Living to Love One Another

Living to Love One Another

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34 NIV). Is this a new command? It looks a lot like the second one we discussed. I quoted this scripture in a Bible study one day, and a fellow participant said, “It is not new, the Old Testament said the same thing.” He gave me a few examples. I, not being mature, patient, or avoiding quarrelsome disputes, said, “If you have a problem with it being new, tell Christ, He said it, not me.” Some may be thinking, What a smart aleck! They are correct. God has been convicting me of the way in which I communicate with others. I will only ask that you add your prayers to mine, that I submit myself, especially my mouth, to God’s control.
The old command was to love others as we love ourselves. Until the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, that was the best we could hope for, and it was still out of our reach.
Both the Old Testament and the New Testament give us the way in which we can obey both commands. God promised His people in Ezekiel that He would remove the heart of stone and replace it with a heart of flesh. God also promised He would “put a new spirit within them” (11:19 NKJV). Later in chapter thirty-six, God clarifies what that new spirit will be when He says, “I will put my Spirit within you” (36:27 NKJV). In both passages, He says the new spirit will cause us to walk in His statutes, keep his ordinances, and do them (see 11:20; 36:28 NKJV). The new heart and new spirit are also mentioned in Ezekiel 18:31-32
Jesus explains to Nicodemus that unless you are born of water and Spirit, you cannot receive eternal life. Jesus tells His disciples that when they are arrested and taken before kings and rulers that the Holy Spirit will speak though them. Before His crucifixion, Jesus tells His disciples that after He is gone another will come to teach them. He promises the Spirit of truth “dwells with you and will be in you” (John 14:17 NKJV). The Apostle Paul reminds us in more than one place that we are new creations in Christ (see 2 Cor 5:17; Eph 4:24; Col. 3:10). Only with the Spirit of God within us, working in conjunction with our new hearts, can we keep this command (the new command) or any other command. “We love Him because He first loved us” (1 John 4:19 NKJV).
The question then is, “How did Jesus love me?” I am going to separate the way Jesus showed love into two main categories: He showed love to all men in general ways such as providing for physical needs, spiritual needs, and salvation. Jesus also tailored His words and actions, so those He encountered would know and feel loved. Both types of love are critical and we have to learn to love both ways if we are to imitate Christ. Paul writes, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some” (1 Cor. 9:22 NKJV).

JESUS SHOWS LOVE TO ALL

Christ first showed love by leaving heaven and coming to earth in the form of a man. He endured all that we endured, facing the type of temptations that are common to man. He obeyed His parents on earth, even though He was their God (see Luke 2:51 NKJV). So one way He loved us was to come to our world and experience our pain and sufferings. We could say, “He walked a mile in our shoes.”
Jesus loved his disciples by serving them. He washed their feet at the Last Supper. Washing feet was a duty done by a slave, the youngest child, or an adult of lowest stature. That is why Peter protested Jesus washing His feet. Peter knew that the greatest person at the table, Jesus, should not be washing their feet.
The burning question I have is, “Why was this not already performed by one of the disciples?” The only reason I can think of is that each one thought they were of too high a station to perform such a menial task. The fact that they had been arguing over which one would be greatest in the kingdom during the last days of Christ’s life lends credence to that hypothesis. This arguing during the Last Supper is documented in Luke 22:24.
In fact, Jesus explains that He washed the disciples’ feet as an example to them on how they should be. He said, “If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you should do as I have done to you” (John 13:14-15 NKJV). It is important to understand that serving each other in humility, not just by washing feet, is what Jesus is talking about. Jesus repeatedly told His disciples the greatest one in the kingdom of heaven is the one who serves, not the one who is served. Usually He mentioned this after they argued over which one would be greatest. The concept of humility is a struggle for many of us, including me.
This begs the question, “Are we too busy trying to do great things to build the kingdom that we refuse to serve in the not-so-great tasks?” Pastors, I would like to point out that your congregation and staff follow your lead. If you think you are too important to pick up a candy wrapper or occasionally work with the youth in a non-teaching capacity, then your staff and parents will also see those tasks as not important. This also plays out in evangelism and other ministry functions. If the pastor is not doing something, then it is not important. At least, that is what their staff and congregation will believe. Of course a pastor can not do everything, but showing a lack of interest or action will lead his congregation to neglect the same things.
Now I want to talk to every other Christian. Your pastor is not supposed to do everything, nor is the answer to every need hiring more staff. “And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-12 NKJV, emphasis added). Your pastor’s job is to equip you to do the work of ministry. He as a leader needs to value all these things with actions and words, but you need to step up and ask, “How can I help?”
Jesus provided for the physical needs of those around Him. He is recorded on two separate occasions feeding thousands of people supernaturally. He would heal the blind, lame, and deaf. Mark 1:41 records Jesus healing a leper. He also calmed the winds and the seas to provide physical protection and peace of mind for His disciples.



