A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. John 13:34 (KJV).

REFLECT:
We all know that love is a universal concept. It is one if not the most sought commodity, and whether we want to admit it or not we all want to be loved and in turn give love.

It is sad to note that some of us direct our love the wrong way, the object, and channel through which we give or show love is so out of place.

It is either that our object of love should not be what we must place our total attention and affection on, or that the ways, methods, or reasons for which we show our love is outright selfish, self-centered, and wicked.

For instance, people will give more love and affection to their pets than to their fellow humans. As a result, human lives mean nothing to them.

Others try to love only when and if they can get something in return. They are just there for the grabs. As long as what keeps them in such relationships is still coming in, they are good. Once such incentive is taken away, they abandon ship. These are the so-called friends of convenience.

So, how can we truly say we love or find the love we are looking for when our concept of love is not right? We do not have the right values when it comes to love.

The big question here is, what do we do? The only answer to such a question is that we must humble ourselves and decide to learn the ropes afresh. We must be willing to give ourselves to be taught, learn, and acquire the knowledge on how to grow in the right kind of love.

It is also important to note that if we must learn and acquire the right way(s) to live out love in our lives, we must learn this from the person who has the greatest knowledge of what love is, and this is none other than our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is love personified.

Jesus’s sacrifice of love for mankind qualifies Him to be the only authority in the aspects of love that we can ever have or need. Therefore, we must learn from the master Himself, His values about love, what it means, and how to use it in the right, and appropriate ways.

So, what will this look like? Our Bible verse for today —- John 13:34, gives us the right keys to apply to help us effectively operate this kind of love, called God’s kind of love.

First and foremost, what we learn from this Bible verse is that this kind of love is a commandment that must be applied through obedience. Without applying this specific key, we must as well say goodbye to the whole venture of our learning process.

Secondly, it teaches us who we must emulate. This person referred to here is Jesus. Why? Because Jesus first loved us even while we were yet sinners. “We love him, because he first loved us.” 1 John 4: 19 (KJV).

Thirdly, we learn from our Bible verse for today how Jesus wants us to love. He wants us to love like He loved and still loves us. “That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” John 13:34 (KJV).

So, how did Jesus love us? According to the Bible, we are told that Jesus loved us unconditionally and sacrificially, which He demonstrated through His death on the cross of Calvary.

Jesus’s kind of love was a love of deep commitment, which brought about a transformation in the lives of us who are the objects of His love. Of course, He loves the other aspects of creation, however, human beings are His star and ultimate objects of His love.

Thus, it is us man that He came to earth to die for by pouring out His blood and life of pure love to redeem us back to Himself and reconcile us to God the Father. This is, therefore, the kind of love we must look to acquire, adapt, and demonstrate to our fellow men.

To effectively work and walk the love life, so that we make the kind of difference the world needs, we must give ourselves to diligently learn from the greatest lover of all time—Jesus our Lord.

Ebimobo W. Obasi

PLEASE PRAY ALONG:

A Prayer to Love Others Like Jesus.

Dear LORD JESUS, You gave us the command to love others. At times, this is easier said than done. Please work within our hearts to transform our character so that our love begins to look more and more like Yours. AMEN.