If You Love Me

If you are like most Christians, you’ve heard a hundred teachings on the love of God; what it is, what it means, and even what it means in other, often “dead,” languages. I’ve even heard teachings and teachers go so far as to say that it’s “the love of God in the renewed mind in manifestation.” That’s great, if you understand what all that means, but frankly I’ve given up my complicated, Pharisaic ways for the “simplicity that is in Christ.”

2Cor:11:3 But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so     

your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ

Through his subtle beguiling the serpent wants to corrupt our minds from the simplicity that is in Christ. Unfortunately, he’s quite good at corrupting the things of God and making complicated the things that God has intended for us to know and understand. Don’t forget there were two trees in the Garden and it’s often the tree of knowledge that leads men away from God. Just like Adam and Eve.

What about Love? You know, God’s love?

Jn:3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever

believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

I don’t know about you but this verse of Scripture, this “Gospel in a nutshell,” is a verse that literally changed my life. It concisely states the Gospel message and also tells us what God’s love is. God so loved He gave…. Very simply stated we can say that love is giving. It’s complete selflessness. We don’t need to complicate the things of God.

Let’s look at the verse that inspired the title of this teaching and see where it leads us in our quest for truth and understanding in the things of God.

Jn:14:15

If ye love me, keep my commandments

I guess that is simple enough. I don’t think I need a concordance or Greek dictionary to understand what this verse says. “If you love me,” said Jesus, “keep my commandments.”

Have you ever had to keep something? You know, like score at a basketball game or your eye on something? Then you know that to keep something is not just to hold on to it but it is also a very active pursuit. You DO something when you keep it. It’s active, not passive.

So it is with love. God’s love and the love we are to have for Him. The same love that led Jesus Christ to the cross and raised Him again after three days and nights is the love we are to love God with.

Jesus Christ said that IF we love Him, we were to KEEP [do] His commandments. We can see this truth reiterated in the following exchange between Jesus and Peter on the shores of the Sea of Galilee.

John 21:15-17

So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

Each time the question “lovest thou me” was followed by a positive answer. Each time the answer was followed by a commandment. Feed my sheep, said the Lord. In other words, if you love me, do something. Feed my sheep. If we call Him Lord we really should do the things He tells us to do.

Lk:6:46  And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

Jesus Christ goes on to express this point even more clearly in the verses that follow the question He just posed to His followers.

Lk:6:47-49 Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like:

He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.

But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.

You see, the blessing is in the doing of His commandments NOT in just the knowing of them.

1Cor: 8:1b Knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth.

Have you ever been around a “know it all”? Someone who after sharing something from your heart that God has really blessed you with lately and you do it for no other reason than because you are so blessed and to bless the other person, they say something like “oh yeah, God showed me that last week.” You know the kind of Christian I’m talking about. Unfortunately, and I include myself first in this offence, I‘ve met many Christians that would fit that description. Thank God for the following verse.

1Jn:4:19: We love him, because he first loved us.

We love Him because we are such great Christians and know everything there is to know about God and his Word? NO! We can’t even take credit for that although some times we act as if we are doing God a favor by loving Him. No, we love Him because he FIRST LOVED US. There is simplicity in Christ. In fact, He loved us with love for which he says there is no greater.

Jn:15:13: Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends

Jesus Christ laid down His life for us. They didn’t take it. He gave it. Do you want to be made perfect in love? I don’t know about you but right now in my life I can’t think of anything that would be more satisfying than to be made perfect in love. So few things about me are perfect (just ask my wife) except maybe my weaknesses.

1Jn:2:5: But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him.

“Hereby we know that we are in Him” Isn’t that a great result for “whoso keepeth His Word”? When we do the will God by keeping His Word we know that we are in Him. We don't have to guess or wonder whether we are doing God's will, we know when we are in Him.

1Jn:3:16: Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.

So it doesn’t look like the love of God can be defined or clearly understood, but the love of God can be perceived, we ought to [do something] lay down our life for the brethren.

1Jn:5:2: By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.

1Jn:5:3: For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

The love of God is to KEEP HIS COMMANDMENTS. To do them. They are not grievous to us because he first loved us and therefore we can love Him.

1Jn:4:10: Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

1Jn:4:11: Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.

Don’t just sit there. Do something. Love somebody. Keep His commandments.

Jn:14:15

If ye love me, keep my commandments

Perhaps nowhere else in all Holy Writ is this point made so evident than when Jesus, knowing that He was to soon leave this world, performed an act of love and service upon His disciples that speaks as loudly today as when He first poured water into the basin and began to wash their feet.

John 13:1: Now before the feast of the passover, when Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end.

2: And supper being ended, the devil having now put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon's son, to betray him;

3: Jesus knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he was come from God, and went to God;

4: He riseth from supper, and laid aside his garments; and took a towel, and girded himself.

5: After that he poureth water into a bason, and began to wash the disciples' feet, and to wipe them with the towel wherewith he was girded.

6: Then cometh he to Simon Peter: and Peter saith unto him, Lord, dost thou wash my feet?

7: Jesus answered and said unto him, What I do thou knowest not now; but thou shalt know hereafter.

8: Peter saith unto him, Thou shalt never wash my feet. Jesus answered him, If I wash thee not, thou hast no part with me.

9: Simon Peter saith unto him, Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head.

10: Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.

11: For he knew who should betray him; therefore said he, Ye are not all clean.

12: So after he had washed their feet, and had taken his garments, and was set down again, he said unto them, Know ye what I have done to you?

13: Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am.

14: If I then, your Lord and Master, have washed your feet; ye also ought to wash one another's feet.

15: For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you.

16: Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.

Once again we see that we are to do "as I have done to you " "If you love me," said the Lord, "keep my commandments." Happy are we if we do them.

John 13:17: If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them.

Brothers and sisters, the blessing is NOT in the knowing. It’s in the doing.