Love One Another
In a world increasingly broken by division, loneliness, and hostility, the biblical command to “love one another” shines with undiminished relevance and urgency. John records these words from Jesus: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another” (John 13:34). Far from a emotional suggestion, this command lies at the very heart of Christian living. It is a litmus test of authentic faith, the visible expression of invisible grace.
The Weight of Love
From Genesis to Revelation, the love of God for His people and His call for us to reflect that love to others is a central theme of Scripture. Wayne Grudem reminds us that “God’s love means that God eternally gives of himself to others” (Systematic Theology). This divine self-giving is most clearly revealed in the person and work of Jesus Christ, who, as Paul reminds us, “while we were still sinners… died for us” (Romans 5:8). So, Christian love is never abstract—it is alive, active, and sacrificial.
D.A. Carson highlights that the command to love one another is “not a sentimental thing” but a revolutionary force in the Christian community: “The new command is simple enough for a toddler to memorize and appreciate, yet profound enough that the most mature believers are repeatedly embarrassed at how poorly they comprehend it and put it into practice” (The Gospel According to John).
A Christian Ethic
In his book, Life Together, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote that Christian community must be founded not on human ideals, but on the love of Christ: “Christian brotherhood is not an ideal which we must realize; it is rather a reality created by God in Christ in which we may participate.” This love is not merely moralism. It is participation in the divine life—a living out of the Trinitarian fellowship where love flows eternally between Father, Son, and Spirit.
John insists that love is proof of regeneration: “Whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:7–8). Love isn’t merely emotional warmth—it is willful commitment to the good of another.
Love One Another Today
If love is at the heart of Christian living, how can we live it our often-disconnected lives? Here are five biblical, practical, and powerful ways to love one another:
1. Listen
James exhorts us to be “quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger” (James 1:19). In a culture dominated by noise, listening is a form of love. Bonhoeffer warned that “he who can no longer listen to his brother will soon be no longer listening to God either.”
2. Forgive Freely
Paul tells the Ephesians, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:32, ESV). Forgiveness is perhaps the most radical form of love because it demands that we relinquish the right to retaliate and absorb the pain of others’ wrongs. Tim Keller, in The Reason for God, writes that “forgiveness means absorbing the debt and cost of the sin yourself.”
3. Be Hospital
Scripture repeatedly emphasizes the importance of hospitality: “Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality” (Romans 12:13). Hospitality is not just entertaining friends, but it means making space in our lives for others—especially the marginalized and lonely. I would encourage you to read Rosaria Butterfield’s, The Gospel Comes with a House Key as it challenges believers to see hospitality as a central tool for gospel witness and love.
4. Bear Burdens
Paul writes, “Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ” (Galatians 6:2). This kind of love is not transactional but sacrificial. It involves entering the suffering of others, even when it costs us comfort or convenience.
5. Praying for Each Other
James encourages us to “pray for one another, that you may be healed” (James 5:16). To love someone well is to lift their name into the presence of God. Intercessory prayer is both an act of faith and affection. It reflects Christ's own priestly ministry of continually interceding on our behalf (Hebrews 7:25).
A Witness
The Church’s credibility in the world rests not primarily on doctrinal statements or social programs, but on LOVE. Jesus declared: “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). This love isn’t man-made; it is the overflow of abiding in Christ (John 15:4–5). And when it is lived out in real ways, it becomes the most powerful apologetic the Church can offer.
C.S. Lewis wrote, “To love at all is to be vulnerable.” Yet it is this vulnerability that makes love not only human but holy. With renewed purpose, let us take up the command of Christ: “to love one another—not in word only, but in deed and truth” (1 John 3:18).
YOU ARE LOVED!
PastorPusch
