John 13:34, 35 - The New Command - Love As Jesus Did.
John 13:34, 35 (NIV) A new command I give
you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so
you must love one another. By this all men will
know that you are my disciples, if you love one
another.
INTRODUCTION
A new commandment ... as I have loved you.
The commandment to love was not new. Deuteronomy
6:5 commanded love for God and Leviticus 19:18
commanded loving one's neighbor as oneself (Matt.
22:34-40; Rom. 13:8-10; Gal. 5:14; James 2:8).
However, Jesus' command regarding love presented a
distinctly new standard for two reasons: 1) it was
sacrificial love modeled after His love (as I loved You;
15:13), and 2) it is produced through the New
Covenant by the transforming power of the Holy Spirit
(Jer. 31:29-34; Ezek. 36:24-26; Gal. 5:22).
[MacArthur Daily Bible 2003]
We are to love each other as Jesus loved us,
and he loved us enough to give his life for us.
We may not have to die for someone, but there
are other ways to practice sacrificial love:
listening, helping, encouraging, giving. Think of
someone in particular who needs this kind of love
today. [Life Application SB re 15:12, 13]
Love is more than simply warm feelings; it
is an attitude that reveals itself in action.
How can we love others as Jesus loves us? By
helping when it's not convenient, by giving when it
hurts, by devoting energy to others' welfare rather
than our own, by absorbing hurts from others
without complaining or fighting back. This kind of
loving is hard to do. That is why people notice
when you do it and know you are empowered by a
supernatural source. The Bible has another beautiful
description of love in 1 Corinthians 13. [Life
Application SB]
COMMENTARY PEARL
I opened my email spam folder to clear it
out, and this message header greeted me: "Let
eHarmony show you what real love looks like today!"
Later I opened my music library to choose some
housecleaning accompaniment and noticed how many songs had
"love" in the title. I wondered how many of the
untold numbers of books, poems, and songs that have
ever been written about love are focused on
feelings and emotions rather than on the real thing.
Jesus didn't just teach about love; His
entire life defined it - encouraging, healing,
building up, raising the dead, and most importantly,
giving up His life on our behalf. The New Testament
is filled with His followers' encouragement and
instructions to help us love as Jesus did. They urge us
to put others' interests ahead of our own
(Philippians 2:4), love each other deeply since love
covers many sins (1 Peter 4:8), and love with our
actions, not just words (1 John 3:18). The thirteenth
chapter of 1 Corinthians beautifully describes what
a lifestyle of Christlike love looks like.
Jesus didn't command us to feel love but
to live it out. Isn't it interesting that just
a single letter differentiates the words
"live" and "love"? Come to think of it, the more I
take "I" out of the way I live, the more I will
be able to love others as Jesus did. Dianne
Neal Matthews
Faith Step: Are you satisfied with how
well youre following Jesus's example to love?
Read through I Corinthians 13 and ask Him to show
you any areas where you can improve. [Mornings
With Jesus 2024 Devotional by Guideposts and
Zondervan]
CLOSING THOUGHT
If you want to grow spiritually, let love
be the ruling principle of your life. Be ruled
by love.
Love does not necessarily imply approval
of the one loved. If God had waited until He
could approve of us before He sent His Son to
redeem us, where would we be?
Of all the gifts God offers His children,
love is the greatest. Of all the fruits of the
Holy Spirit, love is the first.
The Bible declares that we who follow
Christ should love one another as God loved us when
He sent His Son to die on the cross. The Bible
says that the moment we come to Christ, He gives
us supernatural love and that His love is shed
abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. The
greatest demonstration of the fact that we are
Christians is that we love one another. If we learn
this secret of God early in our Christian
experience, we will have gone a long way toward a
mature, happy Christian life.
Are you waiting to approve of someone
before you love them fully? [Peace for Each Day by
Billy Graham]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY
John 13:34, 35 - The New Command - Love As
Jesus Did.
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2024/20240127-0909.html
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230626-1036.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2017/20170209-1059.html
John 13:34, 35 - The Distinguishing Mark of
a Christian.
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2020/20200831-1501.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/
