By This Shall All Men Know....

 Jesus made a statement in the Gospel of John that is, well, extraordinary:

"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another." (John 13:34-35)
The characteristic that identifies a disciple of Jesus Christ is not knowledge, not boldness or zeal, but love that is apparent between believers. Apparent to all men.

Wow.

This is one of those things in the scriptures that I contemplate, and look at those around me, and then look at myself and say, "Oh God, Father: there's no way! I will never be able to love in this way. I can't do it."  Does this sound familiar?

I came to know the Lord back in 1995. As a new believer, I was in a discipleship program at Grace United Methodist Church in Hancock, Michigan. Yeah, I know - United Methodist! Long story. There actually were some believers in the church, and an elderly Michigan Tech professor from Asia was leading a discipleship class patterned after the life of John Wesley. Anyway, one of the things we were required to do was to witness for the Lord Jesus Christ. That Sunday afternoon after the church meeting, (I can picture all of this very clearly in my mind), I was sitting in my son's bedroom. It was a sunny day, and I was rocking in our old rocking chair, and thinking about this. Want to know what I was thinking? "Oh God, Father: there's no way!" I was terrified of talking to other people about Jesus Christ and the gospel. I was mortified at the thought.

I don't know how long I sat there rocking in that chair, but this thought was going round-and-round in my head. But at some point, a thought from God broke in upon my mind that shot me out of that chair, full of joy and exhilaration. I heard in my mind: "That's right, Paul. You can't do this. But I can do it through you." The pressure for me to perform was off. Is anything to difficult for the LORD? NO WAY! He can do ALL THINGS! I just have to yield to HIM, and he'll do it through me.

This truth has been a help and a comfort all these years I have walked with the Lord. It is the truth revealed in Philippians 2:12-13...

"Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure."

We don't work for our salvation, we work out what God has worked in. But more than that, scripture tells us it is God that gives us the desire ("to will") and the ability (to do): it is HIS POWER, not mine. This applies in all areas of our lives, including loving our brothers and sisters in Christ. And God knows I need his power to fulfill his will, for I need to love some people that I don't even like very much. He is indeed the God of the impossible, and as a disciple of Jesus Christ, I am to yield to his authority and will in all things, especially in this. And so I do.

What a glorious, gracious, almighty God we serve! "FOR HE IS GOOD" as the Levites of the Old Testament were said to have sung in praise, "AND HIS MERCY ENDURETH FOREVER." (see Psalms 107, 118, 136; also 2 Chronicles 20:21, how Jehoshaphat appointed singers to go before the army when they went up against a great host of their enemies).

By God's grace, I desire to love my brethren through the Holy Spirit working in and through me, so that ALL MEN MAY KNOW....Fight the good fight of faith, brothers and sisters. Maranatha!