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"As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends."  John 15: 9-13, NIV

These verses remind us that there is no complete love or joy apart from Jesus. When we personally invite Christ to be the Lord of our lives, we enter into a holy cycle. It begins with the Father’s perfect love, moves through the redeeming love of Jesus, the sanctifying love of the Holy Spirit, and is completed by our expressions of love and joy for God himself and the people He has placed in our lives. The more that we obey Him, listen to Him, and walk with Him; the more we experience this unmatched joy and love in our lives.

Note the phrase “remain in my love” (v. 9b). The original Greek word translated here for “remain” is the word meno. Meno conveys this idea of dwelling, abiding and remaining in a particular place. It paints a picture of the peace, harmony, and consistent reliability we experience in the comfort of our homes or in the homes of close, welcoming, hospitable friends. When used as it is here in the context of relationships, it suggests steadfast bonds- true unity of heart and soul. Remaining in Jesus’ love, therefore, means that we are not simply aware of it, or feel it occasionally; rather that we are immersed in it, surrounded by it, comforted through it, and encouraged by it. It empowers our very lives!

Love and joy are the very nature of our holy God. We are commanded to return that love, in both word and deed, to the Lord and to other people. We must ask ourselves- are we engaging in real, deep, sacrificial love toward other people? The kind of love that reflects the very essence of our God to a hurting and broken world? These questions must be answered honestly and with a willingness to yield and change as the Lord reveals the answers.

  1. Living self-sacrificially takes many different forms, depending on the needs of others in our lives. Prayerfully consider one way in which the Lord has blessed you, that you could use to benefit someone else? Then do it!
  2. What are your current practices for resting, remaining, and abiding in God’s love? In light of their effectiveness, consider what you may need to pick up or lay down here.