Choose to Love

“So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.” John 13:34

Love each other. It’s a commandment not a suggestion. Jesus gave this commandment on the evening that he was betrayed by one of his closest friends. This was the same evening that Jesus washed the feet of his disciples, an act of love and humility difficult to fully grasp without a point of reference in our culture. Jesus knew that Judas was about to betray Him, yet he washed the feet of Judas in the same manner that he washed the feet of all the others. On the very next day, Jesus would give his life for all of them and for all of humanity. 

So why a new commandment? By his unselfish act of love, Jesus focused not merely on the feeling of love but on the decision to love. “This is how I want you to love,” he said, “the same way I have loved you.” Jesus loved unconditionally. Jesus loved sacrificially. Jesus loved those who chose not to love him. Jesus loved those who betrayed him. Jesus loved with the love of the Father that was in Him. 

Because of the love of the Father in us, we can choose to follow Christ’s commandment to love each other the way He loves us, not focussing on a feeling of love but rather on a decision to love.