A Strange Kind of Love – September 28, 2022

Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters.
Hebrews 13:1

A Strange Kind of Love

Jesus had loved his disciples for the three years he was with them. Now that his death was near, Jesus showed just how much he loved them. Jesus got up and took off his tunic. Wrapping a towel around his waist, he washed their feet.

He stooped down and scrubbed the grime from between his disciples’ toes. One by one, he washed their feet—the feet of the one who was about to betray him, of one who would deny him, of one who would doubt him, of a skeptic, a tax collector, glory-seeking twins, a zealot.

The disciples thought this was strange. Washing people’s feet was a dirty job often given to servants. But here was their rabbi, showing them what love is by serving—a love that gives. But they were about to see stranger love than this. They would watch him give his head to thorns, his hands to spikes, his side to a spear, his life for ours.

It is a strange kind of love. Jesus’ love is foreign to this world. It is unlike anything that the human heart generates. His is not a love that acts only if he gets what he wants from us. He loves to help without expecting or demanding anything in return.

When he gives his help, he gives nothing less than his love. And because love is who he is, he gives us nothing less than himself. When we have him, we have his help. We have his love. We have everything we need to love as he has loved us.

That is what the writer of the book of Hebrews encourages us to do in today’s Bible reading—love one another the way Jesus has loved us. Love with actions–serving, sharing, helping. Look for opportunities to do this today.

Prayer:
God of peace, equip me with everything good to do your will and work in me what is pleasing in your sight. Amen.