FALL 2009Tom Etherington
Mullica Hill MMGreater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends.
—John 15:13 ESVI grew up in Almonesson Methodist Church and that verse is as familiar to me as the Pledge of Allegiance. It has been in the background of my life as far back as I can remember. It is from John's relation of Jesus farewell address to his disciples, and is usually taken to be a foretelling of his death on the cross. In fact, for a good portion of my life, that is what it meant to me.
But one day, as I read it, it was suddenly opened to me that one does not have to go through the grand gesture of of physical death to love one's friends. We can lay down our life minute by minute, day by day for our friends. We receive the gift of life a little at a time and we can lay it down the same way. Does our friends need help moving? Lay down a day of your life to help your friend. Is your friend need a helping hand? Does he need a friendly ear? Set aside your personal enjoyments and give some of your life for your friend.
When this was first opened to me, I recognized it to be true and from God. I was not at all sure that the gospel writer intended that meaning. In fact, I was pretty sure it was not his intention. Nevertheless, I knew that this would always be my reading of the text. It wasn't until some years afterwards that I heard a preacher address this text. He explained that the word translated here as "life" is the Greek psuche, from which get our English word "psyche." Greek has three words usually translated as "life" and "psuche" emphasises the meanings of heart, mind, soul, and the seat of personality. My ears perked up. This was affirmation that my reading was a legitimate interpretation of the text. A quick session with Strong's Concordance on the usage of "life" in the New Testament revealed that in all of the references to laying down one's life, to losing one's life, the Greek word used for "life" is "psuche."
So then, is this unrelated to the cross? Jesus said, "If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it." (Luke 9:23-24 NEV) Again, it's "psuche" and here the cross is expressly described as an individual cross and bearing it as a daily task. In No Cross, No Crown, William Penn says, "The Cross of Christ is a Figurative Speech , borrowed from the outward Tree, or Wooden Cross, on which Christ submitted to the Will of God, in permitting him to suffer Death at the Hands of evil Men. So that the Cross Mystical is that Divine Grace and Power, which crosseth the Carnal Wills of Men, and gives a Contradiction to their corrupt Affections, and that constantly opposeth it self to the Inordinate nnd Fleshly Appetite of their Minds, and so may be justly termed the Instrument of Man's holy Dying to the World, and being made conformable to the Will of God. For nothing else can mortifie Sin, or make it easie for us to submit to the Divine Will, in Things otherwise very contrary to our own."
Penn and others called this this truth the “way of the Cross.” All of our great openings are just reminders to love one another.
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