Jesus suffered beatings, mocking, crucifixion, and eventually death as part of His loving us. He did not cry out, cuss, blame, lie, or even try to escape His sentence. He did this so He could be our scapegoat, our sin offering to God. He bore our iniquities quietly to the grave and on His lips was a prayer that God “…forgive them, for they do not know what they do” (Luke 23:34 NKJV).
How do we love others like Jesus loved us? Well, instead of asking ourselves, “What would Jesus do?” (WWJD), we need to ask ourselves, “What did Jesus do?” (WDJD) in similar situations. When we see a physical or spiritual need in another Christian or non-Christian, we are to do what is in our power to help. This could be providing clothing or food for physical needs. It could also be admonishing, rebuking, and exhorting the faint-hearted or those going down a wrong path. It could also be praying for others’ needs when we cannot meet them, either spiritually or physically.
We can spend time with those we think are beneath us socially, spiritually, economically, intellectually, or any other way we look down our noses at people. We can help feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give water to the thirsty, and share the gospel that leads to salvation in Christ Jesus to a lost person.
We know Jesus could heal by a word, as the centurion points out in one story, but He chose to touch a leper (see Matt. 8:1-3; 8:7-9 NKJV). Lepers are contagious and are usually horribly disfigured. Jesus provided physical healing through His touch, but He also provided something else. He showed the leper he was valued enough by Him to merit a touch.
While participating with Convoy of Hope, my wife and I were able to give that touch to many people. I served according to my gifts by walking among those waiting in line to receive the gospel, food, medical attention, etc. While walking among them, I was able to provide information, meet needs, shake hands, give hugs, and listen to what was in their hearts. This means as much to those who do not feel loved as food does to the hungry. (Convoy of Hope partners with local organizations and churches across racial and denominational lines. This partnership unites communities, providing a platform for touching lives and bringing hope to thousands of individuals and families.)
Toward the end, my wife and I started carrying groceries for those who needed help. This allowed us more intimate time with those who where hurting. We were able to pray for these people individually.
I also must say that because of past hurts, many were reluctant to accept our help. They where afraid we were going to take advantage of them in some way, because in their world no one helps for no reason. The sad thing is I believe many of them know people who claim the name of Christ and still take advantage of others.
We can also love others like Jesus when we are in conflict with them. When they curse us, we can pray for them. When they beat us, we can forgive them and ask God to do the same. When they hurt us in any way, we can pray for them. When they scream, we can talk calmly or remain quiet. When your wife brings your mother’s faults into a conversation, leave her mother out of it. When your husband is not being the spiritual leader of the home, remember “they may be won over without words by the behavior of their wives, when they see the purity and reverence of your lives” (1 Pet. 3:1-2 NKJV).


I WILL POST THE OTHER WAY JESUS SHOWED LOVE LATER.

TALLADEGA UPDATE

TALLADEGA UPDATE
By Ginger Reeves

Saturday, 10/7/06, our team of 3 joined with another small team and we stormed the city of Talladega on one of its biggest weekends of the year:  Race Weekend.  This year was especially big since they were to have truck races Saturday, for the first time, and then the Nascar races Sunday.  I ask 3 questions of people when they tell me about an event (witnessing, or otherwise):  1. Did you have fun?  I love serving our God.  I love working with my husband in this battle.  I love meeting new people.  I love watching peoples faces as they "Get it".  2. Did you learn how to do it better next time?  We learned there is no such thing as too much prayer.  We learned we need more tracts.  We gave out approx. 300 Million Dollar Bills at one of the gates in about 15 minutes.  We learned we need to ask more people to go with us next time.  3. Was God glorified?  I believe HE was.  We were serving Him, sharing His word, and being examples before thousands.  My favorite part of the day was doing something my leaders taught me during EBC 14 (evangelism boot camp, when I went to LA in September):  As we were walking with a large crowd crossing the street I started talking a little louder than usual to Jamie, explaining how sin is anything from lieing to murder to theft and how God views it all as wicked, despite how we in this world may view it.  She instantly knew what I was doing and fell right into it.  A lady a few feet in front of us though did NOT like what we were doing, because she kept looking over her shoulder shooting daggers at me.  She never said anything, but it was obvious I had hit a nerve with her.   The day did not go quite as we had expected, but we know what needs to be done when we go back in April.