Command!

Command!

This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you. John 15:12 KJV

It is not an admonition, or a piece of advice or counsel, where you are encouraged to adhere to what has been said. The relationship with God isn't really so much a partnership, but a master-servant relationship. Jesus calls us friends, but we are friends who obey what He has commanded. If I am under authority, and I have a mandate to fulfil, it is only a privilege if the One who commissions me sees me as His friend and partner. If there are consequences for disobedience or rebellion against God's authority, then technically, you cannot limit that to just a friendship.

And what is his command: that I, as long as I know who I serve and who has command over me, must love other people. There is nothing that speaks to the other person's reaction or response to me; that should not be my concern. What God commands is love, not because the target deserves it, but because the One I answer to demands it. And in the final analysis, reward or punishment is tied to my response to what I have been asked to do, not what another person did or did not do.

And the One who demands does not leave me without a worthy example to follow. He does not just point the way and ask me to go on blindly. He leads the way by personal example, having loved me also when I didn't deserve it. He does not just tell me what to do; his life is the perfect example of how he wants me to live. He is the leader, and I am the follower. It is a privilege to be called friend, but there is no doubt that I am called to a life of service and discipleship. 

Who is the One dictating terms for me? Who is laying down the law on what I do and how I do them? Am I seeking to negotiate my way out of God's express commands, thinking I have a choice? When God directs, obedience is the only way that leads to reward. God has no favourites when it comes to his commands and directives. I could see them as advice, or as commands. I could choose to obey or disobey; the choice is mine but the consequences of my choice have already been determined by God. His time of favour is here.