Loving Like God: John 22:31-38

Near the end of the special supper Jesus shares with His disciples, and after Judas Iscariot had left, Jesus shares a powerful truth and challenge to His remaining disciples. While it would be easy to focus in on the part of Jesus’ words that Peter focused in on, something Jesus said is worth paying attention to that it appears as though Peter missed.

With that said, let’s dive into our passage and discover what Jesus shared that Peter missed, and several things that are worth us paying attention to. Our passage is found in the gospel of John, chapter 22, and we will read from the New International Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 31, John tells us that:

³¹ When he [referring to Judas Iscariot] was gone, Jesus said, “Now the Son of Man is glorified and God is glorified in him. ³² If God is glorified in him, God will glorify the Son in himself, and will glorify him at once.

³³ “My children, I will be with you only a little longer. You will look for me, and just as I told the Jews, so I tell you now: Where I am going, you cannot come.

³⁴ “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. ³⁵ By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

³⁶ Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”

Jesus replied, “Where I am going, you cannot follow now, but you will follow later.”

³⁷ Peter asked, “Lord, why can’t I follow you now? I will lay down my life for you.”

³⁸ Then Jesus answered, “Will you really lay down your life for me? Very truly I tell you, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times!

In this passage, we see Jesus challenge Peter on his vocal willingness to be ready to die for Jesus. Jesus responds with the famous challenge that Peter would deny Him that night. While it would be very easy for us to focus on this detail, there are two verses that seem to disappear when reading this passage. These two verses are powerful, but it is as though Peter doesn’t hear them because of what Jesus had just said before.

Immediately after Jesus told the disciples that they cannot come with Him, and before Peter asks Jesus where He is going, Jesus gives the disciples a new command in verses 34 and 35, saying “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

In this command, we might be tempted to think this is simply Jesus restating or reminding the disciples about one of the two greatest commandments that are shared earlier in the gospels. In many ways, loving one another is very similar to the command to loving our neighbor. However, if we stop here, we miss something significant.

Within the earlier command to love our neighbor, the context is very tangible, and when using Jesus’ illustration of the Good Samaritan, we have a framework for what it means to “love our neighbor”. The wording of this command is specifically to love your neighbor as you love yourself. 

However, Jesus’ command to the disciples is distinctly different. Just as Jesus elevated God’s ideal for His law to a level much higher than the words themselves, such as when Jesus calls hating someone close as equivalent to murder, I suspect that Jesus is doing something similar here.

In the Old Testament law, we are challenged to love others as we love ourselves, and this makes us equals. This is healthy, and it pushes back arrogance and pride from our lives, because we are equal with each other.

However, Jesus’ command in this passage is that we are to love others like Jesus loved them. With this framing, does Jesus love other people as though they are equal to Him? While a case could be put together that implies this is true, when I read the gospels, I don’t see an equal frame for Jesus’ type of love. While it is very true that Jesus loved all people equally and individually, and while this is something we should do, I don’t recall seeing a place where Jesus emphasizes His equality with men.

In contrast, Jesus understood who He was, namely the Son of God, and He understood that we are sinners. This perspective could have led Jesus to judge others, which is a temptation for everyone to fall into, but it didn’t. Instead, this perspective led Jesus to extend mercy and grace to everyone God loved. With only one or two extraordinary exceptions, Jesus’ harsh words were reserved for those who believed themselves to be better than others and who used this moral superiority to bully those who were not as good as them. Unfortunately, this seems to be the norm today on many social and spiritual issues.

However, while Jesus understood that He was the Son of God, sinless, and that we all are sinners, how did that change His actions? Remember, Jesus is giving the disciples a new command to love each other like Jesus loved them, and what did Jesus do to demonstrate that love?

While we could easily jump to the cross, the disciples didn’t have that as a frame of reference like we do looking back on this event. Instead, the clearest modeling of Jesus’ new command was when, earlier that evening, Jesus stepped into the lowest servant’s role and washed their feet. When we look at how Jesus acted when loving others, never do we see Jesus step above someone else. Instead, in almost every case, Jesus steps down and places Himself in the role of servant to those needing help.

With all this said, Jesus elevates the Old Testament commandment in these two verses by challenging the disciples to place others ahead of themselves, like Jesus placed humanity ahead of Himself. It would have been easier to abandon humanity to sin, but it wouldn’t have been loving. True love in God’s eyes pushes past the easy, convenient solution towards the solution that puts others ahead of Himself.

We are called to love each other like Jesus loved us, and this is done when we place others ahead of ourselves. While this doesn’t eliminate the need for us to rest or to have healthy boundaries, it does mean that when God brings people into our lives that we can help, we are to place them ahead of ourselves and love them like the Godhead loves us.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As always, intentionally seek God first in your life and choose to love others like Jesus commanded His followers to do, and loving others like Jesus loved each of us. While Jesus paid the ultimate price for us, the love He models is giving Himself to help us in ways that only He could. We are called to use our time, our talents, and our resources to help others beyond the quick, convenient fix. While help often looks different depending on the situation, when in doubt, lean on God to help you know how to best love those He brings into your life.

Also, always pray and study the Bible for yourself to grow your personal relationship with Jesus. A personal relationship is personal when we focus on growing closer to Jesus and we don’t put anyone else in the middle of our relationship. While authors, speakers, pastors, or even podcasters can have good ideas worth considering, take everything you read, see, and hear and compare it with the truth found in the Bible. If what you are hearing or reading doesn’t match a clear truth within the Bible, it is an idea that likely won’t last beyond the end of sin.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or discount where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!