July 7th, 2022

Loving Others is Loving Jesus

1 John 3:16 NIV

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters."

      When I was young, my first job was in the fast-food industry. Yes, I was the girl handing Happy Meals out of the drive-thru window of our local Mcdonald's! While that job definitely had its downfalls, there was always at least one upside to it that brought me so much joy. My heart would dang near explode when someone came through and decided to pay for the car behind them. Now, this is nice, but what that person didn't realize was, that nine times out of ten, they would be the start of a chain reaction of kindness. If one car paid for the person behind them, then the car behind them almost always did the same. And this random act of kindness would go maybe four or five cars deep! It was amazing. 

      Friends, here's my point: Jesus died for us. He died for you and me. He didn't do it because we deserved it. He didn't do it for the publicity or to boost His ego. He did it because He loved us so much, that He wanted us to be able to live in a close relationship with God. We will never be able to repay Him for His sacrifice, but what we can do is love one another the way He loved us. This was Jesus' command that He left with His disciples. We see this in John 15:12-15 where He further tells them that they are much more than servants, but His friends. Jesus is the greatest example of how we should love one another. Always remember that in loving others, you are loving the Lord. This is just a fraction of how we can show our thanks to the one who gave it all for us.

I want to encourage you to ask Jesus to break down and walls that may be keeping you from loving our brothers and sister through Christ. Ask Him to open your eyes to see new ways that you may be a blessing to them.