A Matter of the Heart
Richard Bradley
John 13:31-35
31 So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, ''Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.
32 If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.
33 Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, 'Where I am going, you cannot come,' so now I say to you.
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.''
NKJV
Someone's last words are important. In fact they're so important even courts of law recognize them as being on the same level as sworn testimonies. Recognizing that someone is about to leave this life we'll bend low with our ears next to their lips hoping that they'll have one last thing to say. While today's text was not the very last thing Jesus said it was pretty close. Knowing He was about to die what vital truth would he pass on to His disciples? His last plea was for His disciples to love each other.
For the Pharisees religion was about keeping all the rules of Judaism. For Jesus it was about possessing a changed heart - one that God changed by His creative power. From the Lord's perspective, a change heart is one that is capable of and willing to love others. Jesus wanted His disciples to know that love and compassion for others - outside of their families - was the ultimate litmus test of their faith.
Our Christian faith is a matter of the heart. If you need a change of heart today you can have one but first we need recognize that we need it.
1. THE COMMAND TO LOVE EACH OTHER
34 A new commandment (''an authoritative prescription'') I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
To love others is an authoritative command from our Savior and Lord. Jesus was not pl ...
Richard Bradley
John 13:31-35
31 So, when he had gone out, Jesus said, ''Now the Son of Man is glorified, and God is glorified in Him.
32 If God is glorified in Him, God will also glorify Him in Himself, and glorify Him immediately.
33 Little children, I shall be with you a little while longer. You will seek Me; and as I said to the Jews, 'Where I am going, you cannot come,' so now I say to you.
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
35 By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.''
NKJV
Someone's last words are important. In fact they're so important even courts of law recognize them as being on the same level as sworn testimonies. Recognizing that someone is about to leave this life we'll bend low with our ears next to their lips hoping that they'll have one last thing to say. While today's text was not the very last thing Jesus said it was pretty close. Knowing He was about to die what vital truth would he pass on to His disciples? His last plea was for His disciples to love each other.
For the Pharisees religion was about keeping all the rules of Judaism. For Jesus it was about possessing a changed heart - one that God changed by His creative power. From the Lord's perspective, a change heart is one that is capable of and willing to love others. Jesus wanted His disciples to know that love and compassion for others - outside of their families - was the ultimate litmus test of their faith.
Our Christian faith is a matter of the heart. If you need a change of heart today you can have one but first we need recognize that we need it.
1. THE COMMAND TO LOVE EACH OTHER
34 A new commandment (''an authoritative prescription'') I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
To love others is an authoritative command from our Savior and Lord. Jesus was not pl ...
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