further observations on John 13:21ff

Jesus calls us to love "as I have loved you..." Some additional thoughts...

Take a realistic view of the Christian life. People may seriously betray you, and even close friends, exemplary Christians, may cause you great disappointment and hurt. D. A. Carson writes, "If Christians are to be kind and not to pay back evil for evil, and to exercise this love and compassion first of all to Christians, what is presupposed is that some of the attacks and pain that any Christian will experience will come from others in the church. As wonderful as Christian fellowship and Christian love may be—and at their best they are beyond price, beyond words—both experience and Scripture tell us in frank terms that sometimes Christians face the worst pain from others within the family of faith." (From Love in Hard Places, p. 52)

Acknowledge the hurt. Don't deny the painfulness of betrayal-- Jesus didn't. "Jesus was troubled in his spirit, and testified..." (John 13:21) Whether through betrayal, denial, disappointment, or finally death, all loves in this life experience pain. In the movie Shadowlands, the character playing C. S. Lewis was asked (after losing his mother as a child, and his wife to cancer), "Why love if losing hurts so much?" He answers,
"Twice in life I've been given that choice, as a boy and as a man. The boy chooses safety, the man chooses suffering. The pain now is part of the happiness then. That's the deal".

Do not take your own revenge, or pay back evil for evil. "When he had dipped the morsel, he gave it to Judas..." (13:26) Jesus traveled with and shared hundreds of meals with Judas over three years. He even washed Judas's feet to demonstrate his own willingness to bring cleansing to the betrayer's life. Miroslav Volf writes, "For Christians, forgiving, like giving in general, always takes place in a triangle, involving the wrongdoer, the wronged person, and God. Take God away, and the foundations of forgiveness become unsteady and may even crumble." (Miroslav Volf, from Free of Charge)

Remember the a spiritual dimension to those who oppose Jesus: "Satan entered into him." (13:27) Such broken relationships are never strictly intellectual or emotional in their cause. Prayer is so important!

To love as Jesus did doesn't mean being a wimp or doormat. "What you are going to do, do quickly..." (13:27) Jesus did not run after Judas, nor did he prevent Peter’s failure which would bring humility to Peter’s life. (13:38)

Rest upon God's sovereign ability to bring glory out of shame. "Now is the Son of Man glorified, and God is glorified in him... (13:31) If he can bring glory and good from the most unjust, tragic, evil situation (Acts 2:23), then he can bring glory and good from yours. "God works against evil and suffering. But God, in immense divine power and inscrutable divine wisdom, also works through evil and suffering." (Miroslav Volf, Free of Charge)

Be aware that fellow believers in their self-confidence will promise more than they can deliver: "I will lay down my life for you." (13:37)

Take the initiative in reconciliation. Jesus warned Peter, and prayed for his success (Luke 22:32). After the resurrection Peter was summoned by name to meet Jesus in Galilee (Mark 16:7). There our resurrected Lord prepared breakfast for the disciples and led Peter to re-affirm his love three times, and then put him back to work in ministry. (John 21)

The painting above, "Christ Washing the Apostles Feet", by Dirck van Baburen (c. 1616) captures the shocking nature of Christ's action in washing the disciples' feet.

clement quotes hebrews

Clement of Rome wrote to the church in Corinth around AD 90. This is perhaps the same Clement, companion of Paul, mentioned in Philippians 4:3. Many hold him to be the first bishop / pope in Rome, aka St. Clement I. Clement quotes from the letter to the Hebrews. Origin suggested that Clement was in fact the writer (as transcriber or amanuensis) of Hebrews. Perhaps this letter began as a "word of exhortation" given by Paul at the synagogue (Heb 13:22; cf Acts 13:15) which then became a circular letter for the churches. Other possible authors of Hebrews include Luke, Barnabas, or Apollos. The theology is Pauline, but the transcriber is obviously second-generation (Heb. 2:3-4). At any rate, this early church leader in Rome, is already quoting Hebrews in his letter in AD 90: CHAPTER 36 ALL BLESSINGS ARE GIVEN TO US THROUGH CHRIST This is the way, beloved, in which we find our Savior, even Jesus Christ, the High Prie...

a brief history of bcf

Blacksburg Christian Fellowship, or BCF as it is popularly known, was founded in November 1969. Prior to this time several families had been meeting for Bible study and prayer, with a particular concern that the Lord raise up an effective biblical ministry to the students of the Virginia Tech campus. Growing from these meetings, the Lord led them to begin a public ministry on Sunday mornings. The Wesley Foundation agreed to the rental of their facilities, and the first meeting was held in November 1969, with about 30 people in attendance. Since the first meeting BCF has been greatly blessed by the Lord and has seen a steady growth in ministry and in numbers. Two other local churches were formed in part from BCF. In 1974 the Lord led Houston Couch, who at that time was an Elder in BCF, to leave and start Dayspring Christian Fellowship. In 1980 Max Harris, who was a regular attender at BCF, was encouraged by the Elders and members to start a ministry which has now become Grace Cov...

evangelicalism over the next decade

I've been contemplating Michael Spencer's blogs on the future of evangelical churches in America ( iMonk blog ). His three articles on his predicted collapse of evangelicalism are found here . It is important, I believe, to read all three articles. I find myself in agreement with much he has to say. Here are a few quotes... The determination to follow in the methodological steps of numerically successful churches will be greater than ever. The result will be, in the main, a departure from doctrine to more and more emphasis on relevance, motivation and personal success….with the result being churches further compromised and weakened in their ability to pass on the faith. ... For some time, we’ve been at a point that the decision to visit a particular evangelical church contained a fairly high risk of not hearing the Biblical Gospel. That experience will be multiplied and expanded in the years to come. Core beliefs will become less and less normative and necessary in evangelic...

my burg

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