“By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:35, ESV)
As golfers, we are all about mirroring the look, the attitude, and the swing of our favorite player. It starts young, but no age seems to be exempt. Show up at the Waste Management Phoenix Open and you’ll see kids who are under 10 and over 20—and maybe even a grandmother—wearing Rickie Fowler orange.
We call those people fans, and most of them are not shy about wearing the colors, buying the clubs, and singing the praises of the player they admire most. I played nine holes with a 13-year-old boy at my club last week and he was all about Rory. I could see it. Could he see that I was all about Jesus?
Of course, it would be easier to show Jesus if he had worn a flat-billed cap or had some other outward appearance thing we could copy. Instead, Jesus left us with something on the inside we can mirror, and that something is love.
Am I willing to make the same sacrifice for others that Jesus made for me?Jesus said that “all people” will recognize people as his followers if they have love for one another. I realize that he spoke these words directly to his closest disciples just hours before he was betrayed and crucified. These are among the last words of Jesus to his apostles, and I think the words had a special meaning for them.
But I think they also apply to us, along with most of the rest of this extended final discourse that began just after the last supper and finished with Jesus’ prayer in John 17. (Jesus even prayed directly for us there: John 17:20-21.)
In the verse preceding today’s verse, Jesus said, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.” What was new about loving one another? It was doing it the same way Jesus did. Notice this phrase: “just as I have loved you.”
Even if I love my brothers and sisters in Christ, and I love my enemies, do I love them just as Jesus has loved me? Am I willing to be patient and forgiving and nurturing the same way Jesus was? Am I willing to make the same sacrifice for them that Jesus made for me?
Putting on love is much harder than putting on a red shirt and black pants, or a Payne Stewart cap. But only golfers recognize those. All people recognize love.
—
Lewis Greer
October 23, 2020
Copyright 2020 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
OTHER DEVOTIONS IN THIS SERIES
Why Am I Here? 1: Bearing God’s Image
Why Am I Here? 2: Seeking God
Why Am I Here? 3: Pleasing God
Why Am I Here? 4: Sharing the Gospel
Why Am I Here? 5: Living Sacrificially
Why Am I Here? 6:Being Transformed
Why Am I Here? 7: Using Our Gifts
Why Am I Here? 8: Living in Community
Why Am I Here? 9: Confronting Falsehoods