Jesus tells us what he has heard from his Father. And the Church, empowered by the Holy Spirit, through Scripture and Tradition, speaks this word to us. We must therefore be on guard against those who go out without the mandate of the apostles.
Since we have heard that some of our number
who went out without any mandate from us
have upset you with their teachings
and disturbed your peace of mind,
False teaching makes us anxious and steals our peace. The word of the LORD brings joy.
When the people read it, they were delighted with the exhortation.
Even when true teaching is hard teaching, when it tells us that to lay down one's life for his friend is the greatest form of love, this still fills our Spirits with joy. We recognize the truth of it. We recognize the rightness of it. This is Jesus making us his friends, teaching us about the love that motivates him, asking us to live that same love ourselves. All of the commandments come down to this.
This love is the necessity beyond which we need not burden ourselves. It is the one thing necessary in a world full of many burdens and much serving. Is this the one purpose that directs our lives? Or is it just one among many? This love makes us capable of true friendship with Jesus, raising us up to love him for who he is more than what he can do for us.
We don't like to be commanded very much. There is still a lot of the fall in us. It's called concupiscence. But this command, if we listen, is our only hope for joy: "love one another."
Be exalted above the heavens, O God;
above all the earth be your glory!
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