10-14-21

ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
October 14, 2021
Though I have read the words from John 15 more times than I can count, I was struck differently in a recent reading. It says, “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you.” In my mind, this passage should be set alongside the old hymn, “What A Friend We Have In Jesus,” and when it is, I find myself thinking about friendship a little differently. By faith, we can claim we have a friend in Jesus, but does Jesus see us as a friend? The criteria is not too sophisticated, but it is quite demanding. We are to love as Jesus loved, which included his willingness to remain committed to his understanding of love even on the cross. Not to sound too hokey, but I’d sort of like for Jesus to sing, “What a friend I have in Bruce.”

May the love I share with all those around me be pleasing to you, O Lord my God! Amen.

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