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.
John 13:34-35
How do you recognize Jesus’ followers? How do you find Christians? Jesus said they love each other just as he loved the disciples. In the immediate context this means he is willing to give sacrificially and extravagantly by dying for them at the cross, and he is also willing to love selflessly and practically by washing their feet. His ministry reveals he will do almost anything in between extravagant and practical. Imagine if we all read the Gospels and committed to love each other in the same way Jesus showed his love to his disciples!
And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Romans 5:5
It’s hard to believe that there is an endless supply of anything! But the promise of this passage, even in its context of suffering and difficulty, is that we have an endless supply of love as the Holy Spirit fills our hearts with love. This love is as big as God and is supplied by the Holy Spirit’s living inside us as followers of Jesus. We can receive and be blessed by God’s love, and we have the power to love others out of God’s deep reservoir of love.
Father of Compassion and God of all grace, I thank you for teaching me to love
through the example of Jesus. Thank you for your powerful grace that is given to me through your Spirit and enables me both to receive your love and to love others as Jesus did. May my life reflect this powerful gift in both good times and hard times. May my words and actions reflect his love toward your people today, tomorrow, and until you bring us all home to you. In the name of Christ, my Great Example, I pray. Amen.
Ken Crawford 