Building Renewal 

Today’s author is Prince of Peace member Fred Ogimachi.

Today’s assignment was John 15:1-17.  A section in John’s Gospel where he is recounting those final intimate details of Jesus with His disciples during the time between the upper room and the garden recorded in chapters 13-17.  Two verses caught my attention, ‘You are my friends if you do what I command.  I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master’s business.  Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you’ (John 15:14-15).

With those first followers it began simply with ‘come and see’ (John 1:39) an invitation to spend the afternoon to get to know Jesus and satisfy their curiosity.  Then came, ‘follow Me’ (Matthew 4:19).  An ask for them to join with Him.  Jesus would be their teacher, and they would be His trainees.  He would teach them all that His Father had taught Him (John 15:15).  His teachings would change them and challenge them to change their world (Matthew 5-7). 

They realized that Jesus was the Messiah through His teachings, miracles, and fulfilling prophecies which aligned with their expectations of savior.  Then came that utterance, those words from Peter, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God’ (Matthew 16:16).  Those words have been used to frame the hierarchy relationship with Jesus.  He is Lord and we are to serve Him. 

Jesus invited them, He reshaped them, He called them to follow Him, to change the world by bringing the Father’s Kingdom to the here and now.  He would lead and they would follow.  They had chosen His way, they had been trained, and they believe in His work.

But as He often does, Jesus declared a change in the relationship between Him and them.  ‘You are my friends…I do not call you servants any longer…I call you friends’ (John 15:14-15 abbreviated).  This is His declaration that something significant has changed.  He says that they will do this work together as friends, not as sovereign and subject, not as master and servant, not as teacher and student, but as friends.

What a difference in perspective.  Doing work together, doing the Father’s Kingdom work together, doing life together as friends.  I believe Jesus extends this relationship to us.  He invites us, He reshapes us, He calls us into His work of bringing His Father’s Kingdom and He asks that we do this together as friends.

My prayer is that you walk alongside Jesus today, as friends, allowing Him to hold your hand as you hold His, and bring the Father’s goodness, the Father’s kingdom to another today.