Your answer shouldn’t be based on your feelings.
Regardless of where you live, it’s difficult to ignore the senseless loss of life, pain and suffering that continue to wreak havoc on mankind.
Yet, in the midst of it all we see hope, resilience, love and sacrifice.
Last week, in the United States (El Paso, Texas) a mother used her body to shield her 2-month old baby from the onslaught of gunshots. The husband threw his body on top of his wife’s. The baby was the only survivor.
“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends,” Jesus said in John 15:13.
Would you lay your down your life for love? What happens if the loved one is a friend?
When we say “I love you”, it’s often an expression of our feelings. The Oxford dictionary describes love as an “intense feeling”. However, our feelings change based on actions we either appreciate or dislike in others. So, we fall in love and out of love, we “follow” and “unfollow” our social media friends.
The love that Jesus spoke of is unconditional, selfless and never changes. It’s a mindset and a way of life, and less about feelings.
1 Corinthians 13 sums up love as: patient, kind, knows no envy, keeps no record of wrongs, does not delight in anyone’s misfortune, always protects, always trusts, always hope and always perseveres.
Therefore, love has no personal benefit.
Jesus goes on to say in John 15:14, “You are my friends if you do what I command.” What are His two greatest commandments (Matthew 22:36-39)?
- Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and mind
- Love your neighbor as you love yourself
As our friend, Jesus loved us so much that He laid down His life for us—assuming all our sins, sicknesses and diseases. If in return, we call Jesus friend, then we’ll live the life of love He commanded, putting His agenda ahead of our own, laying down our lives for Him.
What is Jesus’ agenda? That none should perish but all have eternal life.
If we love Jesus, we’ll feed and take care of His sheep (John 21:15-16) and we’ll deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him (Matthew 16:24).
Just imagine what this world would be like if we simply share and demonstrate Jesus’ unconditional love.
It’s the hope that the world needs, and that’s our calling.
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About CHAYIL GLORY
CHAYIL glory is the all-powerful, great glory of God manifested in and through his believers in the earth. The CHAYIL GLORY blog is published every Monday with insights to understand and apply God’s perspective to everyday life.