John 15:12-14 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command.
I admit that these verses are hard for me. I have no problem with the instruction to love. I strive to be loving and to care for others. But when you look at the next part of that sentence it feels nearly impossible. How can I, a sinner and mere human, love others as Christ loved us? It almost feels like we have been set up to fail because none of us is perfect and capable of the love of Christ. And then it goes one step further. Lay down one’s life for one’s friends… I fully admit that I don’t know if I would be able to do that.
But as I have explored these scriptures more and more I have found comfort. I have begun to see them differently. I have realized that it is not an impossible feat, but a fully possible goal. We are to love each other with a Christ like love. We are called to be imitators of Christ (Ephesians 5:1). We are to live a life of love and sacrifice, to serve one another. Before the verses Christ gave us in this passage in John, He washed his disciples’ feet. He lowered Himself to the role of a humble servant and showed His love by doing a task most saw as lowly. And then He told us to love one another as He loved us. We are to serve one another, to act in a loving manner towards others. We may not have warm, mushy feelings, but we can still be of service and show love.
I have also come to realize that laying down my life for others does not necessarily mean martyrdom or physical death. It means sacrifice. I can stop what I am doing, set it aside, and serve my fellow believers. I am metaphorically laying down my life for my friends in order to love them. I am setting aside my needs and desires to focus my attention and efforts on the needs of others. It is not a one time act of death, but an ongoing process of dying to self and giving to others.
Jesus follows these directives with a simple statement – you are my friends if you do what I command. How encouraging is that? It is actually far easier than we first thought. Love each other, sacrifice and serve. This is love and when we do it we are His friends.
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