John 14:15-24
15 “If you love me, keep my commands. 16 And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever—17 the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Before long, the world will not see me anymore, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live. 20 On that day you will realize that I am in my Father, and you are in me, and I am in you. 21 Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.”
22 Then Judas (not Judas Iscariot) said, “But, Lord, why do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?”
23 Jesus replied, “Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. 24 Anyone who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me. [1]
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What does it mean to love Jesus? How do we show that we love Him? This is not merely an academic question. It gets to the heart of the faith. Jesus summarized the commandments as essentially loving God and loving neighbor. But how do we love God? How do we love Jesus?
What jumps out at me in this passage is that Jesus answers the question three times. If I love Him, I will keep His commands. It’s really quite simple. Love for Jesus is to be more than a feeling, more than gratitude, more even than publicly acknowledging Him as Lord and Savior. It’s obedience to His commands.
And what does that mean? The life of a disciple, growing in the character and competence of Jesus. Being like Jesus and doing what He did. Jesus’ commands are not just His verbal commands, but His way of life. This is I am called to be. And by living in this way I show my love for Him.
Now, granted, I will never do this perfectly in this life. The persistence and pernicious sinful nature leads me constantly down paths of un-Christlike selfishness. I live in repentance and grace. But still this passage leads me to ask (at least) a few questions: Are there areas in my life where I am living in willful disobedience? Are there things I am doing that are not in line with His commands? Are there things He has commanded that I am failing to do?
And note that in this same passage where Jesus is calling for loving obedience, He is promising not to leave us as orphans, but to send us the Spirit. I have the Holy Spirit in me to lead me to love Jesus through my life.
So my prayer is for the Spirit’s work in me this day. That I might show my love for my savior by following His commands, being shaped more and more into His image for the sake of others.
What is the Word leading you to pray for today?
[1] The New International Version. 2011 (Jn 14:15–24). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan.
