The Simple Love of Jesus The "love" Jesus lived and taught, however, is not limited to compassion for the suffering and the downtrodden. Those were simple and obvious cases of love, to be sure: obvious because the needs of such people were so glaring, and because they were not the usual objects of love for ordinary people in ordinary life. They tended to be passed by. Helping people in dire need was recognized as a "big deal," something to make a show of, and as a praiseworthy thing for extraordinary people to do—rather as we today would describe someone as a "philanthropist." Unfortunately, people are not thought to be philanthropists because they are kind and thoughtful and look out for the good of those around them and serve them. But when Jesus speaks of love as the principle of life as it ought to be, he is referring mainly to the posture of benefiting others in the ordinary relations of ordinary life. The heroic occasions will then fit in as they come along, but the reverse is not true. Thus, for example, his washing of the feet of the apostles at the Last Supper (John 13:3–15) was a simple act of loving them. The feet needed to be washed, but none of the apostles were going to do it, though they were well aware of the need and the custom. He then told them to follow his example and wash one another's feet (v. 14).20 The reality of his new community of love was that "the greatest among you will be your servant" (Matt. 23:11), and he set the pattern, saying, "I am among you as one who serves" (Luke 22:27). From Knowing Christ Today: Why We Can Trust Spiritual Knowledge. Copyright © 2009 by Dallas Willard. All rights reserved. Used with permission of HarperCollins Publishers. |
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