Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. Love your neighbor as yourself ( Mark 12:31). He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. You have heard that it was said, “Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He was clear in his messages about who to love. Of course, we are called to love our brothers and sister is in Christ but Jesus took it further. Others say it means Christians are called to love other Christians more than those who are not disciples. Some might argue that because Jesus was talking to his disciples and said one another that means Christians are only called to love other Christians. We are called to love wholeheartedly and sacrificially like God loves us. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends ( John 15:13). Translating that into how we are to love is this verse. This love is to love like God loves.īut God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us ( Romans 5:8). Jesus used the word agape for love when issuing the command. This means the command is issued to all who would call themselves a disciple of Christ. Jesus’ words were that everyone will know you are my disciples by following his command. This left Jesus with the remaining eleven men who had chosen to follow him. Jesus gave the command following the last supper and after Judas had left to betray him. We are called to love one another so we’ll walk in the new law of love. Jesus was not only summoning with an authoritative order, but he was also instituting a new law to replace the law of Moses - the law of love. The word command in the original Greek means an injunction, ordinance, or law. Jesus used the word command which is a bit stronger. The word call means to call into action, to summon. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another ( John 13:34-35). As I have loved you, so you must love one another. To answer the question of why we are called, we need to read it in its context, which includes the preceding verse.Ī new command I give you: Love one another. What is meant by called? Jesus was talking to the eleven disciples, so how do we know this applies to us today? What did Jesus mean? Who are we to love? Why is love so important? How are we to do this? What Does it Mean That We Are Called to Love? So, what else is there to say? Well, plenty. It reads “by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” Watch “Where is God in Our Fires?” with Jordan St.The short and simple answer to why we are called to love one another is found in John 13:35. Watch his interview with Bekah to learn how God led him through the fires. Cyr has also lived through a painful situation with his daughter. It also reminds us that God uses our trials, so we can help others and tell our story of how God works in our lives. The song is a worshipful tribute to her Heavenly Father that demonstrates her desire for people to know that Jesus can help us through any situation we are going through. This experience also inspired Anne’s song “My Jesus”. He is giving her opportunity to share her story and to give hope and encouragement to others who are in difficult times. Through processing this life event and learning to worship through hardship, God led Anne on a different journey than she expected. She had to make a decision if she believed God and if she could trust Him even when it didn’t make sense. A hopeless situation forced Anne to evaluate who God really is. Anne Wilson and her family experienced a devastating tragedy.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |