If You Love Me… Keep My Commandments
In John 14:15, Jesus makes a profound statement: but what did Jesus mean when He said, “If you love me, keep my commandments”?
At first glance, this verse can seem like a conditional demand: “Prove your love for me by keeping my commandments.” However, a closer look at the language reveals something much deeper and more comforting.
In the original, the word keep (tērēsete) is in the future tense, indicative mood, and active voice. This means that instead of issuing a command, Jesus is making a promise. This verse is not about earning His love through obedience or proving our love by our obedience, but about what naturally flows out of our union with Him. Simply put, He is saying: “Because you love me, when I am gone, you will keep my commandments.”
Having clarified what Jesus meant by ‘keep my commandments,’ let’s consider what these commandments are.
What Are These Commandments?
A few verses earlier, Jesus defines the commandment He has in mind: “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another” (John 13:34). Love for others is the central ethic of the Christian life. It would be, and is, the distinguishing mark of Jesus’ followers: “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35).
This love is not merely a sentiment but a reflection of the love Jesus has shown us. It’s self-sacrificial, enduring, and unconditional. It is this love that sets us apart as God’s holy people, as Peter writes: “But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation” (1 Peter 1:15). So how are we to do this?
How Will We Keep This Commandment?
If you’re like me, you might wonder, How can I live up to this calling? Jesus anticipates our need for help and provides the answer: the Holy Spirit. Just after His promise that we will keep His commandments, He says, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever; Even the Spirit of truth” (John 14:16-17).
The Holy Spirit empowers us to love in ways that are beyond our natural ability. It is through His work in our hearts that we can live out the love Jesus calls us to embody. This is not a love we muster on our own but one that is poured into our hearts by the Spirit (Romans 5:5). According to the Apostle Paul, this love is actually fruit that the Spirit bears in us (Galatians 5).
Love as the Fruit of Grace
In this light, John 14:15 is not a weighty command to bear but a gracious promise to cling to. Because Jesus loves us, He enables us to love others. Our obedience is the fruit of His grace, not the condition for it. This love, empowered by the Spirit, is what sets us apart as holy and distinct in a world often marked by self-interest and self-preservation.
So, as we reflect on these words of Jesus, let us remember that His commandments are not burdensome (1 John 5:3). They are the natural outflow of a heart transformed by His love and sustained by His Spirit. Let us abide in Him and trust that His Spirit will empower us to love as He has loved us. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19).