John 15,9-17.

Today’s gospel meditates on the implications of the metaphor of the vine and the branches which we met last Sunday. The love the Father has for the Son is passed on to the disciples, the branches of the vine. As the Father has loved me so I have loved you. The disciples are to remain in Jesus’ love by keeping his commandments just as he remains in the Father’s love by obeying His commands. Jesus immediately links love with obedience, a value which has been out of fashion ever since the Garden of Eden.  Their obedience should be like his obedience to his Father. If they keep his commandments, their joy, coming from love and obedience, will be complete.

But their love isn’t to be vertical only – coming down to them from the Father and Son, and going up from them to the Father and Son, through obedience. It has a horizontal dimension, as well. They are to love one another with the same love which Jesus has for them. His love is exemplified perfectly in his dying for them, his friends.  In John’s gospel, Jesus’ friends are those whom Jesus loves. To be his friend is to remain in his love. Another aspect of his friendship with them is the rejection of all master servant distinctions. A master can give commands to his servants and expect to be obeyed.  Jesus has, already at the Last Supper, by washing their feet, reversed the master servant relationship, and now he states it in principle. He has come to their level so that he can be their friend, who confides to them everything he knows from his Father.

His choice of them rather than their choice of him, makes clear that the initiative is always with him.  Bearing fruit brings us back to the imagery of the vine. Jesus is about to go back to the Father through death, so he appoints the disciples to go out to bear fruit. As the death of Jesus is a prerequisite of the gospel being preached so also will pruning and sacrifice be a requirement for their preaching to bear fruit.

Jesus’ theology of love is based on the foundational principle that we should love him/God because he has first loved us. This is the heart of our relationship with God. God always takes the initiative in love. This we call grace. Because of our sins and faults, we may feel unlovable in God’s eyes, (which is never the case), but his grace touches us and changes us into his beloved. We should thank Him always for that.

If we believe that God loves us, then we should believe that we are loveable, and find it easier to love ourselves and others. It is all God’s grace.

St Augustine recommends us to “Love and do what you will.” But he knew that if we really loved God we would always want to do God’s will.  Selfishness is self-serving, doing our own will. Love is self-giving, doing God’s will.

Through our baptism we enter an intimate, loving relationship  with God. He calls us His friends. Do you relate with Him as your friend?

Fr Geoff O’Grady