Quote for the Day
“As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”
Today's Prayer
Father, open my eyes to you and allow my flesh to be diminished by your power working in my life. May YOU be the love I allow to work in and through and with me each moment.
John 13:31-38
John 13:31-38 (NIV)31 When he was gone, Jesus said, “Now is the Son of Man glorified and God is glorified in him. 32 If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.33 “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.34 “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”36 Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”37 Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”38 Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? I tell you the truth, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!”
Message
Much focus in this passage is on the comments to Peter about denying Jesus. While we all want to believe we would not respond this way, we all know that, in fact, we have done so. Why did Peter and why do we act in this manner? Once again it goes back to relationship. Peter, just like us, was still growing in relationship with Jesus. While three years of daily time with Jesus allowed much growth, the relationship was still very much in the early stages. Jesus was continuing to show Peter how that relationship could and would grow. While we can focus on Peter’s failure, remember it was said in the midst of a bigger lesson of how to live each day.Jesus had instructed the disciples, “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Exactly how does this work? Let’s go right back to just a few hours and a few days prior to this event and see what Jesus had been teaching the disciples.• John 5:19 “…the Son can do nothing by himself…”• John 10:9 “…I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” The purpose of Jesus is to be the life of every believer. HE is our life.• John 10:30 “I and the Father are one.” The life source of Jesus is the Father.• John 10:38 “…the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” The closest of relationships.• John 14:10 “…it is the Father, living in me, who is doing his work.”As we have seen over and over in John (and will continue to see), Jesus used ONLY the power of the Father to live His life. This is the way He expects us to live and to have the ability to love, by allowing only the power of the Father, through His Son Jesus and the Holy Spirit, to live our lives for us. We MUST give up our flesh and its desires and allow Jesus to be our life moment by moment.