“A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. All men will know that you are my disciples if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).
A middle-aged Chinese who lived through the Cultural Revolution that tore China apart, told a friend, “The Cultural Revolution taught us to hate one another, but when I saw Christians who lived in love and reconciliation, I was drawn to them.” Attempting to explain why masses of young men and women in China are becoming Christians today, she said, “What is attracting young people today is love and reconciliation.” Why did she turn from communism to Christ? Answering the question she said, “It made me realize there is a better way.”
Mao Tsetung said, “Power comes out of the end of a gun barrel.” In his little Red Book, which was like a Bible to a generation of people who lived under his rule, he spoke of love, equating it with emotional weakness. For a generation, students in China were raised on that kind of dogma. While Chairman Mao was attaining an almost “god-like stature,” a father-figure who could do no wrong, little boys and girls sang, “Mao loves me this I know, for his Red Book tells me so.” They were parodying the very song which missionaries had taught a generation before: “Jesus loves me this I know, for the Bible tells me so ….”
Is love and reconciliation a better way to live than violence and hatred? Obviously, we nod our heads, saying, “Yes—love is the answer!” Yet it is so easy to sink to the level of the street whereby we treat the other individual as he or she treats us.
I have to tell you that I’ve been in China on numerous occasions. I’ve seen personally what our friend described—a freshness and commitment that is often lacking in the West today.
There is one thing, though, for certain: the early church understood how powerful love is. What they lacked in experience, in education, in prestige and influence was far more than offset by the fact—they really loved each other. Actually, it was this that so impressed their Roman adversaries and critics. “Look at these Christians,” they said, “they really love each other.”
The individual whose heart is filled with hatred, however, doesn’t begin to understand how love and reconciliation work. His ability to love has been stifled by hatred and the desire to get the other person before he gets him.
When God touches your life it changes, and one of the first and most prominent pieces of evidence is your ability to love others, not simply those whose culture and lifestyle mirror yours, but those who are not very loveable at all.
In the Upper Room, immediately before Jesus faced the ordeal of crucifixion, Jesus met the issue head-on. He told his followers: “A new commandment I give you: Love one another.”
Those like our Chinese brothers and sisters who learn to live the language of love, often endure experiences which burn out the dross and the straw in their lives and experience the reality of Jesus Christ in such a way that leaves no doubt they have been in His presence.
A Chinese friend who was imprisoned for nine months in total darkness because he refused to renounce his faith, wrote to a mutual friend after his release and said, “What I miss most are the quiet, intimate moments with Jesus I enjoyed while I was imprisoned.”
May I ask you, friend, “Does your life speak of love and reconciliation?” As Gene Barron put it: “The world will not care what we know until they know we care.” And when people really know you care, you will make a difference in your home, in your office, and yes, in our world. That, friend, is for sure.
Resource reading: John 13:33-38.
