Our Gospel today, like the last and next couple weeks, is taken from John’s version of the Last Supper.  You might know that in John’s Gospel, Jesus teaches about the Eucharist in chapter 6, not at the Last Supper.  Instead, John uses the Last Supper as the setting for a great narrative in which Jesus gives his last and parting words to his disciples before he is to be handed over and crucified.  They are inspiring words indeed, I encourage you all to read and pray over John chapters 14-17. 

These words from Jesus are familiar to us.  This I command you: love one another.  We’ve heard it before, and in fact I bet every person knows, that we are called to love one another.  If we would go and ask random people on the street- what is one thing that God or the bible tells us?  I’d bet that an overwhelming majority would respond: it says to love one another.  Even most people who do not believe in or have never read the bible probably knows God calls us to love one another.  Every religion, no matter what name they give to God, would say something to the effect that every person should strive to love one another.  The Quran tells Muslims to love another: “Allah will ask on the Day of Judgment: ‘Where are those who loved each other for the sake of my glory?”  Even Muslims believe Love is among the most exalted of human feelings. They would say that when this love is focused on Allah and forms the basis for our interpersonal relationships, many problems are transcended, and great fruits are harvested for society as a whole. 

The LDS church often highlights a song titled “Love one another” when the Mormon Tabernacle Choir sings.  And if you visit any Christian bookstore you are bound to find a plaque with the quote “love one another” on it. 

Therefore, I would bet, that every religious leader, or politician, or even atheist would recognize that to love one another is good for society, and so would naturally want all people to love one another more.  To love one another is a tenet of most every religion or personal belief system. 

What’s more, is that I am sure that every person, whether they believe in God or not, is thankful that God calls us to do that.  And this is because every person has a fundamental desire to be loved.  Every person, whether they believe in God or not, practice any kind of faith or not, wants to be loved.  The desire to be loved and to love others is written on every human heart.  We Christians believe this is true because it is the way God has made us to be.  Because we are made in the image and likeness of God, which the Bible (our 2nd reading) also says, God is Love. 

So although every religion tells us we should, and every person would like for there to be more love between people in society, it is hard for us to actually love one another.  To actually put that into practice in our everyday life is very difficult.  It is hard to not give into our selfish tendencies and give ourselves for the good of others.  It takes real effort to love the people in our lives who irritate us or just rub us the wrong way.  There are people in our lives who test our patience.  It is hard for us to accept and truly respect people we don’t agree with on certain issues.  There are others who we might be quicker to anger or frustration with than others.  There are some people in our lives we try to avoid because they are a challenge to be around.  There are some in which it is almost impossible not to think or say something negative about when we see them.  Although we know we are called to love others more, it is just so difficult for us human beings to do sometimes.

And even though every religion teaches that we should love one another, there is one key verse in our Gospel today which sets us apart all the rest.  There is one verse in our Gospel which summarizes how the Christian God is unlike any other religion’s god; this verse I think is the key to the entire Christian Spirituality.  “It was not you who chose me, but I chose you”.  In all the other religious concepts- whether it be Muslim, Buddhist, or New Age- the central theme is about our quest for God.  It is typically about our quest for meaning, our quest for peace.  It is about seeking and finding the meaning and purpose for our lives.  It is about us climbing and reaching the top of that spiritual mountain.  For the New Age spirituality it is about seeking the inner peace and harmony.  And don’t get me wrong, we as Christians are supposed to seek God.  And we are to enjoy harmony, peace, and a purpose for our lives.  But there is a fundamental difference in the religions.  My brothers and sisters, our seeking God is not nearly as important as us allowing ourselves to be found by God who seeks us! 

“It is not you who chose me, it is I who chose you”.  Each one of us has been chosen by God, He has chosen us.  If we really get this all important but difficult concept in our lives than everything else changes.  If we understand deep down in the depth of who we are that God has chosen us then we’ll cultivate an attitude of surrender in life.  Life won’t be all about my world and my projects and plans, not even my important spiritual projects and plans.  Our attitude won’t be I need to do this in my spiritual life.  Our praying won’t consist so much of us saying this prayer or us reading that.  Or about our need to love this person more, or I need to change my behavior in this area to root out this or that sin. Our spiritual life won’t be so much about what we are doing for God, but what we are allowing God to do in us.  Our life will be about surrendering ourselves to God who has chosen us- surrendering our needs, our desires, surrendering our projects and plans, and receiving God desires and plans for us.  We succeed in our spiritual lives not so much in what or how much we do, but in how much we allow God to do in us.  Our success isn’t measured by how high we climb that spiritual mountain, but to the degree we allow God to move us.  Our daily life, and our every prayer, won’t be so much about our loving God as it will be in receiving God’s love for us.  As our 2nd reading says, “it is not that we have loved God, but that He has first loved us”.  We know that it is impossible for us to love one another the way God calls us to on our own power, but all things are possible with God.  We can only love one another as we should if we first receive God who has first loved us, and then through the power and love of God in us, can we then love others as we are called.

My brothers and sisters, it is in the tender and intimate love of the God who calls us friends do we find happiness.  If you leave with one point from this homily reflection… leave with this.  Our happiness comes in us surrendering our lives to God, and letting us be chosen and loved for who we are.  Only in being found and loved by God who first loved us do we know the meaning and purpose of our life and our joy complete.  Will you, will I, allow ourselves to be chosen, allow ourselves to be found by God and drawn into His deep and abiding love for us in prayer this week?

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