“Whoever has my commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves me. And he who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and manifest myself to him.” – John 14:21

There’s a BIG difference between “liking” Jesus (in the social media sense) and loving Jesus. What’s that difference? Obedience! Jesus isn’t just our best friend and Savior. He’s also our Lord and should rightfully be in charge of all aspects of our lives (for our good!). We demonstrate our love for Jesus by trusting His Lordship. We demonstrate our love for Jesus by obeying what He commanded – everything He commanded (not just the parts we like best).

Why obey Jesus? First and foremost because we love Him. He’s also given us wonderful assurances when we’re finally ready to stop loving ourselves and our desires more than we love Jesus and His commands. As we grow in our love (and obedience) to Jesus we grow in our experience of God’s love, joy, and pleasure. As we grow in our love and obedience to Jesus we grow in His love for us.

This greater experience of Christ’s love doesn’t come because we somehow earn it or deserve it (we never will). Rather, it comes because we’re open to it. By yielding to Christ’s Lordship we more fully open our hearts, minds, and souls up to Christ’s love, letting it work deeply into every aspect of our being.

As we obey Jesus and enjoy greater awareness and experience of His love, Jesus also promises that we’ll enjoy greater awareness of Him. Jesus reveals Himself to us as we orient our lives toward truly following Him. We feel His presence and pleasure. We know He’s always with us. We become more delighted in our constant union with Him. As we love Jesus we obey Jesus. As we obey Jesus, we see Jesus. Are you ready to more fully obey Christ’s commands? Do you know how?

“Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes in me will also do the works that I do; and greater works than these will he do, because I am going to the Father.” – John 14:12

This is a verse that Christians seldom remember and often have a hard time believing. Nonetheless, but it’s a promise from Jesus! If you believe in Him, you’re invited and empowered to do greater works that He did! Because Jesus died, rose from the dead, ascended to heaven, and poured out the Holy Spirit on all believers, we’re expected to do the works of Jesus and even greater works. Chew on that for a few minutes…

Jesus healed people, preached the message of God’s Kingdom, cast out demons, and even raised the dead. He touched the sick, loved the poor, welcomed the outcast. He gave hope to the hopeless and critiqued the prideful. He revealed the love and beauty of God and revealed the hypocrisy of those who thought they had God all figured out. Then Jesus said that His followers will be able to do even more by the power of the Holy Spirit!

Despite His assurance in this verse, most of us probably aren’t even trying. Are you? Most of us seriously underestimate what Christ’s Spirit within us is capable of, so we don’t ask and we don’t try. God loves to answer bold prayers asked in His will. He loves to work wonders that bring glory to Him and that introduce people to His Kingdom. It’s His will for us to reach people all around the world for Jesus. It’s His will for us to bring help, hope, blessing, and the message of salvation to the poor and beaten down everywhere. So, are you praying and living in the confident expectation that Jesus wants you to do greater works for Him?

“If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet.” – John 13:14

In a dry and dusty land, washing feet was pretty much the lowest of the low chores anyone could get stuck doing. Jesus did it voluntarily. On the very night He would be betrayed, Jesus got on the floor and washed the feet of His disciples. He even washed the feet of the man He knew would soon betray Him! In the eyes of the world, He humiliated Himself. Nonetheless, Jesus did this in full awareness of His power and authority. He knew He was the Son of God, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Jesus did this to teach all of His followers throughout all of time a crucial lesson.

We must serve one another. Joyfully, not grudgingly. We must love for one another. Practically, not theoretically. We must not consider anything beneath us. In Christ, we are exalted children of God! In Christ, we are brothers and sisters of the King of Kings, Jesus our Lord! In Christ, we are temples of the Holy Spirit! Because we have this exalted eternal status, we can get dirty. We can get messy. We can get low here on earth in order to care for and serve other people.

Is there something you aren’t willing to do to help, care for, or love another believer? Think carefully before you answer! Is there a form of godly service that part of you thinks is “beneath” you or is going too far? Jesus made clear there must not be. Every follower of Jesus must be willing to roll up their sleeves, change into work clothes, and love one another in ways that are practical, inconvenient, uncomfortable, and messy. Because Jesus did it, His Spirit within us makes it possible for us to do it. Because Jesus did it, we must do it. In the doing, we’ll discover the blessing that comes every time we walk in the footsteps of Jesus!

“Now before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that his hour had come to depart out of this world to the Father, having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” – John 13:1

What a radiantly beautiful expression of Christ’s love for His people! Betrayal, arrest, humiliation, suffering, death, and resurrection were all looming over Him that night. But Jesus loved His people to the end. He loved His followers, even the one who would betray Him, to the end. That is how Jesus still loves His people. If you’ve embraced Jesus as your Lord, this is how He loves you today! Jesus loves you to the end.

The love of Jesus never ends and never fails. It is faithful and steadfast through suffering, through death, and through all of eternity. The way that Jesus loves you is an expression of His divine grace. You didn’t earn that love and you don’t deserve it, but He loves you abundantly anyway! His love for you isn’t transactional in the flawed ways that we’re used to in this fallen world. He loves you because He is love. He proved His loved by His death on the cross for you, and nothing can break the power of that love.

Out of His great love for you, He calls you to a life of love. He calls you to love Him and obey His commands. Integral to those commands is the call for you to love others as He does. Because Jesus loves you sacrificially and perpetually, you’re able to love others sacrificially and steadfastly. Love, because Jesus has and will love you forever and ever!

“Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.” – John 12:42-43

John 12 reports there were many who believed in Jesus, but wouldn’t admit it publicly. They believed Jesus was Messiah and Son of God, yet weren’t willing to risk their social status, friendships, and synagogue membership to say what they believed out loud. They desired the approval of earthly leaders more than they desired God’s approval.

Whose approval do you most desire? It’s easy to tell ourselves that we valued God’s approval most, but honestly, many Christians struggle with wanting to be liked, accepted, and approved of by fellow humans. Are you public about your faith? Are you willing to speak Scripture to a coworker, classmate, or neighbor who is proclaiming the latest earthly truth or trend? Are you willing to risk your social status, friendships, or even church membership to speak the truth of Jesus and the Bible?

As we navigate turbulent times, followers of Jesus need to think this over and commit to getting this issue right. We must mentally prepare ourselves for whatever it may cost to believe in Jesus, follow Jesus, and become ever more like Jesus (He got crucified after all). We need to prepare ourselves to lose the approval, applause, and respect of others we care about for the sake of receiving the approval of God. Set your heart and mind. Be willing to risk everything and pay any price to receive God’s eternal glory rather than the temporary glory of mankind!