Jesus tells us that the entire Law and Prophets hang on these two commands1: “The Lord our God is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your might.”2 and “’You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”1
And Jesus also says, “But I say to you that listen, Love your enemies, do good to those that hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”3
And then Jesus says, “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”4
Love of God, love of myself, love of my neighbors, love of my enemies?!? As Jesus does? All together? All at once? How does that work?
Love is a complex, confusing thing for us humans. C. S. Lewis masterfully integrates our feelings of love (affection, friendship, eros, and charity) with the Christian life.5 Yet, the love that Jesus bids us love is not purely human love. It is also divine love—“Just as I have loved you.” says the God/man, Jesus Christ.6 He hints at the holiness of the love that He asks us to dispense: “You therefore must be perfect, as the Father is perfect.”7
God is love.8 God is perfect…and, we are not.
We think we know what God means by love. We cannot completely comprehend. God’s ways and thoughts are higher than ours can ever hope to be.9 We preach ‘love like Jesus’ and warm thoughts of acceptance without judgment flood our hearts. Justice rolling like a river10 convicts our souls that something must be done. That passion gooses our thoughts into plans for action. All good things as long as we understand that ministry is about the form that divine love takes not its essence.
Meanwhile, do we understood the love Jesus bids us do? By what definition can we do love as Jesus does? How do we disconnect our human-ness and open the flow of the Father’s love that Jesus showered upon the Apostles and us?
Ever notice that the episodes in the Gospels show Jesus meeting people where they are. He graciously and unfailingly heals them, encourages them, raises them from the dead, forgives their sin, corrects their thinking, etc. We see Him meet their need but rarely do we see the rest of the story.11 Did the woman caught in adultery sin no more? Did the rich young ruler ever sell his possessions? Did the any of the other nine lepers offer thanksgiving to God after showing themselves to the Temple priests?
The point being that Jesus may meet you where you are, but He doesn’t leave you there. You can initially rebuff His helping hand but that meeting will not leave you unchanged. (I would suggest your own experience proves it. Mine does. Sanctification is an on-going process.)
No matter the form His love took (healing, forgiving, correcting, etc.) Jesus did His love in the same way for each of them. Affection, friendship, eros, and charity were not part of the calculation. Is it possible for us to love like Jesus? To imitate his sacrificial love? Unconnected to our human reactions?
Absolutely. Absolutely not. We can but we won’t always be successful or good at it. Yet knowing what it is leads to the how of it.
To love like Jesus is to put the well-being of another ahead of our own.12
It’s as simple and as difficult as that.
Don’t take my word for it. Check the Scriptures. 1. Matt. 22:36-40 2. Deut 6:4-5 3. Luke 6:27-28 4. John 13:34-35 5. The Four Loves by C. S. Lewis ©1960 renewed ©1988 6. John 5:18 7. Matthew 5:48 8. 1 John 4:8 9. Isaiah 55:9 10. Amos 5:24 11. The Samaritan village and Lazarus/Mary/Martha are exceptions. 12. 1Corinthians 10:24
Scattered Verses 