Encouragement for Your Week: February 15-21
This Week’s Verse
"I am writing to remind you, dear friends, that we should love one another. This is not a new commandment, but one we have had from the beginning." - 2 John 1:5 NLT
Devotion
If you were writing a letter to a community you cared about, you’d probably want to lead with something fresh—maybe a hot take on a current event or a groundbreaking new strategy for growth. So, it’s worth asking: why did the Apostle John spend his limited parchment reminding his readers of something they had heard a thousand times before? He even admits it isn’t a new concept.
John’s insistence on "love one another" isn’t a lack of creativity; it’s a recognition of centrality. In our walk of faith, it’s easy to get distracted by complex theology or the "secondary" rules of Christian living. But John knew that without love, the rest of the structure collapses.
Think about it this way: Jesus taught that the love of God and the love of neighbor are the twin pillars of our entire faith. He explicitly stated in Matthew 22:40 that every other law and prophetic requirement hangs on these two commands.
Every moral principle we find in Scripture is essentially just a specific application of love. Why don’t we envy? Because envy is a failure to love someone’s success. Why don’t we lie? Because love requires honesty and trust. Love is the "master key" that unlocks the true intent behind every other instruction in the Bible.
This doctrine is so fundamental that it had to be introduced at the very beginning—from Moses in the Old Testament to Jesus in the Gospels—and it must be sustained until the very end. We aren't just called to know it; we are called to re-orient our entire lives around it.
In a world that is increasingly polarized and cynical, our commitment to this "old" commandment is actually our most radical witness. As Jesus said in John 13:35, our love for one another is the primary evidence that we actually belong to Him. It’s our ID badge.
Reflection
Take a moment to look at your schedule or your to-do list for today or this week. It’s easy to treat "being loving" as a vague, abstract goal. Instead, try to see your interactions through John’s lens:
How can you transform a mundane conversation into an act of love?
Is there a "rule" you’re following that lacks the spirit of love?
Who is the hardest person for you to love right now, and how can you re-focus your perspective on them today?