Sixth Sunday of Easter
“If you love me…” (Jn 14:15). Do you know how many love songs and ballads are about “If you Love me” or it is the song title? I asked Chat GPT. There is an unending list. There is the 1961 "If You Love Me (Really Love Me)" by Brenda Lee. There is the 1971 "If You Love Me" by Stevie Wonder. There is the 1974 “If You Love Me” by Olivia Newton-John. There is the 1977 “If You Love Me (Let Me Know) by Elvis Presley. There is the 1994 "If You Love Me" by Brownstone. There is the 1999 “If You Love Me” by Mint Condition. There is the 2025 “If You Love Me (Let Me Go)" by Colbie Caillat & Russell Dickerson and there is even the 2022 hip-hop tract “If You Love Me” by Mozzy.
If a song was written about today’s gospel, it would be titled “If you love me.” I have titled my homily, “If you love me.” I am not surprised Jesus said, “If you love me.” In his ministry Jesus always used imageries and symbols from daily life to teach eternal truths. Whether is it the sheep and the good shepherd, seeds and framing, trees and fruits, bread and wine, Jesus was intrinsically connected with the ordinary lives of the people. And now Jesus uses the most basic human sentiment – love – to make a point about discipleship, salvation, and eternity.
“If You Love Me”
The context for Jesus’ “If you love me” is his farewell discourse. John 13-17 is considered Jesus’ farewell discourse to his disciples. Today’s gospel reading is from Jn 14. Jesus had just had the Last Supper with his disciples, washed their feet and told them that he was going to the Father. At this, the disciples were distraught. Jesus steps into console them. He promises them another Advocate to be with them always… the Spirit of truth (Jn 14:16-17). Meanwhile there is something they could do – keep his commandments. He said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (Jn 14:15). He assures them further. He says, “I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.” And then, again, Jesus returns to the love theme. He says even more emphatically: “Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
In other words, as Jesus prepares his disciples for his departure, he uses the love language to assure them of his presence. Using the most basic human sentiment, Jesus says that it is love that will give keep them united with him. Unity with God is to be understood in terms of love. The continuing relationship between Jesus and the disciples will rely on a loving commitment to Jesus. “If you love me…”
Love is of God
Besides love being basic to human relationships, Jesus’ emphasis on love has another reason. Love is of God. In the farewell discourse, the love and the unity between the Father and the Son is all too apparent. The Father loves the Son and the Son loves the Father. In fact, it is the Son who will ask the Father and the Father will send another Advocate.
But a whole new dynamic emerges. The disciples are invited into the love between the Father and the Son. Jesus says, “On that day you will realize that I am in my Father and you are in me and I in you” (Jn 14:20). And again, “Whoever has my commandments and observes them is the one who loves me. And whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and reveal myself to him.”
In reality John is capturing all of salvation history in basic human love language. God loved the world and sent us Jesus. Jesus revealed the face of God to us. Jesus loved us unto death, and he now invites us to love him back by keeping his commandments. This unites us to the Father’s love which brought Jesus to us in the first place. The lesson is simple. It is love that saved the world and it is love that continues to save us!
The Mystery of Love
There is a great mystery at play in Jesus’ words. Let me suggest three ways to understand this mystery:
- If we love Jesus, we must keep his commandments. Jesus’s commandments are simple. “You shall love the Lord your God and love your neighbor as you love yourself.” In other words, keeping Jesus’ commandment makes salvation available to the world.
- The way in which divine presence is alive in the world today is the love that exists in the Christian community. We must love God and love our neighbor as Christ commanded us. This love becomes the greatest witness of Christ’s presence.
- The Advocate, the Spirit of truth is given to accompany us in the world. The Spirit is best understood as the love that exists between the Father and the Son. The Spirit is love and love is the truth. To live in the Spirit is to live in love.
- Fr. Satish Joseph