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In touch: Best of friends

Up-to-the-minute jumping-off points for sermons, linking the reading to the latest news and global issues

Jesus calls us to love one another (John 15.9-17), to follow his example of true friendship.

Context

• A London man who gave his life for someone he didn’t know has been named.
• Families in India have been desperately gathering oxygen and hospital beds for sick relatives.
• The multi-million pound IPL cricket league has been suspended.
• The Brexit fall out between the UK and our international ‘friends’ continues as France threaten to cut off underwater power cables to Jersey in retaliation for blocked access to fishing waters.
• The final episode on the BBC series Line of Duty was watched by 13 million people.

 

Ideas for sermons or interactive talks

• This week newspapers published the name of the young man who died trying to save a woman who fell into the river Thames, Folajimi Olubunmi-Adewole. Stories like this are vivid illustrations of the love Jesus describes ‘to lay down one’s life for one’s friends’. We aren’t often called to make this kind of sacrifice, but this young man clearly felt a love for other people that compelled him to act, even at the risk of his own life.

• Similarly sacrificial love is being shown all over India as healthy family members have stopped work in order to search for oxygen and unoccupied hospital beds for relatives suffering from Covid. The latest wave of Coronavirus in India has been overwhelming, and the absence of universal healthcare means that it is for family members to source and obtain whatever is needed for those they love.

• At the same time, the efforts to continue the IPL cricket tournament shows the way in which the money invested in this or other enterprises can overrule concerns about the health of ordinary people. Every so often the initials WWJD become popular, ‘What would Jesus do’? and this is helpful when we look to frame our thoughts and responses to world events like this.

• The final episode of the latest series of BBC’s Line of Duty provided the 13 million viewers with much to discuss (or complain about) as this story about the intrigue and deception of an anti-corruption police unit came to its climax. The pain of secrets being uncovered and consequences playing out contrasts with Jesus’ clear statement to his disciples that, ‘I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father’. Jesus has shared his mission with us and continues to share with us all that the Father told Him through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

• The ongoing negotiations and recriminations between the UK and European nations show the difficulty of national interest competing with the practical need for international co-operation. Jesus urges us to love one another with a love that is inherently sacrificial. Jesus’ command is not an easy one and there are always pragmatic justifications for looking after our own needs first - as individuals as well as nations - but Jesus’ way of love produces fruit that lasts. What we lose on a human level by giving other people’s needs a priority, we gain back more through our relationship with the Father who ‘will give you whatever you ask him in my name’ (John 15.16)

 

Questions for discussion

• Who would you give your life for? What sacrifices have you made for other people - and what prompted you to do so?
• Have you ever made friends with someone from a different cultural group as Peter did with Cornelius? What prompted that and what did you learn from it?
• What experience do you have of asking for something from God in prayer and receiving it knowing that it came from Him?

Steve Taylor is joint-vicar of St James Alperton (CofE) near Wembley. He shares the job with his wife, Ali, and shares his house with their two daughters, two cats, a hamster and a lonely fish.

 

Check-in

Connecting faith with everyday, real-life issues for young people

When you think of friends, I wonder what emotions come to mind? There could be a whole range from affection, love, gratitude, fun, to disappointment, frustration, loss. Friendships have a large impact on our sense of well-being. Knowing someone outside of our family cares for us and enjoys our company is a wonderful blessing. But we are all unique and friends can also surprise us or not be all that we hope for. Separation from friends due to lockdown restrictions has been tough. As restrictions begin to ease in the coming months we are looking forward to our friends’ company. How did physical separation from friends feel to you?

In John 15.9-17 Jesus calls his followers his friends and assures his followers of his love for them. Jesus is a friend who shares his life and joy with us, and shares with us what matters to him: love. We can show active love for our friends in many ways, and we can love more widely through the support of charities. Recent news has reported UK charities facing a ‘perfect storm’ of hugely increased need for their services due to the impact of the pandemic, along with an expected dramatic fall in donations. Many hard-up households are having to cut back on their giving. The UK insurance and long-term savings industry set up The Covid-19 Support Fund last year to help fund thousands of community charities. One charity in Norfolk, About with Friends, supports individuals with learning disabilities, and the funding has meant being able to provide both online and personal support for the families.

Jesus showed love to the people on the edges of society, those with extra struggles. Who can you pray for who has been especially impacted by the pandemic in your community? Is there someone at school, college or church who has had particular struggles that you could reach out to in friendship?

Is there a charity or community group that you and your family or friends could support, either financially or by volunteering? 

Dr Angela Mak is a Licensed Lay Minister at Holy Trinity Shaw in the Ecumenical Partnership of West Swindon and Lydiard Tregoze. She is also an enthusiastic youth worker and retired biology teacher.

 

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