Command to Love One Another
John 13:31-35 – Victory Fellowship
April 18, 2021 - Rev. Roderick Grabski
I. Introduction:
a. Did you even think that the love we express is a witness to others?
b. Some folks are offended or even depressed by an outward show of love, but we are actually commanded by Jesus to do so.
c. Why? Because Jesus was about to do what He came to do and unless his disciples held together in the bond of love, Satan would have a field day.
II. Jesus instructed His disciples to “love, even as I have loved you.”
III. Love in Action
a. Love like this is expressed - not in feelings - but in actions
i. Love in action doesn’t consider the consequences
ii. Genuine love leaps before it looks
b. The very kind of love Jesus has for us:
IV. Application:
a. We answer these questions with ACTION. With our compassionate response to the world, especially other Christians.
b. We will be identified as followers of Jesus because of our love in action.
V. Conclusion:
a. In 1966, Peter Scholtes wrote a hymn based on John 13:35 – They’ll know we are Christians by our love.
i. The hymn speaks of an active love that leaps before it looks.
ii. It talks about unity in Christ:
1. One in the Spirit & one in the Lord
2. Walking hand in hand – spreading the gospel.
3. Working side by side – Praising God
iii. The Hymn affirms how we, as Christians, are identified by the world because of our love.
b. This is the kind of love that our Lord commanded us to have.
Let our love in action reveal the power of Christ in our lives.
May we leap into the world without looking.
May the world know we are Christians by our Love.
Prayer
Song: They’ll Know We are Christians by Our Love
John 13:31-35 NLT
31 As soon as Judas left the room, Jesus said, “The time has come for the Son of Man to enter into his glory, and God will be glorified because of him. 32 And since God receives glory because of the Son, he will give his own glory to the Son, and he will do so at once. 33 Dear children, I will be with you only a little longer. And as I told the Jewish leaders, you will search for me, but you can’t come where I am going. 34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. 35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.”