That You Love One Another!

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)

What is so “new” about this command that the Lord gave to His disciples? Clearly, Jesus had previously commanded His followers to love one another. In fact, He had told them not only to love their neighbors but also to love their enemies (Matthew 5:43-45). The “new” part of this command, then, is not that we are to love one another, but the qualification that is put on the love we are to have for one another. Jesus told His disciples that they are love one another, “even as I have loved you.” The difference is the degree to which we are to love. 

But how did Jesus love His disciples? In the immediate context you will remember that Jesus had just finished performing an act of service towards His disciples, that of washing their feet (John 13:5-12). It is interesting to note the circumstances surrounding this act of service. In John 13:1-4, we learn that Jesus knew “His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father,” and that “the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him,” and “knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands,” He “got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel He girded Himself” to wash the disciples’ feet. After Jesus had washed all of the disciples’ feet, including Judas, whom He knew was ready to go out and betray Him (John 13:11, 30), He told His disciples that He had done this to set an example for them. The example was of how they were to treat one another, how they were to love one another. Jesus loved His disciples so much that He, as their Master, was willing to stoop down and serve them. And not just to serve them that were doing as they should, but even serving the one who was getting ready to betray Him to a cruel death on a cross. 

We can further see the attitude and the way that Jesus loved by looking at and considering the enormous price that He paid to demonstrate His love towards us. He loves us so much that He gave up His own life for us. And He loved us not at a time when we were great friends of His, but while we were in fact enemies of Him and His Father (Romans 5:6-10). He was willing to sacrifice Himself for the poor lost sinners of the world, for you and me. He loves us even when we are the most unlovable. He loves us the same way that he loved Judas, knowing that the one He was serving was not treating Him the way He deserved to be treated. 

If this is the way that Christ loves us, then this should be the way we love one another. We need to have compassion for our brethren, care for them and love them, even when they are not deserving of it. We must love our brethren in spite of their imperfections; and not just that, but even if they are sinning against us and hurting us. If Christ loved me while I was His enemy, lost in sin, then certainly I should love my brother and sister in Christ regardless of their shortcomings and faults.

If we accomplish this and are truly reflecting Christ’s love in our lives towards one another, people will notice that something is different about us. Jesus says, “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). They will be intrigued by our attitude and the love we have for one another. They will want to learn more about what makes us so different and allows us to have these great relationships with each other. They will want to know what they can do to find the kind of peace and happiness that comes along with the love we have for each other. Their curiosity about our love will give us opportunity to reach out and talk to them about Christ. 

So, let us love one another, even as Christ has loved us!