May 10, 2026 - Rev. Omar Rodriguez de la O,

The Lessons Appointed for Use on the Sixth Sunday of Easter, Year A, RCL

• Acts 17:22-31
• 1 Peter 3:13-22
• John 14:15-21
• Psalm 66:7-18

https://www.lectionarypage.net/YearA_RCL/Easter/AEaster6_RCL.html

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

And you know that the Father, the people, the spirit side of the turn your microphone. Don't get scared. I'm not preaching in Spanish. A first time though. No, it's kidding. If you love me, you will keep my commandments. It's the first line of today's gospel. The Jo and I biblical authors begin Jesus' speech with this conditional statement. This means that love for Christ is a prerequisite that must be met by following and obeying his commands. I start reflecting on this line. I asked myself about the commandments. Which ones? Which command is Jesus referring to? At the same time, I wonder which commandment we are referring to in this text. The commandment that we have established in Jesus' name or the rules that Jesus Himself gave. Reflecting about this brought me back memory of my early childhood and growing up, living in a very restrict Pentecostal household. There I learned so very questionable commandments that were made in Jesus' name, yet oppress others and compil people to submit without questioning them. Were these actual Jesus commandments? If these commandments oppress and mistreat others without providing people the chance to question them, then this commandment or even Jesus command. Jesus commands have their roots in love, and love do not oppress anyone. We have heard a lot about following rules, law, commandments, etc. They appear to have grown intertwined with political rhetoric alongside religious language, which in the end deviated from Jesus' love and became pointless commandments that aim to satisfy those who made them in Jesus' name. So what did Jesus mean when he said, If you love me, you will keep my commandments. What do that mean? Does Jesus mean following a set of law and regulation such as the Ten Commandments, or is he referring to something else? The word John used in the original language should not be understood merely following a set of moral rules. These commandments include all of Jesus' words and teachings, which are in fact the word of God the Father. Whoever loved me will keep my word, and my father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. Whoever do not love me do not keep my words, and the message you heard is not mine, but that of the father who sent me. Additionally, I reflect in this passage. I wonder why Jesus chose to give more commandments. Why more? Why add more commandments when Judah already have 613 of them? When we look to the scripture to understand why there are so many commandments, we find that the law goal was to strengthen our relationship with God. We can find, for example, in the world in the words of Galatians 3.24 that says, so the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ. So we might be justified by faith. So were these commandments unable to meet the original purpose of bringing us closer to God? We can see in the scriptures the known of the Jewish people could entirely fulfill all of the law. Sign the teachers of the law often made it more difficult, regardless of how many there were. Nobody could keep the Ten Commandments, let alone the 613. We are human beings, and God is well aware of our shortcomings. However, we can see that God gave us the law to recognize sin and to emphasize our need for our Savior. Jesus is the only one who has perfectly obeyed the law. He fulfilled God's command by living, dying, and raising. And he cleansed all of our sins. When Jesus taught them, especially with the Sermon of the Mount, He started to give them a fresh perspective and a new meaning. He acknowledged that it was difficult for them to adhere to so many laws, and how the teachers of the law did not strictly adhere to them. And many of the law were far removed from focusing on the love and human dignity. The lack of love was one of the reasons it was hard to live by these commands. There was so much emphasis on doing as the way of getting closer to God, so human dignity was overlooked. And here is where Jesus played an important role in relation to these commands. When Jesus said, If you love me, you will keep my commandments. He means that true love for him is a visible action that expresses itself through obedience to his teachings rather than an emotion. This love-based measure is evident as I say in the Semon on the Mount. It teaches us to love both those who detest us and our enemies and so forth. It is focusing the command on love, making it the central theme. Several days ago, I was talking with a young man about Jesus' gift to love while he was on earth and about his ability to put aside his personal circumstances during the most painful times of his life, such as his deepest loneliness and despair, especially as the time of his death due near. The young man was struggling with his faith. And so I talked with him about the example of Jesus' action of love that went beyond his spoken teaching, such as the example of washing his disciples' feet, and how we should do the same in terms of service. Because Jesus said, For the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a reason for many. I reminded this young man that Jesus healing of the ill, the lepers and the blind, and the paralyzed, as well as his love for the disciples and suffering. The goal of this conversation with this young man was to stress that love is at the heart of Jesus' teachings. I also explained to him how these commands are often twisted, leading to conflict of faith, and in some cases, people losing their faith, as was the case of this young man. Countless people have abandoned or struggling with their faith because of a series of man-made laws that have disconnected them from God's love, having a prof a profound effect of them rather than bringing them closer to God. This is similar to what happened in the Old Testament, when imposed law draw people away from God rather than drawing them closer. In the previous chapter of this gospel, chapter 13, in especial from the verse 12 to the 38, Jesus gives a new commandment. A new command I give you, love one another as I love you. You must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciple. If you love one another. This means that Jesus' command involves caring for those that are most vulnerable, setting an example via his action on behalf of the disadvantaged and marginalized people who were rejected by both the teacher of the law and the society. Jesus told his disciples that he had given them the example to follow. Please do as I did for you. I will tell you the truth. Neither a servant nor a messenger is more significant than the person who sent them. Now that you know these things, God will bless you for doing them. Jesus said. When he died, he will raise again, and he, the Father, and the Holy Spirit will come to us and dwell with us forever. No matter where we are or what happened to us. The crucifixion is Jesus' created act of love. So this teaching made just hours before he dedicated his life for us are significant. Jesus elevated love above everything else. A love that has been discarded and hidden in favor of laws. One that surpassed all other teaching that received the command of love. Amen.