“This is my commandment, that you love people the way I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” –John 15:12-13 

The Bible talks about how God tells us we should love people. This is the same thing that is told to every person, no matter your age or nationality. This is a very powerful verse but hard to accomplish. It’s hard to love everyone this way but it is something that everyone should strive for. The great thing about loving someone is that it can be from the smallest action that makes a difference for someone. 

This verse was recorded by the apostle John but was spoken by Jesus. Jesus’s message through these two verses is to say that Christ has given us an example to follow. Christ wants us to love one another the way he loved us. Since this is something that Jesus said to his disciples during the last supper, this is something that he wanted them to remember. It is the last lesson that is taught to them and one of the first lessons we can learn. 

Mr. Blau believes that these verses mean that the primary way that we are to obey Jesus is to love. Mr. Blau further explains, “It’s not just love as the world defines it, but we are to love each other as Jesus loves us: unconditionally, self-sacrificially, looking out for the betterment of others without expecting anything in return. Ultimately, Christ calls us to a love that is willing to sacrifice for others.” Mr. Blau suggests that to make this possible in our lives we have to put others before ourselves. An example of that is if we have the opportunity to go do something fun for ourselves, but we know that our friend is going through a tough season and could use our time and our love, we sacrifice our desire to have fun in order to love our friend and be there for them. As Mr. Blau explains it, “Our culture demands that we put ourselves first, that we do what’s best for us, that we protect ourselves and our possessions, but Christ flips that on its head and calls us to humility, self-sacrifice, forgiveness, and unconditional love. The greatest thing we can do today is to love someone, whether they deserve it or not.”

Lili Peterson, a King’s Way student, says that this is one of the most important parts of the Bible because God is love. In other verses he tells us about his qualities, but ultimately, he is love. We love each other because he first loved us. The reason we love others and ourselves is because of him. “We can apply this to our life by loving others as Jesus did. Jesus did not look at someone and decide not to love them because of their appearance, nor did he look at his enemies and decide not to love them.” We should absolutely live by these verses, and though we might sin, we must always remember that Jesus sacrificed himself so that we can love each other. Above all, we must embrace his love and the ways he loves other people because once we do that our own behavior and beliefs follow. 

We can see that everyone has their own views on this verse, but overall the same message is given to us from God.