John 15:9-17 CSB
"As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love. [10] If you keep my commands you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in his love. [11] "I have told you these things so that my joy may be in you and your joy may be complete. [12] "This is my command: Love one another as I have loved you. [13] No one has greater love than this: to lay down his life for his friends. [14] You are my friends if you do what I command you. [15] I do not call you servants anymore, because a servant doesn't know what his master is doing. I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything I have heard from my Father. [16] You did not choose me, but I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce fruit and that your fruit should remain, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give you. [17] "This is what I command you: Love one another.
1 Corinthians 10:15-16 CSB
I am speaking as to sensible people. Judge for yourselves what I am saying. [16] The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ?
Love each Other
When my wife and I meet with friends, it is often over dinner. This is a time of fellowship and love. To have real friends brings joy to the soul. You share what is happening in each other’s lives; you are there to laugh, to listen when the conversation becomes serious, and to give encouragement when it is needed. You simply enjoy the moments of life together.
As Christians, we share the ultimate meal of love. When we come to the Lord’s table, as 1 Corinthians says, we share a common meal and a common belief: the body and blood of our Lord. We share in what Jesus did for us out of love shown by the cross.
We are like those stranded in a great flood. We watch as the water rises and the torrents flow, threatening everything we’ve built. But then, a rescue boat appears to take people off their roofs. As we are pulled to safety and sit together in that boat, a unique fellowship develops.
In that boat, the things that separate us in the world—our titles, our bank accounts, our backgrounds—suddenly vanish. You might have a lawyer sitting next to a student, a preacher next to a man between jobs, or a doctor helping a frightened child. In the face of common peril and a shared rescue, those distinctions lose their power. What remains is a bond of survivors.
Are we as Christians any different? Just as Noah and his family were pulled from a dying world into the safety of the Ark, we have been pulled into the grace of Christ. This is the love of God for us. It isn’t a club for the perfect; it’s a rescue boat for the redeemed.
Jesus is talking to those closest to Him when He says, “As the Father has loved me, I have also loved you. Remain in my love.” There is a stark parallel here: Jesus loves us with the same intensity that the Father loves Him. But He also gives us a clear direction: the essential sign that we love the Lord is keeping His commands.
He has given us grace. He has saved us from the flood. Therefore, we are commanded to love one another—not with a “fake” or polite love, but a true, sacrificial love. We are called to show charity and share that love with those who are still perishing in the water. Jesus showed us the way by reacting to our need and laying down His own life for us. We are to have this same attitude, putting away deceit and selfishness to become people who truly care and share.
Though we are technically His servants, Jesus calls us friends. He doesn’t keep us in the dark; He shares His heart and His mission with us, allowing us to be an active part of the Kingdom of Heaven. He called the Apostles one by one to bear fruit, and we are the continuation of that fruit.
Everything we labor for on this earth—the selfish needs and the material things—will eventually turn to dust. The things of this world wear down and dissolve. We have a daily choice: to be selfish and grasp for everything in life beyond our needs, or to act in love. This is about more than money; it is about giving our very lives and love. When our labor is cut short and it is time to be with the Lord, the only thing that endures is the love we showed others. That love will be a balm for our souls.
Reflection Questions
- Looking at the people in your local church or community, do you see them as fellow survivors in the rescue boat of grace? How does that shift your attitude toward someone you might usually overlook?
- Jesus says He calls us friends because He has made known to us what the Father is doing. How does it change your daily walk to know that you are a friend of God who is “in on” His plan?
- If the things of this world turn to dust, what are you doing today that will actually last into eternity? How can you “lift the light of the Lord” today so others are drawn to the rescue boat?
Prayer
Father,
I thank You for Your grace. Thank You for saving me and placing me among a family of survivors. Forgive me for the times I have been selfish or focused on my own “status” instead of the love You commanded. Help me to remain in Your love today and to treat those around me as friends and fellow heirs. If there is someone who does not know Jesus in my life today, use me to share your light with them. Let my life bear fruit that lasts long after the things of this world have turned to dust.
Amen.
