“I give you a new commandment, that you love one another.
Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
By this everyone will know that you are my disciples,
if you have love for one another.”
The greatest of all the commandments.
The noblest of all human emotions.
The most powerful of all human motives.
The most neglected of all human powers.
And we have have experienced this:
in the embrace of a loved one,
in the warmth of mother’s bosom,
in the tender crock of father’s arm,
in the safety and comfort of the family.
Just imagine what would happen if love were to reign supreme:
“Behold, God’s dwelling is with the human race.
He will dwell with them and they will be his people
and God himself will always be with them as their God.
He will wipe every tear from their eyes,
and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain,
for the old order has passed away.”
And yet, the world is a mess.
Because we find it hard to love those who hate us.
We refuse to turn the other cheek, instead we hit back.
We cannot forgive those who have wronged us; we want revenge.
We are too proud to ask for forgiveness from those we look down upon.
We cannot give away what we have afraid there’d be nothing eft for us.
We seek our own pleasures and comforts and to hell with the rest of humanity.
But there are those who dare and struggle.
There are those who give and not count the cost.
They struggle and fight without heeding the wounds.
They toil and not seek for rest.
They labor and ask not for reward.
All these they do, because it is the will of the Savior who taught them how to love.
And with the One who sits on the throne,
They are able to make all things new,
bringing about a new heaven and a new earth.