Known by Your Love

John 13

April 10

Do the people you pass in your daily life know that you follow Jesus? Your coworker in the adjacent cubicle, the cashier at the grocery store, your neighbor down the street? How do they know? It’s probably not the length of your prayers, the Bible verses you have memorized, the fancy church jargon you use, or the gourmet casseroles you bring to your church potlucks. 

They will know you by your love. 

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).

Following Jesus isn’t about knowing the most, but loving the most. 

Love is our faith in action. It might not always make sense to unbelievers, especially in the midst of our self-obsessed culture. 

Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you (Matthew 5:44). 

Sell your possessions and give to the poor (Luke 12:33). 

Honor one another above yourselves (Romans 12:10).

Look after orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27). 

Carry each other’s burdens (Galatians 6:2). 

We ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters (1 John 3:16). 

When we love—even when it doesn’t make sense—we show our allegiance to Jesus. He is the perfect personification of love. This week, we celebrate the love he showed on the cross, where he bled and died to win your heart, where he was scoffed at by a world who couldn’t make sense of such great love. 

If we’re followers of Jesus, we’ll do as Jesus did. We’re called to pour even when our cup is empty, to give when it hurts, to expect nothing in return, and to lay down our lives for others. By this, the world will know you belong to Jesus. 

-Mackenzie McClain

Discussion & Reflection Questions: 

1. Who will you show this nonsensical love to this week? How will you do it?
2. Loving others cost Jesus his life. What might loving others cost you?
3. By being known as a follower of Jesus, people will make assumptions about who Jesus is based upon how they see you act. What implications does this have for how you live your daily life?