TOPIC: THE COMMAND TO LOVE
Text: John 15:12-17
15:12 This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.
15:13 Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.
15:14 You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.
15:14 No longer do I call you servants, for a servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all things that I heard from My Father I have made known to you.
15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain, that whatever you ask the Father in My name He may give you.
15:17 These things I command you, that you love one another.
STUDY:
Today, we celebrate St. Barnabas the Apostle. Barnabas was a son of consolation who demonstrated the love of Christ by welcoming Paul into the Church when nobody else was willing to welcome him (Acts 9:27-29). The text today presents us with the emphasis Jesus Christ places on the importance of His followers’ love for one another. Jesus makes us to see that His main commandment for His followers centers on love. He stresses that what makes His disciples His friends is simply in their obedience to His commandment (v.13). The commandment here is that His disciples love one another (v.12). In other words, the followers of Christ are left with no other option than to love one another just as Christ has loved them.
Beloved, this is another wake up call for you to examine the kind of love you exhibit in your daily life towards the brethren. True love of Christ goes beyond denomination, race, nationality and colour. It extends beyond your personal convictions and judgment of other people’s interest. It is about forgiving the faults of others without any resentment. True love will always fills our hearts with peace, joy and compassion.
It is never judgmental and does not justify sin. You need to examine the kind of love you exhibit if it is in line with Christ’s love. The love of Christ, when truly displayed, will bring comfort and consolation to people around. Be determined to obey the commandments of the Lord to love your fellow Christians, even when it is not convenient.
Prayer:
Dear God, Help me to always reflect your love in Christ in my daily life in Jesus’ Name.
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