Year A

John 14:15-21

The Very Rev. Denise Vaughn

The Frame of God’s Love

When you come to my humble abode, you will notice scattered throughout are many photos of my family, especially my grandchildren in various stages of their lives. The photos are not really special to anyone but me and possibly other family members. The frames they are in have no real monetary value, yet, to me every one of those photos are irreplaceable and framed with love; the love of a daughter, sister, granddaughter, mother and grandmother. Each photo reminds me how special life is and the bond of love that makes me thankful every day. 

The words of Jesus in our gospel text this morning to his disciples are also framed by love. Jesus begins by saying, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Then at the end of the reading, Jesus rephrases the same statement: “They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.” We read these words during the great fifty days of Easter which will soon come to an end on Pentecost Sunday in two weeks when we begin the long season of Pentecost. This is a gospel where we are anticipating Pentecost and the coming of the Holy Spirit, the birthday of the Church.

Jesus, in this text today, is in the upper room just before his death with his disciples. He has demonstrated his love for them by washing their feet. One disciple has already fled the gathering, another disciples’ denial is predicted and the pain of the cross awaits them all. And in the midst of this uncertain gathering, Jesus reaches out to them in love; a love he showed for his disciples over and over again in his life and ministry. He invited them into relationship with him and shared the good news of God’s kingdom. He included them in his ministry. He would forgive them for falling asleep and deserting him in his time of need. And finally he would give up his life on the cross and rise from the grave to show his love.

That night as Jesus sits with his disciples his main desire is to help them to understand his life and work, his approaching death and resurrection. He sees their anxious hearts; so he tells them “Do not let your hearts be troubled. I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.” I will not abandon you. Orphan’s is not a word we hear very often anymore. Yet, there are children made orphans every day. And it isn’t just children without parents who are orphans. There are many of all ages who feel abandoned, who feel alone without help, who are left without comfort who feel like orphans as well. To all who struggle alone or otherwise Jesus says, “I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate, to be with you forever.” 

The word “advocate” may also be translated as encourager, comforter, helper, and mediator. Although Jesus would leave the disciples, this coming Thursday is Ascension Day, a feast day in the Church when we remember and celebrate Jesus going back to God, he leaves us with the promise that God’s Spirit would be ever present to encourage, comfort, and help. In his great love for us, Jesus promises help. He promises to never leave us or abandon us and to help us find life in the face of death. Good news for us today; the Holy Spirit, God’s presence in life and Christ’s gift to us, is promised to all the faithful. When love seems too demanding, when we struggle to live out our true identity as beloved by God and loving others, we have an encourager and helper. When we lose our way and need to find it again, we have an advocate and mediator to comfort us and bring us home.

The Holy Spirit empowers us and then sends us forth as messengers of God’s love to the poor, the unemployed, the young, and the elderly, the sick and rejected, the unhappy, the sorrowful, the lonely and the dying. For, we are the ones entrusted with the good news through our Baptism. We are the ones sent forth with his love. In sending Jesus, God’s love embraced the world. That’s the kind of love Jesus showed in his life, death, and resurrection, and the kind of love God wants to work in and through us. And in his great love for us, Jesus promises to help and be with us always though the Spirit whose presence will comfort us in our own times of need. Our lives are framed by the love of God.

So what if we could frame everything that happens in our lives with love? What would that look like? If the definition of love is Jesus then what we do and say should look like Jesus, yet, failure seems inevitable. Can we frame that with love also and turn to God to help us to keep loving one another again? Can we turn to God to help us to demonstrate love by acting with justice and mercy, sharing what we have and framing our discussions with words of love and kindness?  To make a good start, we will need to encourage one another, and we will need to be reminded of Jesus’ teaching and example, remembering we will have his love to strengthen us.

Peter’s message to the Christians in his day is that they are “not to be intimidated” by the world around them. They are “not to fear” what others fear, but to be ready at all times “to defend” the hope that they live in. Our outward actions, what we do and say, begin inside of us and develop in our hearts. And if we sanctify Christ as Lord of our lives inside of us, and seek to make his love real in our lives, it will show on the outside. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Everything about us is to point to Jesus, the Lord of our life.

But we must be the ones who draw near to him. That’s why we open God’s word and study it. That’s why our personal time of devotion and prayer are so important. For in them, we come close to Christ. In them, we draw near to our Lord. And in coming to him, we enter the presence of God and God’s love makes us well. For he can heal the broken hearted and fill the emptiness of loss. He can comfort the lonely and strengthen the weak. Sometimes we do feel like orphans or overwhelmed by life. But we have a Father who loves us and a savior who triumphed over death. And we have the Holy Spirit, God’s presence, to strengthen and bring faith to life.

If you’ve had a chance to read Alan Paton’s novel, Ah, But Your Land is Beautiful there is a wonderful scene in that speaks to the life-giving power of God’s love. Paton describes a situation in South Africa during apartheid, when laws prevented black South Africans from mixing with whites. Isaiah Buti, a black pastor, visited the white chief justice, whom he had reason to believe was a friend to his oppressed people. He asked the judge to participate in the Good Friday service where the congregation would observe Jesus’ practice of washing the disciple’s feet. He asked the chief justice to wash the feet of a congregant who had been a servant in the judge’s home and had cared for his children.

The chief justice readily agreed. When the time came for the judge to wash Martha Fortuin’s feet, the judge came forward and washed and dried her feet. But, before he rose to return to his seat, he took her feet and gently kissed them both. It was a gesture that set healing in motion, because in that simple extra expression of care, he disclosed the life-giving power of God’s love. May we live our lives framed by the love of God. Our Lord leads the way and the presence of Holy Spirit helps us.