To get at ______, you have to come through me

"To get at _________, you have to come through me!"

That is how I've chosen to define, "love like Jesus does".

Isn't that what Christ said when He died and rose again? Isn't that what He is doing right now as he is our advocate in Heaven?

"Devil, to get at ________, you have to come through me."

Let's back up a bit... I've been reading John 15 lately and the words of Christ that have jumped out of the Book and hit me in the heart  are these, " This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends."

Now it's easy to see how Jesus fulfilled the words of laying down his life for his friends, but how are we doing with this? When was the last time I actually gave up anything (let alone my life) for my friends? But this is how he equates whether I love people or not, AND he calls it a commandment.

Unfortunately, this is where many of us stop. We justify our lack of love or commitment to people with thoughts like... "Well, this is too hard, so I'm sure I need to find a way to reason myself around this words of Christ. There must be another interpretation. Maybe there is an easier way".

I don't think there is an easier way, there's no back door theology we can throw into the mix to negate our responsibility to "love like Jesus does". This "new commandment" of love that Jesus commands and exemplifies is how He redefined our relationship with God and those around us. He makes the statement and then He lives it out by laying down His life for His friends - making the ultimate declaration on the cross - "to get at them, you have to go through me". 

So, I've chosen to define how I qualify my love for people in the same way. I love my family, I love my friends, I love my city...

AND to get at any of them, you have to come through me first!