A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.
John 13:34
The newness of this command is that it takes believers beyond loving each other as neighbors. That is the second greatest command; love your neighbor as yourself. Here Jesus ups the stakes for all believers. We are to love each other the way that He has loved us.
Jesus loved us by giving His life for us. He loved us by tolerating us in our weaknesses. He loved us by reaching out when we were betraying Him. Jesus has set an impossibly high standard for believers to love each other by. The only way we can keep this standard is by His Spirit. Christ has called us to live a very high level life. He has called us to a life of loving others like He did.
This love for others is a commandment, not a suggestion or request. We are told by the One who loves us most and who will be our final judge that we are to live to His standard. This will require a lot of repentance our part. We will have to constantly move towards Him. We will have to make course corrections in our hearts often. He is holy. We have His holiness imparted to us and have to learn to live in it.
By His Command,
Pastor Jason
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