Acts 10:34-38; 1 John 5:1-8; John 15:9-17
It seems
like more and more nouns are being used as verbs these days. Linguists call
this functional shift. Using nouns as verbs can be annoying, but it's hard to
find too much fault with it since it is a technique that William Shakespeare
used in his writings. So, get used to "googling" and
"friending" being part of our language, but realize that just as
Facebook friends aren't the same thing as real friends, "friending"
people isn't the same thing as having a real friendship. This is especially
true when we try "friending" Jesus.
"Friending"
is an interesting expression of how American culture has been redefining the
terms of relationships over the past fifty years. We've witnessed the decline
in commitment through the decrease in marriage, the increase in divorce, and the
common acceptance of living together. We've experienced the loss of community
as people set up indoor living in spacious homes with fenced yards in gated
subdivisions. The face-to-face interaction of organizations, social clubs, and
local congregations has given way to lonely and isolated living shored up by
the faux relationships of social media. This experience has undermined our
abilities to relate with one another and infected our perspective of what it
means to have a relationship with Jesus. As much as ever, people speak well of
Jesus and consider Him a friend, but, even though they're "friending"
Jesus, they aren't His friends.
In
today's Gospel lesson, Jesus tells us very clearly how to be His friends. The
way to friendship with Him is very different than "friending" Him
from isolated individualism. It calls for us to venture outside of our
self-imposed separation from others. It is based in turning away from our
self-centered concerns and expressing care and compassion for the people around
us. It is demonstrated in sacrificial living and shown most perfectly in
sacrificial dying. In a word, the essence being a friend of Jesus is
love —
both as a noun and as a verb. As a noun, it is the love that God has for us
that moved Him to send His Son into our world to be our truest friend. As a
verb, it is Jesus choosing us when we were not His friends, did not want to be
His friends, had nothing to offer Him, could only offend Him, and then giving
up His life for us. In His love we have love, are His friends, and are moved to
love beyond "friending" to being friends.
Audio file of the sermon "Friending Jesus"
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