20Very
truly, I tell you, whoever receives one whom I send receives me; and whoever
receives me receives him who sent me.’
21 After saying this Jesus
was troubled in spirit, and declared, ‘Very truly, I tell you, one of you will
betray me.’ 22The disciples looked at one
another, uncertain of whom he was speaking. 23One of his disciples—the one
whom Jesus loved—was reclining next to him; 24Simon Peter therefore motioned
to him to ask Jesus of whom he was speaking. 25So while reclining next to
Jesus, he asked him, ‘Lord, who is it?’ 26Jesus answered, ‘It is the one
to whom I give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.’* So when he had dipped the piece
of bread, he gave it to Judas son of Simon Iscariot.* 27After he received the piece of
bread,*Satan entered into him. Jesus
said to him, ‘Do quickly what you are going to do.’ 28Now no one at the table knew why he said this to him. 29Some thought that, because Judas had the common purse, Jesus was
telling him, ‘Buy what we need for the festival’; or, that he should give
something to the poor. 30So, after receiving the piece
of bread, he immediately went out. And it was night.
31 When he had gone out,
Jesus said, ‘Now the Son of Man has been glorified, and God has been glorified
in him. 32If God has been glorified in
him,* God will also glorify him in
himself and will glorify him at once.33Little
children, I am with you only a little longer. You will look for me; and as I
said to the Jews so now I say to you, “Where I am going, you cannot come.” 34I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as
I have loved you, you also should love one another. 35By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you
have love for one another.’
John 13:20-35
“By THIS Everyone Will Know That You Are My Disciples”
I’m not sure about you, but in so many different ways, the
news of the last few days and months has threatened to overwhelm me and shut me
down. The news of violence and threats against our sisters and brothers who
practice different religions and whose skin colors and whose sexual practices
vary, the reports of hatred and harsh words used against people who dare to
express varying political beliefs, the fear expressed by folks who are scared
about their present or futures because of they fear lack of access to health
care or education or accessibility to our country—it is all simply overwhelming.
The seeming loss of empathy and kindness and gentleness in our country has left
me, has left so man of us, at a loss for words, confused, dumbfounded. In the
last few weeks, I have wanted to shut down after experiencing fear in our own
generally quiet and peaceful Auburn community as a white nationalist came to
speak on campus, causing his own supporters and anti-facists to clash with each
other; I’ve wanted to shut down after hearing one of our United States
congressmen from Alabama imply that folks like myself with pre-existing
conditions bring them on ourselves and deserve them by the way we live our
lives.
While I went to DC in January to march for the right health
care for all folks no matter what, and while I have called our congressmen and
women over and over to express many concerns, I am still left with a feeling of
emptiness, a feeling of hollowness, a feeling of not knowing what to do or where
to turn. It feels like we as a country are being swallowed up by hate, by a
lack of empathy, by selfishness—and it seems so hard to know what to do about
it, so tempting to just let ourselves be shut down by it, to just quit.
A few weeks ago, however, I read a viral facebook post that has
provided some hope for the yearning, and I hope many of you did, as well. It
was written by our former Surgeon General, Dr. Vivik Murthy. Dr. Murthy, the
grandson of a farmer from India, was asked by President Obama to serve as the
19th Surgeon General for the United States. In his post the day
after he resigned in the midst of a new administration, he talked about what an
honor it was to serve the American people, and how delighted he was to see
America as the descendant of an Indian immigrant, to teach us and help us, to
serve us and to learn from all of us. He wrote these things about what he
learned during his tenure, and I think, especially in this day and time when it
is so easy to be overwhelmed by the darkness of the world, we all need to hear
them. He wrote to all of us that
1. Kindness is more
than a virtue. It is a source of strength. If we teach our children to be kind
and remind each other of the same, we can live from a place of strength, not
fear. I have seen this strength manifest every day in the words and actions of
people all across our great nation. It is what gives me hope that we can heal
during challenging times.
2. We will only be
successful in addressing addiction – and other illnesses – when we recognize
the humanity within each of us. People are more than their disease. All of us
are more than our worst mistakes. We must ensure our nation always reflects a
fundamental value: every life matters.
3. Healing happens
when we are able to truly talk to and connect with each other. That means
listening and understanding. It means assuming good, not the worst. It means
pausing before we judge. Building a more connected America will require us to
find new ways to talk to each other.
4. The world is
locked in a struggle between love and fear. Choose love. Always. It is the
world's oldest medicine. It is what we need to build a nation that is safe and
strong for us and our children.
What words he gives
us here, folks, for us, for our country. I have thought about them everyday
since. Kindness is a source of strength. We are gathered here as Christians
today, and we need to be reminded that kindness is our source of strength. If we
truly believe this and teach our children this—and that is what we are in the
business of doing—then we can’t and won’t live in fear. We must live in
kindness. When kindness is manifest our lives, it can’t help but be manifest in
our nation. When kindness is manifest in our lives, it can’t help but heal us
in challenging times such as these.
As Christians, we
will only be successful in addressing not only addiction, but also depression
and illness and selfishness and so many other things that threaten to overtake
us only when we recognize the humanity within all of us. When we take the time
to truly look into each other’s eyes and realize that each one of us is hurting
in some way, that each one of us has a story to share, that each one of us in
this room and outside of it is dealing with something in our lives, then we
will realize that each person is valuable and worthy. That is the way we make
sure our nation is successful, and more importantly whole—when we make sure
that every single life is important and valued and human and loved.
Healing happens
when we stop assuming the bad in each other and start looking for the good.
When we open ourselves up to see each person around us as a created and loved
child of God, then we free ourselves up to look for the good in each other.
That is where healing happens. Looking for the good in each other is where
connection happens.
And all of that
happens because we have been so greatly loved—and when we choose to love in
return. Dr. Murthy is so right here. The world is locked in a battle between
love and fear. And when we’re locked in a battle, something, some side has to
win. He calls us to choose love and make it win. Always. Love is the world's
oldest medicine. Love is what we need to build a nation that is safe and strong
for us and our children.
The world is locked
in a battle between love and fear. We see it every day, every time we turn the
tv or look at social media or even walk down the street. We are locked in a battle, and we have a
choice. As people of faith, we are called to choose love. Always to choose
love. I would say that I’m not sure that anyone could say it better than Dr.
Murthy has, but as we all just heard in our Scripture, there is always someone
who does say it better than any of us ever could.
On that night, in
that room, as Jesus knew that these folks around him were locked in a battle
and would ultimately choose fear, Jesus chose love. Jesus knew what was about
to happen, and he chose love. He shared a meal with the disciples, then he
washed their feet. He set an example for them and then said to them one of the
last things he would say in the world, making it the most important: “Where I
am going, you cannot come. I give you a new commandment, that you love one
another. Just as I have loved you, you should also love one another. By this
everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one
another.”
Friends, we are
gathered here today, gathered to worship, to laugh and debate and discuss,
gathered to eat and share and sing. We are gathered to ask questions and
challenge and welcome. As presbyters, we are gathered here for business. But
let us take some time to look around because we are gathered for something so
much more important. Let us take time to see and breathe in what is before us.
We are gathered around the font full of water, the table set with Christ’s
meal, gathered at the foot of the cross, the cross that reminds us of God’s
great love for all of us. Let us remember the words we have sung, “He came down
that we may have love.” There aren’t words much better than those—we are
gathered because we are so greatly loved by God, and we are called to go out as
disciples and choose love in the world, to go out and be God’s love in the
world. Thanks to God for that amazing gift. Amen.