His Command
By Peggy Kleckner
“My command is this: Love each other, as I have loved you.”
John 15:12 NIV
A command is given to those under authority. It is Jesus who is speaking in this verse. So the question is, “Am I under His authority?”
Sometimes, we seem to jump at any loud, overbearing voice. We jump and do what someone asks because they spoke it with what sounded like true authority, or at least what we imagine authority to sound like. Other times, we ignore the voice of authority for the simple reason that in our hearts lurks that old anger stomping its foot, proclaiming, “No one is ever going to tell me what to do again!”
Maybe it is time for us each to examine our hearts and ask, “Whose authority am I under?”
If I say that I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior and Lord (Master), then I am under His authority and this verse applies to me. To accept Him as Redeemer is to also accept His right to rule, His authority over my life because of the life He gave.
Too often, we want to be saved, but then we want to try and rule our own life. We don’t seem to recognize that it is this faulty authority that continues to lead us back to bondage.
Oh, to walk in the freedom of being under His authority! Authority that is powerful, yet compassionate; truthful, but kind; firm, yet gentle.
In this verse, Jesus declares that He is the authority by boldly proclaiming His command. And then, how does He go on to complete the command? With the words “as I have loved you.” Amazing. We’re commanded to love by being rooted in His love toward us. Love that came for us, love that cared for us, not when we were deserving of it, or perfect. No, love that came for us “while we were yet sinners” (Romans 5:8).
We are called and empowered by His rightful authority to love the unlovely, just as He loved us in our “unlovely” state. We continue to walk this earth with weaknesses and imperfections, but He loves us as if we are already completed. Do I acknowledge His authority and love others in that same way, laying aside their imperfections?
GOING DEEPER:
1. Have I come under the authority of Jesus?
2. Have I allowed His love to change me, so I in turn can love others?
FURTHER READING:
Peggy is a wife and mother of four adult children - - two sons and two stepsons, and is an active encourager at Oakwood Church in Delafield.
