Transformed in Love: Loving Others as Jesus has Loved Us (Building Faith Families Series)

Loving others as Jesus has loved us, is different than loving others as we want to be loved. The essence of this new commandment is found in two verses in John. Jesus is speaking, “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. As I have loved you, love one another.” (John 15:9, 12). The new commandment focuses our attention on Jesus and how He loved us. This upward look keeps our eyes fixed on Christ and transforms us into His image. “We all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians 3:18) This truth is the basis for the Apostle Paul’s admonition to husbands. We are called to love our wife as Christ loved the church. The more we meditate on how God in Christ has loved us, the better equipped we are to extend this same unconditional self-sacrificing love to our wife and children. The fruit of loving others as we have been loved, will not only bless each of our homes, but our communities as well. “By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34)