Jesus Asked For Proof

What Did Jesus Do?

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
John 14.15

It's one thing to say you love someone, and quite another thing to prove that love. Talk, as they say, is cheap. Whereas love, particularly agape love, is costly. Jesus knew there were many who would say that they loved him; he asked his disciples to prove it.

Please do not misunderstand me, I am not saying that anyone has to prove their love for Jesus in order to be saved. Christ saved a great big bunch of unloving, and all but unlovable, sinners when he died on the cross. And thank God for that! But, I don't believe that everyone who has been saved necessarily goes on to be a disciple. A disciple is not merely one who has been saved by Jesus, but one who follows Jesus. And the only people willing to shoulder their own cross, and walk the hard road of discipleship, are those who truly love the Lord, as opposed to the ones who merely say they love him. Again, Jesus asked for proof from his disciples.

So, what is the proof of our love for the Lord? Attendance at worship services? Important, certainly, but not proof. Generous tithing? Well, the Lord does love those who give cheerfully, but still not proof, even unsaved sinners can drop a bundle into the offering plate (In fact, they might be even more inclined to drop a bundle, mistakenly believing they can thereby “purchase” their salvation.). How about knowing the Scriptures? Sorry, even the devil can quote chapter and verse, so that hardly constitutes proof. How, then, can we prove our love for Jesus? Well, he said it himself—by keeping his commandments.

Here's some good news for all of us who aren't as good at multitasking as we like to think we are. Jesus doesn't ask us to scrupulously keep the Ten Commandments. When it comes right down to it, he doesn't even demand his followers to keep even the two Great Commandments (see Matthew 22.36-40). What Jesus desires from us as proof of our love for him is simply this: that we have love for one another (see John 13.35; WDJD for 5/18/11). Oh, I see such genius in this proof Jesus asks of us.

I mean, it's easy to love Jesus, isn't it, what's not to love about our Savior? But loving one another, now that's tough. And Jesus isn't going to let us off the hook. If we want to truly demonstrate that we love him, and not just say that we love him, the only way we can prove it is by loving one another. And, sad to say, by this proof, I must confess, that I am not the disciple I ought to be. I suspect that, also sad to say, there are quite a few who sit in a lot of pews, and even many who occupy pulpits, who, if they are honest with themselves, and, more importantly, with the Lord, would likewise have to confess that they frequently have little or no proof to show their love for the Lord.

This is truly a shame, because I am convinced that if there were more of us who have been saved by Jesus who actually proved daily our love for him by loving one another, the Church would not be in the sad shape it is today, would not be as deserving of the world's scorn and derision, would not be struggling so to hold on to dwindling membership. Rather, when the Church is peopled with those who prove their love for Jesus by loving others like Jesus loves us, then the number of those who are being saved is added to daily; individuals, families, communities, and even nations, begin to experience transformation. In short, love for Jesus is amply evident for the whole world to see.

I think it might be a good idea if those of us who claim the title of “Christian” would ask the person in the mirror as we brush our teeth each morning if he or she loves Jesus. It the one in the mirror answers “Yes,” then I believe the Lord himself would have us challenge the man or woman, or boy or girl, in the mirror, to “prove it.”

S.D.G.

Jim
www.jimwilkenminitries.org
Marion, NC
PS 37.4