12This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
– John 15:12-13
In February we celebrate the holiday of love known as Valentine’s Day. And the world may provide many different definitions of love, but when we look at the bible and see God’s example of love, we see a sacrificial act of putting others and their needs before our own. And this is the type of love we should be showing others when we are following Jesus.
During a Week 7 game against his former team, the New York Giants, on October 20, 2024, Barkley had 176 yards rushing. He was only 14 yards away from a new career-high and 42 yards away from the Eagles’ franchise single-game record. With the Eagles leading 28-3 in the fourth quarter, Coach Nick Sirianni offered to put Barkley back in to break the records. Barkley declined, telling his coach to “let the young guys eat“. He gave up the opportunity to set a record and pad his stats so that other players could the opportunity to play the game and get the ball. He laid aside his personal goals and needs, in pursuit of helping others. This example is shown across sports even in Soccer, where people like Messi will pass the ball to another player so that they can score even though he could have kept the ball for himself.
In the bible we see an even greater example of this type of love for one another when Jesus gave up his life for us. In the book of John, Jesus tells us 12 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. 13 Greater loves has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends. Jesus sets the example for each of us when it comes to loving others. He put the needs of others in front of his own when he came to earth and offered his life as a sacrifice for us. He gave up his life on the cross to provide forgiveness of sins. So that anyone who would believe in him would have eternal life with God.
In life, we probably aren’t going to face many situations in which we will have to give up our life for another person. However, there are plenty of times where we may need to put other people and their needs first. On the soccer field it might be doing a drill that you are already good at because some else needs extra practice. Maybe it’s passing to someone who has a better shot angle because that’s what’s best for the team, even though we want to take the shot. In life it might be holding the door for someone with their hands full. Or giving money or food to someone in need. Volunteering at a food mission or buying groceries for a neighbor going through a hard time. When we follow Christ, we choose to follow His commands and that means we are to love others as God has loved us. This month I want to challenge each of us to look at the love that God has given us and how we can show that same love to others. Look for ways you can help people in need and while doing so look at how you can share the love of Christ with them.
As always, if you have any question about your faith or how to have a relationship with Jesus, I would love to talk with you about it!
-Nick