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"You are My friends if you do whatever I command you." - Jesus (John 15:14
"This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you." - Jesus (John 15:12)
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What's A "Relaxed Order"?
The Christian life is one of relaxedness and restriction. My attempt to harmonize these two is: to create this relaxed order. A "Relaxed Order" is one with structure but very basic structure. There are Religious Orders that have quite a few rules built into their Rule of Life, and I believe that a Rule of Life is necessary in order to thrive as a person and as a community. Yet, since I'm not sophisticated or experienced enough to create a new Order like that of our spiritual forefathers, I'm creating a basic Order founded on a rule called The Golden Rule (Matthew 7:12), the law that Paul came under which he called The Law Of Christ that guided him to be "all things to all people (1 Cor. 9:19-23),". the law that James called The Perfect Law that brings freedom (James 1:25a), and "...The Royal Law. It's none other than The Law of Love that Jesus said summed up all the law and the prophets. and that is: First and foremost, to Love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, and then to love our neighbor as we love ourself. If we at least start here (and we may also finish here), we will do well.
"If you really fulfill the royal law stated in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well." - James (James 2:8)
"Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law. The commandments “Do not commit adultery,” “Do not murder,” “Do not steal,” “Do not covet,”aand any other commandments, are summed up in this one decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." - Paul Romans 13:8-10)
Do everything in love" - Paul (1 Corinthians 16:14)
In the Greek, the word "everything" actually means "everything." If you can think of a thing to do without love, please let me know, but for the life of me, I can't think of one thing.
One may say, "Yes, but when you embrace all those restrictions given in religious orders, that within those restrictions lies a great freedom and relaxedness that one will experience." I agree. But all those rules and restrictions are so that we can be in sync with Jesus and His love for all people. It's His love for us and in us that constrains us, controls us:
"For the love of Christ constrains us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again." - Paul (2 Corinthians 5:14, 15)
It's within my pursuit of love that I am constrained, restricted'; that I am empowered to "live not for myself, but for Him who died for me and rose again...", that I put you before me.
"Therefore, the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith..." - Paul (Galatians 3:24)
Now that we are justified and are brought to Christ through the law, we are brought to Him for a reason: so that He can be our Personal Trainer in how to love all people: All. People. The good, the bad and the ugly. In this Relaxed Order, we put aside all our ideas of love and, in each situation, with each person, we look to The Master Lover, our Personal Trainer for His instruction. We take a humble position ("I have so much to learn to be in sync with You, Jesus), yet a dignified position as our King's Friend, whose yoke we put on - which is His teachings (Scripture) and personal instruction. It is He Who personally leads us by His Spirit in the way of love. We can always know how we're doing as we ask Him to examine our hearts and reveal to us how we're doing in loving irritating people and loving our enemies. How are you doing with these folks in your life?
This Order is relaxed because there is no official membership. It's more of a fellowship . If you are sold-out to Jesus, and are committed to join Him in His love for all people, then you are an bonafide, unofficial member of The Relaxed Order of THE FRIENDS OF JESUS. When you join [Him in His love for all people], you come under His personal training and, if you listen closely, you will hear Jesus - the President and CEO and Lord and Personal Trainer of this Order - call you "friend!"
This website is for those who are on this journey - to love as He has loved us - and to share your experiences, encouragements or struggles. Contact me if you're unofficially "in" and we'll go from there.
- Michael Ledner (Friend of Jesus, my personal Trainer in The Art Of Love)
P.S. Those who join Jesus in His love for all people will not only be His Friends in this life, but, since this life is training for the reward of co-rulership with Him in the life to come. Joining Him in love qualifies us for a more intimate place with Him for all eternity in the kingdom to come. It's "to the one who overcomes" that He says He "...will grant to sit with Me on My throne. (Revelation 3:19-22). Desiring and pursuing a more intimate place with Jesus, both now and in the kingdom to come, is not a selfish goal. Since iit is our goal to please Him, and Jesus couldn't be more pleased granting us this reward, this is a goal that He is pleased to reward to all who join Him in His love for all.
Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.
This is how God’s love was revealed among us: God sent His one and onlyc Son into the world, so that we might live through Him. And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrificed for our sins.
Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us. By this we know that we remain in Him, and He in us: He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent His Son to be the Savior of the world.
If anyone confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have come to know and believe the love that God has for us. God is love; whoever abides in love abides in God, and God in him. In this way, love has been perfected among us, so that we may have confidence on the day of judgment; for in this world we are just like Him.
There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear involves punishment. The one who fears has not been perfected in love. We lovee because He first loved us.
If anyone says, “I love God,” but hates his brother, he is a liar. For anyone who does not love his brother, whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. And we have this commandment from Him: Whoever loves God must love his brother as well.
1 John 4:7-21
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