A LOVE So GREAT
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May 4, 2024Our Gospel pericope this weekend takes us further into the Last Supper Discourse of Jesus as recorded by John. It begins right where the Gospel last week about the vine and the branches left off: “If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and remain in his love.”
Notice the stress here that Jesus puts on obedience. There are some Christian traditions that will say all that matters is faith and that works do not matter; that all you have to do is believe in Jesus, accept him as your personal Lord and Savior and you will be saved. Hearing Jesus’ words today, we are taught that in order to remain in his love, we ought to obey his commandments. If we fail to keep his commandments, we are cut off from the saving love of Christ. But it is not that Jesus punishes us and cuts us off, but the refusal to love and obey him is already in itself our punishment.... For I did not come to condemn the world... Whoever rejects me and does not accept my words has something to judge him.” (Jn. 12, 47-48) The Christian life, therefore, consists of submitting our whole person to the Lord and loving Jesus not only in word and speech but in deed and truth. (cf. 1 Jn. 3, 18)
What is the fruit of our obedience to Christ? Joy. “I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and your joy might be complete.” This is a radical counter-cultural claim. The world tells us that we are free to do whatever pleases us and that will bring us joy; that God’s commandments restrain our freedom and they keep us from being happy; that we can choose to do what we want to do, and even if that means breaking God’s commandments, we can do so in order to be happy. This is very far from the truth. Licentiousness is the surest path to misery, but true freedom brings complete joy. The commandments of the Lord are the paths to happiness and keeping these commandments will bring us true and complete joy, not just in the afterlife but in the here and now.
Having said all these, Jesus drops his commandment of love. There is no doubt that love is the overarching thread that ties our Gospel passage this weekend. It is used, either as a noun or as a verb, nine (9) times. “This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.” The Catholic Bible Scholar Murray Watson explains that the Greek adverb “as” can be understood here in two distinct but related ways. It can mean “love one another in the same way that l love you” or “love one another because I love you.” The first interpretation tells us that the love of Jesus is our model, and the second interpretation tells us that the love of Jesus for us is our reason and motivation for loving others. Both are true. Being aware of how much Jesus loves us, we come to realize that the only appropriate response is to love in return. Jesus is both our model and our inspiration.
How does Christ love? He lays down his life for his friends. It is the greatest form of love. It is a sacrificial kind of love. It is a love offered generously that, when fully received, makes the one who receives it holy.
