This coming Sunday, I plan to preach on the lectionary readings from both John (13.31-35) and Acts (11.1-18). In particular I’ll be focusing on John 13.34-35:
“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (NRSV)
The difficulty in this passage that I’ll be addressing the tendency of congregations to pick and choose who we will love and who we will not by welcoming and associating with only like-minded individuals (theologically, politically, demographically, etc.). We prefer to associate with like-minded people because they are easier for us to love. This does great harm to the diversity necessary for a congregation (or a denomination) to truly be the body of Christ—instead a congregation being made up of eyes, ears, feet, hands, etc. we end up with one congregation made up almost entirely of eyes, one almost entirely of ears, etc.