May 4, 2024 – 6th Sunday of Easter

The other day, I was looking at a care label on one of my shirts and read, “Warning: Do not iron while wearing shirt.” I know that laundry and dishwasher pods have large instructions on them that say “Do not eat” and the manufacturers have developed childproof packaging. There’s a warning on my washer that says, “DO NOT put any person in this washer.” And I bought a package of eggs with the disclaimer: “Contains eggs.” Have you ever looked at the instructions for something and thought to yourself, “Who did what to warrant the company clarifying that?” It seems that there are skills and ideas, no matter how common sense or complicated we think they may be, that come more easily to some than others. And maybe that’s just part of being human.

But there are teachings in the church that we might take as common sense and obvious that are far from it… Last week, we heard Jesus tell us that he is the vine and we are the branches. Jesus said, “I appointed you to go and bear fruit” (Jn 15:16). So our job as branches is to bear fruit and to help others bear their fruit. But what does it mean to bear fruit?

We get the answer in this week’s Gospel reading. Jesus says, “abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love” (Jn 15:9-10). The writer of Mark says that Jesus said, “The first commandment is this: Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is the only Lord. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these” (Mk 12:29-31).

Today’s scripture passage finds Jesus telling his followers about the greatest commandment. A command is something that is required. It’s something you must do. I command you to do this. It is not an option. You must do this. Jesus speaks of the greatest commandment being love. Just as God loves us, we must love one another. When we love Jesus and show this love to others by the way we act, we will discover joy in our lives. It’s the same joy that Jesus demonstrated.

When someone’s heart is filled with this love, that person models love to others. That is love that is seen! I wonder if your heart is filled with that love. Can other people see the love in your life? Do they see love through your actions? Do they hear love when you speak?

Jesus speaks of the perfect love that only God can offer. God’s love is perfect. Some very loving people still fall short of this perfect love. But when our hearts are filled with God’s love, we find it much easier to find joy in our actions. Those actions come from a God who loves us so much. The love we have spills over into all that we say and do.

I am going to pause for a few moments after asking you to ponder a question. What does loving one another look like in our church and in the community around our church? [brief pause]

Some of you could quickly answer the question I asked. Others of you seemed to take longer. We are invited to listen for God’s voice calling each of us this week. God calls us friends and God calls us to love. What can we do this week to work on loving one another – our friends – within our families, our church, our workplaces, or our community?