John 13:34 A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.
Today’s verse on love is non-negotiable. It is a command, something we MUST do. This is clear in the words of Jesus to His disciples (excluding Judas Iscariot who had departed at this point to betray Him) and is something we should be doing ourselves.
In this verse, Jesus said He was giving a new command. This command was to love as He loves. It was a command to love with a perfect, unconditional love. His command was for agape love. It seems most of our verses this month are centered around the agape love, the love of God, perfect and complete.
And we are commanded to do this. We are not given an option. It does not say a new option I give you or a new choice I give you. It is a new command. And He says you must love one another. You don’t have an option BUT to love as He loved. Unfortunately, we don’t have the ability to love as He loves because we are not perfect and we are not God. We cannot do it on our own. The good thing is that He equips us with everything we need to be able to love as He loves. We have the Holy Spirit and the power He possesses that allows us to love others.
Continuing on in verse 35, John continues his statement by saying this love is how the world will recognize disciples of Jesus. It is through our actions that people see what true faith is and how a Christian should act. Our love for them, our compassion, our forgiveness, everything we do should reflect Jesus in our lives. As we’ve said before, we might be the only Jesus someone sees. Our lives are living testimonies of His love and greatness.
No matter how difficult it might seem, take the time to love others. Strive to love them as Christ loved you. Let the Holy Spirit guide you and love others through you.
Prayer: Lord, Thank You for giving me the Spirit and allowing Him to love others through me. May my actions mirror Your own so that I love like You. Amen
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