Once we love God and Jesus, we begin to love others. This daily devotional looks at what loving others mean.
Nuggets
- We can love others because we are following Jesus’ example.
- Following Jesus’ example can extract a high price.
- Showing our love for others increases our capacity to love.
Devotions in the Living Life Connected to Christ series
In the last devotion, we talked about God’s and Jesus’ love for us. We can abide in Their love when we follow God’s laws and commandments.
This devotion takes that a step farther. We have to love others.
Let's Put It into Context
Here is a running list of nuggets for the series.
As I Have Loved You
“This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (Jn. 15: 12 ESV)
We can love others because we are following Jesus’ example.
We’re going to start in the middle and end and then come back to the beginning.
Jesus expanded on who we are to love. He had already told us that we need to love Him and the Father.
Now, Jesus switched His focus to loving others.
Brown had an interesting take on this verse. He felt that everyone owes it to all to love them. The distinguishing factor of disciples’ loving to worldview people loving is that our love – like Jesus’ love – “… is obviously much more comprehensive in its elements, and much less extensive in its range, than this.”
Resource
We’re going to look at the elements toward the end of this week. Let’s just say that God’s definition of love is different than the worldview definition of love.
Jesus wanted us to love others as freely as He loves us.
Ooo, baby. We have problems with that sometimes, don’t we? We think others need to – if not earn our love – prove that they are worthy of it.
That isn’t the way Jesus operates. His SOP is to love freely. He doesn’t see what is in it for Him.
Remember, earlier this month, we talked about being disinterested. Disinterested means Jesus was willing to give up the trappings of His Deity.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Let’s walk through this.
- Jesus was willing to give up a lot of things because He loved us.
- We are to love others as He loved us.
- That means we are to be willing to give up a lot of things to love others.
That is so opposite of the worldview. Worldview love often expects something in return – if not I’ll love you only when you have done something for me.
Besides, that has the potential to hurt, doesn’t it?
Think about the reasons Jesus was able to give up so much for us. He didn’t have a selfish bone in His body. He wasn’t out to make money or climb the proverbial ladder.
It is important enough that we love like Christ that Jesus made it a commandment. We are ordered to love.
In John 13: 34, Jesus instituted the same commandment. “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (Jn. 13: 34 ESV).
Let’s flip that a little, though. What if we look at it as an obligation? What if we look at it as a promise or a commitment?
We promise to love all others as Jesus did. We commit to not be selfish in our love or expectant for some kind of return.
Isn’t it really both? God and Jesus give us the order to live or act a certain way. It is our promise and commitment that we will do that.
Doesn’t that make love more meaningful? We can’t be forced to love someone. It has to be our choice.
Proving Our Love
“Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends” (Jn. 15: 13 ESV)
Following Jesus’ example can extract a high price.
Jesus was setting Himself up as an example here, too. “… as I have loved you” (Jn. 15: 12 ESV). “Greater love has no one than this …” (Jn. 15: 13 ESV).
The common denominator is still love. It is a huge, powerful love.
This love prompted Jesus to choose to give up Heaven to come to die for us. The love is the motive for Jesus laying down His life.
Yes, I think Jesus had a choice. He could have told God to think again when God approached Him about the plan.
Jesus didn’t. He carried it through to the end.
That conclusion ended with Jesus’ death. That is the proof we need of Jesus’ love for us.
So many times, we expect others to prove to us that they love us. We withhold our affections and our actions until we know without a shadow of a doubt that we are loved.
We want a tangible way to see the emotion.
Jesus loves us with a passion. He most definitely proved His love.
Let’s look at it this way. Jesus has the same attributes as God. Well, He is God. That means Jesus is eternal and infinite.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Wait! What? Jesus – the eternal and infinite One – died?
Spurgeon explained this. He wrote, “Jesus needed not die at all. Up there in the glory was the Christ of God forever with the Father everlasting. He came to earth and assumed our nature that He might be capable of death, yet His body need not have died; as it was it never saw corruption, because there was not in it the element of sin which necessitated death and decay. ‘No man taketh My life from Me, but I lay it down of Myself,’ etc.”
Resource
So, here was Someone Who didn’t deserve to die Who did just that because of love’s sake. That love is limitless.
Showing Our Love to Friends
“You are my friends if you do what I command you” (Jn. 15: 14 ESV)
Showing our love for others increases our capacity to love.
The apostles called Jesus Rabbi. He saw them – in the beginning of His ministry – as pupils (hence the name disciples).
Jesus also referred to them as servants. He was the Master.
Now, right before He is scheduled to die, Jesus called them friends.
I can see that. The apostles had been and would be in training up until the very end.
The training would soon be over. Jesus wanted to acknowledge that transition.
But there is a condition. The apostles had to be obedient.
I thought it was interesting that Jesus said, “… if you do …” (Jn. 15: 14 ESV). It doesn’t say, “if you did” – past tense.
I bet this is another past, present, future verb.
Spurgeon made a strong statement. He wrote, “Abstinence from evil is a great part of righteousness, but it is not enough for friendship.”
Resource
Ooo, baby. Doesn’t that just throw out what we think?
We don’t want to be tempted to sin, so we stay real far away from it. That sounds good in theory.
But what does it prove?
We talked about this before. The problem is that we are trying to put on self-imposed regulations. We are telling ourselves to do something God didn’t ask us to do.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
Ooo, baby. Doesn’t that just throw out what we think?
We don’t want to be tempted to sin, so we stay real far away from it. That sounds good in theory.
The self-imposed regulations make it hard for us to be consistent. We don’t apply it universally. We think it wouldn’t, but we let things chip away when we determine what we will or won’t do.
I know some worldview people might be thinking we don’t have to have the same value system as everyone else. What is right for one person might not be right for another.
That may work for humans. That doesn’t work when we are talking Sovereign God and our Savior.
God can demand our obedience. He is our Creator.
Another of God’s attributes is that He is unchangeable and immutable.
To read a related devotion, click the button below.
We obey Jesus’ commands because He is our friend and our Savior.
Making the Connections
Let’s apply this to our theme for the year. We have to get this love down to the heart level.
Only by loving at the heart level can we truly keep Jesus’ commandment to love. We can play at it when we love the worldview way.
But we will only truly reach the level God is talking about when we commit to doing things God’s way.
Maclaren put it this way. He wrote, “If the heart be right all else will be right; and if there be a deficiency of love nothing will be right.”
Resource
We can’t love through actions only. We have to be transformed in our hearts to have God’s character.
How Do We Apply This?
Isn’t it interesting that the only directions that Jesus gave His apostles were to love one another? Maclaren said that Jesus didn’t even tell us to make this our ministry.
Resource
Elsewhere, He gave the “go into all the world” directions. Here, Jesus just says love.
This doesn’t mean that disciples have to find everyone a job. We aren’t to just let criminals out of jail.
We are to show others the love of Jesus in us. They are to see God through our brokenness.
Father God. Thank You for loving us. We want to show that love by loving others. Help us to be obedient to You. Amen.
What do you think?
Leave me a comment below (about this or anything else) or head over to my Facebook group for some interactive discussion.
If you don’t understand something and would like further clarification, please contact me.
If you have not signed up for the email daily or weekly providing the link to the devotions and the newsletter, do so below.
If God has used this devotion to speak with you, consider sharing it on social media.