The New Commandment

By Lim Ker Sheon

The Golden Rule in the Old Testament was “to love your neighbour as you want to be loved”.  Yet at the Last Supper, just before Jesus did the greatest act of love the world had ever known, Jesus gave us a New Commandment.  

In John 13:34, our Lord beseeched us,
“A New Commandment I give unto you, love one another as I have loved you.”

 How did Jesus love us?  How do we love others?

The love of Jesus is not afraid to say yes, when others ask for help. Because that same love is not afraid to say no.

The love of Jesus is not afraid that when we say yes to someone, that someone will keep coming back again and again for help, or that many others will come and ask for help as well.

The love of Jesus is not paiseh to say no when we cannot help, because we know that we help not out of our own might, but because of the empowering of the Holy Spirit in us.

The love of Jesus that healed the sick and cast out demons and had huge crowds surrounding him wherever He went, was that same love that frequently went into a boat to get away from the crowds, and daily went up the mountains alone to spend time with His Father who loved him from the beginning.

The love of Jesus is not afraid to attempt great things for the Kingdom of God, and not afraid to fail in this world’s eyes.

For it is the Holy Spirit that inspires, and it is our Heavenly Father that brings to fruition all things and makes each thing beautiful in its own time and season, though Man will never know what God is doing from beginning to end.

The love of Jesus is not afraid to stand up for what is righteous in God’s eyes, so that the way things are, will become the way things ought to be in God’s Kingdom.

The love of Jesus stands against the murderous crowd baying for the blood of the adulterous woman.

The love of Jesus heals on the Sabbath, the love of Jesus drove out those who had turned the Temple into a den of thieves, and afterwards, in that same Temple, healed the lame and blind alike.

The love of Jesus is not just about the crucifixion on the Cross, but the resurrection thereafter. In history, many men have martyred themselves for many great causes, but all these sacrifices have been in vain unless it was for the sake of His Cross.

For it is not about how we love, but it is the love of our Lord Jesus for us that overflows out of us. It is the empowerment of the Holy Spirit that inspires us to love so fearlessly. And it is Abba Father who for the sake of the love of Jesus for us, loves us and brings to such perfect ending all that we do for Jesus’ sake.

Prayer: May we daily learn to love Jesus more, and love others as He loves us. 

Amen