| “If ye love Me, keep My commandments” (John 14:15). |
| When the Lord Jesus said this to His disciples, He was giving them His last instructions before He went to the cross to suffer and die for them. He told them many things, for He was getting them ready to live in this world without His being with them constantly. They felt very sad that He was going away from them, for they had become accustomed to being in His company for several years. They had trusted in Him, and depended on Him for everything. But now He was going to the cross, and then back to heaven. |
| Before He went away, He gave them some commandments. These commandments were not like the law in the Old Testament, with a long list of “do’s” and “don’ts.” Those Old Testament commandments were intended to show man how guilty he was before God, for no one could ever keep them properly. But the New Testament commandments are different; they are for those who already have new life in Christ. We do not keep these commandments in order to be saved; rather, we keep them because we are saved, and want to please the One who saved us. |
| I remember reading about a Christian couple who bought a home, and when they moved in, the wife said to her husband, “I do not like the color of the kitchen; would you paint it white for me?” Do you think her husband did that? Yes, he did, because he loved his wife, and wanted to please her. Then, after he had painted the kitchen white, his wife said, “Would you mind trimming it in yellow?” Her husband did that too, because he wanted to please her. As you may imagine, she was very happy working in her newly-painted kitchen. Best of all, she knew that her husband loved her enough to do it for her. |
| The New Testament commandments are like that. The Lord has told us what would please Him, and if we love Him, we will want to keep His commandments. Our love for the Lord Jesus is shown by our willingness to keep His commandments. |
