A Thought For The Week Of October 15

Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him." (John 14:23) The image of God making a home with us is a comforting thought. We often think of ourselves as being filled with the Holy Spirit, but there's something even more precious (in my mind anyway) about God making a home with us. What intrigues me in this verse is that Jesus attaches a condition: obedience to his teaching. This seems unlike Jesus; and it seems to contradict the idea of grace. Or does it? What is the teaching of Jesus? Does Jesus merely define the "rules" and expect us to obey? I don't think so. Does he just offer us a bunch of interesting thoughts about God that we can spend our lives pondering and debating and arguing about? I don't think that's it either. Jesus revealed God - that's why he came. Jesus showed us what the life of God is about - it's about love, it's about accepting those who are so often cast out, it's about challenging those who so often do the casting out. In short, God's life and God's purpose (revealed through the life of Jesus) is about reconciling each one of us to all of God's creation and to God. To obey Jesus' teaching isn't to obey a legalistic set of rules - it's to pattern one's life after the example of Jesus, and to live in greater and greater conformity to Jesus' life. That's something we can all do, and when we do that, God makes a home with us, because as we sincerely live that kind of life, we're living out the life of God. Have a great week!