Hello my friends,

A lot of you have written me lately expressing feelings of helplessness and fear about all that is going on in the United States and beyond. So, I thought it would be helpful to process this together through the lens of John 13:31-35 and Jesus’ “new commandment” to love one another. I hope you find our time together today to be encouraging, insightful, and motivating.

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Recommended Resources:

​-Afrikaner refugees to arrive in Idaho despite broader program suspension After my newsletter last week, I was approached by a local news station to share my thoughts about the controversial circumstances around the arrival of Afrikaner refugees here in Idaho. I thought I would share that story here.

​-The Message That Broke Me by Sharron McMahon. I really admire Sharron and her work. The other day, she shared an experience she had regarding a message that she received from someone who presented themselves as Christian. This experience was all too familiar to me and one that I've encountered all throughout my ministry. I thought this piece was really honest and powerful. So, I thought I would share it here with you.

​-How to Change the World by Hidden Brain This episode is older, but I have thought of its significance so often lately. It interviews a researcher and author who presents the data to show why peaceful, nonviolent civil resistance is the most historically effective at bringing about lasting change. I found it really insightful and encouraging and think you will too.

​-Defending Democracy from Its Christian Enemies By: David P. Gushee David is a wonderful writer and in this book, he presents compelling and practical ways to navigate supporting democracy from a Christian perspective, especially in the face of those who attack it from within the Christian community. I think you might also find it to be a helpful companion in our world today.

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​John 13:31-35

(MSG)

When he had left, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is seen for who he is, and God seen for who he is in him. The moment God is seen in him, God’s glory will be on display. In glorifying him, he himself is glorified—glory all around!

“Children, I am with you for only a short time longer. You are going to look high and low for me. But just as I told the Jews, I’m telling you: ‘Where I go, you are not able to come.’

“Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”

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Called To Love In A World Of Hate.

As many of you know, I have built breaks from social media and the news into my weekly routine. I do this not only to be fully present with my friends and family during “non work” hours, but most importantly, to maintain my mental health. If you don’t follow this practice, I highly recommend doing so.

This practice has been all the more important lately. To be honest, I have been really struggling with feelings of helplessness the last few weeks, which I think many of you can relate. So many of the decisions being made from the highest positions of power in our country seem intent on driving home a central message to all of us. The message that they will do all they can to not care about people, uphold human dignity, human rights, or the health of our planet. It seems as though the desired reputation for our country right now is to be known for how little we love one another. Being constantly inundated with this message by news headlines and social media posts, how can a person not feel helpless and demoralized?

In the midst of all this, have to continue to remind myself (and all of you) that this is a central tactic of authoritarianism: to overwhelm people into apathy and helplessness. Authoritarians want people to feel like there is no point in speaking out and opposing injustice. Authoritarians want to convince people of a false reality, that they have ultimate power and that no one should dare oppose or question that power. If anyone should know that this is a false narrative, it should be followers of Jesus, who deeply trust that God is the only one with ultimate power. Americans should also know this narrative is false in light of the fact that we declared our independence from a tyrant king who was perpetuating the same false narrative over 200 years ago. When authoritarians try to silence people, that is precisely the time when raising our voices for justice is crucially important. It is so important to know that the authoritarian narrative is a lie.

But if we are honest with ourselves, knowing this isn’t always enough. There are still times where we feel so frozen by fear and overwhelmed by feelings of helplessness where even reminding ourselves that this is a tactic we need to resist is inadequate in restoring our courage and our hope. It is in moments like these that the words of Jesus are needed all the more.

The Paradox of Glory

In these weeks after Easter Sunday, it may feel odd that John 13:31-35 would be the passage much of the church would reflect on this week. A passage just shortly before Jesus would be handed over to be executed. Given our dark and foreboding world though, I think this is precisely why this passage is so needed for us today. So, let’s start by looking at how John uses the theme of “glory” in this passage.

John uses the language of glory and glorify 42 times throughout his gospel, which is more than the other three gospels employ such language combined. The first time this language is used is in John 1:14, where John skillfully connects the glory of God’s entire nature being revealed through the glory of the Logos becoming human, who is Jesus. This theme of Jesus being the perfect revelation of God’s glory in the world is a central theme all throughout John’s gospel. This theme then culminates in a deeply unexpected and even scandalous way. As we see in John 12:23-24, Jesus declares that his hour to be glorified will come, but not with his ascension to some earthly or heavenly throne, but with his being raised up on a cross. Therefore, the ultimate display of God’s glory isn’t seen in exercising power over there world, but seen in self-sacrifice love for all the world!

