Love Wins || John 13:34-35 || Manna for the Mind #16

Welcome to Day 16 of my “Manna for the Mind” devotional series! This series takes a passage of scripture (typically 1-3 verses) and builds its understanding through its context and connecting scripture. Doing this helps us understand what the Bible truly teaches us. 

John 13:34-35

34          So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other, just as I have loved you, you should love each other.

35          Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.

Jesus says our Christ-like love will show those around us that we are his disciples. The best way to show others the authentic way of being a Christian is to love them in the same way Jesus loved you. Love is more than simple and warm feelings. Love reveals itself in action. Those moments when you feel too busy, but you still help anyway. Those moments when your giving feels like a true sacrifice, and you still do it. Those moments when you devote your energy to others who are struggling, especially when you are running on fumes. Those are moments when you absorb the hurt from others without complaint, arguing, and seeking revenge.

These things are hard to do, but those same reasons are why people notice when you do it. When they do, you can share with them that your actions are empowered, guided, and driven by a supernatural source, AKA the Holy Spirit. You may not realize why you commit those loving acts. You may be curious when committing these acts feels like you’re on autopilot. When I have these realizations, I know it’s the Holy Spirit guiding my words and steps.

1 Peter 1:22 talks about why we need to show this love.

1 Peter 1:22

22          You were cleansed from your sins when you obeyed the truth, so now you must show sincere love to each other as brothers and sisters. Love each other deeply with all your heart.

Sincere love involves selfless giving. Meaning that a self-centered person cannot truly love. Selfless means being concerned more with the needs of others than with our own. The love and forgiveness that come from God free us from the focus on ourselves and redirect it to meeting the needs of others. We do need to keep our own needs up to a healthy level. When operating at 100%, it’s time to switch gears and focus on others. If we’re at 100% and think we must reach that 110% benchmark, we move from selfless to selfish. 100% is perfect, and we’re still human. 100% is who we are in God. Share your overflow with each other.

1 John 2:8 says this about being that light to each other.

1 John 2:8

8             Yet it is also new. Jesus lived the truth of his commandment, and you also are living it. For the darkness is disappearing, and the true light is already shining.

Love needs to be the force, the glue, that binds us together. Love needs to be the identifying mark of the Christian community. If your small group, Christian friends, or church identifies Christians but doesn’t love, it is worthless. Love keeps us walking in the light. We cannot make our light shine brighter while we hate each other. Our light shines brighter when we allow love to dominate our personality.

1 John 4:20 talks about the reaction of love with each other.

1 John 4:20

20          If someone says, “I love God,” but hates a fellow believer, the person is a liar; for if we don’t love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see?

It’s easy to say that we love God when that love doesn’t cost us anything more than weekly attendance at church services. We may even claim our love for God twice a week at church. The real test of our love for God is shown in how we treat the people right before us – our family members and friends. How do you treat people outside of church? What’s your reaction to the people in line at the grocery store? What is your face saying that you’re watching them unload their cart? How’s your mind building their story based on what you see? Is it dominated by loving thoughts or judgmental thoughts?

We can genuinely love those created in his image if we choose it. Love is a choice. Love is a lifestyle. Love is an action. Love is the way. Jesus’ love reveals itself in our compassion, generosity, and ability to listen and help others. It makes me want to share 1 Corinthians 13 with you. Actually, let’s close with that. I want the words of this chapter to be your prayer for today. Let them remind you what love is and is not. May it rest on your heart as you interact with those around you.

Love never gives up. Love cares more for others than for self. Love doesn’t want what it doesn’t have. Love doesn’t strut, doesn’t have a swelled head, doesn’t force itself on others, isn’t always “me first,” doesn’t fly off the handle, doesn’t keep score of the sins of others, doesn’t revel when others grovel, takes pleasure in the flowering of truth, puts up with anything, trust God always, always looks for the best, never looks back, but keeps going to the end. – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (MSG)