John 13:34-35
Love One Another
34"A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. 35By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."
Jesus teaches us love...He teaches us to love thy neighbor...He teaches us to love our enemies...Here He reemphasizes His thoughts on love and gives the Twelve a new commandment, an eleventh commandment...We are to love one another...
Love is sharing things with others (not just ourselves)...Love is caring for and of others...Love is not selfish...Love is truth...True love is not you wanting your needs satisfied, or your desires satisfied...Love is you satisfying the one you love...Through love you may have some of your needs and desires satisfied...But another one has probably satisfied those needs and not you...(Your) love is to and toward others, not yourself...If the other one loves you, then you are satisfying your loved one's need...
When Jesus tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves, it implies we love ourselves...Some think others must treat them a certain way and then they (after their review of this and therefore at a later time) will treat them in that way...This is not what He meant...We are, at all times, to treat others at least as good as we want to be treated...When He tells us to love our enemies we realize further His commandment of loving thy neighbor...Loving yourself is not true love...Love is not for a singular...Love thy neighbor is for two or more...Love one another is for two or more...Love is not an internal thought linking me and my...True love is the feelings you have for another, or your neighbor...One another, or neighbor is spouse, family, friends, enemies, one(s) in need...Jesus includes everyone in His new commandment...
When Jesus says love thy neighbor, it is in your thought for someone else where love exists and our thoughts links you to others...When you truly love someone, your needs, desires, and wants are not your priorities...True love puts the needs, desires, and wants of others, and the one you love above your (needs, desires, and wants)...When you truly love your spouse, you put their needs above your own...When you truly love your family, and members in your family, you will put their needs above yours...
Also, forgiveness is a part of love...Many times and in many relationships, forgiveness is a very big part of love for the relationship to continue...Man is a sinner...Man is flawed...We as human make mistakes...Their will be mistakes in almost every relationship, if not all since we are flawed...It is our nature to sin...That is one of the reasons Jesus tells us in the LORD's prayer is to forgive others as they sin and make mistakes on and about us...If we are unable to forgive then we cannot love very much...Jesus teaches us that when we truly learn to forgive, and forgive a lot we then learn to love a lot (Luke 7:47)...When you refuse to forgive someone, how can you love him or her (the one you don't forgive)?...Because sin is our nature, then we must learn to forgive to be able to love...
God is Love...God sent His Son, to die for our sins...Jesus did not sin...We sinned...Jesus came for us, and died for us...God is always forgiving...He has forgiven everyone of us...God has forgiven in the past, present, and the future...God has forgiven a multitude...When we realize our flaws, our sins then we better understand the LORD's prayer on forgiving others...God is forgiving...He forgives us...Therefore, He can love us...God is pure love...That is what He is...How can He not love us (and others)...This is love and this is what He is...How can He be anything else?...How can we not learn this from Him?...How can we not love others?...