In our passage for today, just one chapter later, Jesus declares that "Now is the Son of Man glorified" precisely at the moment when Judas departs to betray him. Here again, the paradoxical timing reveals a deeper truth about how God's glory actually operates. While human glory often manifests in displays of power, wealth, or triumph, divine glory reaches its pinnacle in what appears to be weakness and defeat in the eyes of the world. The cross - an instrument of shame and death - becomes the supreme revelation of God's glory. This glory is revealed not through avoiding darkness, but through entering it fully with redemptive love.

Jesus shows us that true glory comes not through grasping power but through willing surrender to God's purposes, even when those purposes lead through valleys of shadow. God's glory transforms the darkest moments into opportunities for divine light to shine most brightly. It is no accident then that Jesus pairs this discussion of glory with the command to love. The supreme manifestation of divine glory is self-giving love.

The Radical Nature of Jesus' Command To Love

In the hours before his crucifixion, Jesus gave his disciples what he called a "new commandment" - to love one another as he had loved them. The timing of this command is significant. As the world around him descended into chaos, as betrayal and violence loomed, Jesus spoke not of power or revenge, but of love.

What made this commandment "new" wasn't the call to love itself - God had already commanded the love of neighbor, as is seen all throughout the Old Testament. What is “new” is the standard by which love is measured, which is as Jesus said, "as I have loved you." Jesus had just washed his disciples' feet, was about to go to the cross, and would ultimately give his life for them. This was love measured not by ideology, by partisan loyalty, or by religious affiliation, but by humble, costly, sacrificial action. "By this everyone will know that you are my disciples," Jesus said. In a world obsessed with tribal markers - political affiliation, social status, cultural identity - Jesus established love as the defining characteristic of his followers. Not correct doctrine alone, not religious practices, not moral purity - but love.

Part of what is so radical about this command to love is when Jesus gave it to his followers. Jesus gave the command to love one another at what appeared to be the darkest possible moment. Judas had just left to betray him. The machinery of state violence was already in motion. His disciples were about to scatter in fear. Yet it was precisely in this context of impending chaos that Jesus spoke of love.

I think this historical context can offer some encouragement for us today. Our world seems to be fracturing along every possible fault line - political, racial, economic, ideological, and so on. Social media then amplifies our worst impulses, which only adds fuel to an already hot flame. Global challenges like climate change and economic inequality can just make it all feel completely insurmountable. It is no wonder many of us can struggle with a deep sense of powerlessness and despair. It is because we care so deeply about others and our world that we can’t help but feel helpless in the face of all the injustices we are witnessing.

But Jesus' words remind us that love is most powerful precisely when everything seems to be falling apart. Jesus didn't give this command from a position of worldly strength or in a time of peace and stability. Jesus gave it when the world's darkness was closing in, when human systems were failing, and when trust was breaking down.

The power of Jesus' command lies partly in its simplicity. When the world's problems seem too complex to solve, when ideological debates feel endless, when despair threatens to overwhelm us, we can always return to this basic calling: love one another. This doesn't solve every problem, but it gives us a clear path forward through the chaos.

This understanding of God’s glory being perfectly revealed through love can offer hope for us today. When we face personal or collective darkness, we're not merely waiting for glory to appear - we're standing in the very conditions where God's glory is most powerfully revealed. Our call then is not to escape the darkness but to love all the more faithfully within it, trusting that God's glory is already at work in ways we may not yet see.

Like Jesus' disciples on that dark night, we too live in the tension between present shadows and promised glory. Yet we can take courage knowing that the very moments that seem furthest from glory may be the ones where God's glory is about to be most deeply revealed.

More than that, it reminds us that we serve a God who chose love as the response to darkness - and who promises that love will have the last word.

I have found comfort and encouragement in those promises lately and I hope you can too.

Practical Steps Forward

When feeling overwhelmed, we can:

• Start small - look for opportunities to show love in our immediate circle.
• Stay faithful - remember that consistent acts of love matter more than grand gestures.
• Build community - connect with others who are trying to live out Jesus' command to love.
• Build in good rhythms of information consumption to preserve your mental health.
• Keep perspective - remember that Jesus gave this command knowing darkness was coming, yet also knowing love would ultimately triumph.
• Allow the power of love to cause us to question authoritarians rather than allow authoritarians to cause us to question the power of love.

I'd like to close with a prayer my dad sent me this week.

A Prayer for When the Divide Feels Too Deep

God of mercy and truth,

I'm carrying too much!

The ache of what people say,

the silence when I need to speak,

and the fear that love isn't enough.

But You see it all.

You see the lies dressed as righteousness,

the fear behind the hate,

and the tired, tender hearts trying to hold onto hope.

Make me brave, but not bitter.

Give me rest, not resignation.

Let me grieve what feels broken,

but never forget the sacred work of healing.

Remind me that my compassion is not weakness,

it is resistance.

And that standing for justice is not abandonment of the gospel,

it is your love in action.

Help me carry peace in one hand,

and truth in the other.

Help me stay soft and strong at the same time.

Amen.