John’s gospel is probably one of my favorites of all the Gospels. Many of the stories that are unique to John’s gospel – Nicodemus, the Samaritan woman at the well, and the story of Mary, Martha, and Lazarus – have deeply impacted my faith journey. But I most often look to the illustration of the Beloved Community.
Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus shakes up the status quo. Jesus constantly challenges societal expectations. Jesus repeatedly broadens the center to include those on the margins.
John’s gospel reveals Jesus as the Messiah for all people, marked by an uncompromising desire for unity in the Beloved Community. Jesus mandates love as the foundation for all relationships. Even as he stares down death, Jesus takes the time to share with us a new commandment: “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 you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:34-35).
This message is excerpted from “Beloved Community” by Angela T. Khabeb in the March 2019 Gather magazine. Today we commemorate John, Apostle and Evangelist.
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