Loving One Another
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” John 13:34-35, NIV
“Jesus’ love command was ‘new’ because it demanded a new kind of love, a love like his own.” -Colin G. Kruse
“The immense importance of Christian love cannot possibly be shown more stikingly than the way that it is urged on the disciples in this place.” – Ryle
“Love is the badge of Christian discipleship. It is not knowledge, nor orthodoxy, nor fleshly activities, but (supremely) love which identifies a follower of the Lord Jesus.” – A.W. Pink
The love urged on the disciples of Jesus right up to the present moment is His love. We are to love as he loved us. And it is because we’ve experienced His love that we can obey this new command. His love is the foundation of it. His love is the source of our love. Our love should be His love, lived out of us. What we cannot do is attempt to fulfill this new command on our own. To do so would be to invite disaster. You and I cannot love like Jesus without Jesus’ direct involvement. Think of it like this: if our brand is Christ like love for one another, love for one another that is not from Jesus is a cheap imitation, a knock off. It’s a ‘rolex’ watch sold on the street. It sort of looks like the real thing but, it isn’t the real thing at all. And, just like any imitation, the closer you get to it the more you can tell that it is not the authentic article. One of the ways we can learn whether the love we have for one another is the real thing is by watching it’s outcome. Jesus’ love poured out on someone moves them more toward Him. If a person’s love for you, or your love for them is not moving them/you toward Jesus, then it is probably not His love. Jesus’ love is also self-giving and others-oriented. Counterfeit love is often self-focused and me-oriented. How is your loving your fellow disciples going? How much is your love the love of Jesus? Let Jesus love others through you.