pentecost. At the same time we need to remember that Jesus continues to fulfill that very same promise to us today through His precious Means of Grace— the Gospel in both Word and Sacrament. How does this tie in with our Christian obedience? Picture this: Jesus has told us, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” Imagine the Holy Spirit calling you to His side to whisper into your ear what those words mean to you as you go about your daily life. For example, somebody has done something or said something to make you really mad. The world counsels you by saying, “Don’t get mad— get even!” The Holy Spirit, however, calls you to His side and gently whispers in your ear, “’In your anger do not sin’: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Ephesians 4:26). You have just heard some really juicy gossip about someone you don’t like. The world’s advice to you is: “Quick! Call Sally and tell her all about it! And don’t forget to email Joe!” The Holy Spirit, however, calls you to His side and gently whispers in your ear, “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen” (Ephesians 4:29). Look around in your life. Is there someone whose name automatically leaves a bitter taste in your mouth? Let the Holy Spirit call you to His side and whisper in your ear, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Ephesians
Obedience. I guess we could say that in one way Webster’s dictionary is correct when it says that obedience “suggests giving in to the orders or instructions of one in authority or control.” I don’t want to presume to speak for you, but personally, when I stop to look at the One who is in absolute control of absolutely everything and when I stop to remember all that He has done for me, obedience to His will for my life is a wonderful way for me to say, “Thank-you!”, a wonderful way for me to say “I love you!” to my Savior God. Think about that.
To God be the glory!
Amen