Daily Devotional
Afraid to Love
“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
John 13:34-35
April 1, 2025
Ponder This
Lawlessness abounds in the world. There is brutality at every corner. It causes us to be suspicious. It causes us to retreat. It causes people to say, “Do not open the door no matter who knocks on it unless you know who they are.” It tells us if a person stops by the side of the road, looking like he or she is in trouble, be very careful before you stop to help that person. Our instinct is “Don’t.” Don’t help. Don’t get involved. Keep your doors shut. Don’t become a part of this situation or that situation. We withdraw. We stop loving. Why? Because of the fear of lawlessness.
We are frightened, intimidated, and afraid to love. We especially have no desire to love those who are very lost—those we believe to be wicked and vile. Yet just before His arrest and crucifixion, Jesus Christ gave this “new commandment”: “Love one another; as I have loved you.” This includes those people that are hurt, lost, and broken. You are to love people as Jesus Christ loves. It’s going to be hard, yet this is how our Savior leads us to live. Love others in the same sacrificial and abundant way He has loved us.
- Who are the people you are scared to love? What do you fear might happen if you extend love to them?
- How has Christ loved you? How can you love others in that same way?
Practice This
Extend love to someone who is hard for you to love.
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