Day 16

“I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me, but the world must learn that I love the Father and I do exactly what my Father has commanded me.” — JOHN 14:30-31

Love is shown in many ways: kindness, compassion, generosity, forgiveness, mercy, but perhaps the most challenging for the majority of us is through obedience. Personally experiencing God’s love does not come automatically. It is conditional, but one of the things we must believe, as Scripture teaches, is that if God calls us He enables us. Added to loving God with all our heart, soul, mind and strength, Jesus said, “Love your neighbour as yourself. There is no command greater than these.” (Mark 12:31).

To love your neighbour as yourself is intricately related to our relationship with God. Though we have all been damaged and hurt at some point, taking that first step and reaching out, we begin to experience the love God intended; merciful, forgiving, kind – just as He is with us. Jesus said, “If you love me, you’ll obey what I command.” (John 14:15). In John 14:21, He said, “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.”

The love Jesus has for us becomes experiential in the context of our obedience to Him. Our obedience to Him is saying, “Lord, I want to live in such a way as to please and honour You and to further your purposes as You’ve revealed them.” Through His obedience, even to death on a cross, Jesus set the supreme example in demonstrating His love for His Father. 

Our experience of God’s love can never be detached from our obedience to Him, but it is not something we are left to work out on our own. If we are in Christ, the Holy Spirit is at work, entering every facet of our lives, and replacing our desires with God’s desires, our unrighteousness with His righteousness. It doesn’t matter what we’ve done in the past or where we’ve come from… as long as we come humbly. The Bible tells us where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more. God’s forgiveness extends to the deepest sin and those in Christ who are forgiven most love the most.

PRAYER: Dear Heavenly Father, I confess that it isn’t always easy to love everyone I meet, but when I look at them through your eyes, I see someone You love, so how can I not do the same? Forgive me, Lord, and fi ll me with your love that I can graciously pass on to others.

TO REFLECT UPON: What are my thoughts when encountering someone I do not like? Does the love of God for that person change my perspective?