Living the New Covenant: Love as Our Command

Sep 03, 2025

Devotional

Day 1: The New Command: Love One Another as Jesus Loved Us

Jesus introduced a radical new commandment to his followers: to love one another as he has loved us. This was not simply an addition to the existing list of commandments, but a complete replacement and fulfillment of the old covenant’s rules. The love Jesus calls us to is anchored in his own example—personal, sacrificial, and deeply relational. For the disciples, this meant recalling the specific ways Jesus had shown them grace, forgiveness, and steadfast love, and then extending that same love to others. Today, this command remains the defining mark of those who follow Jesus, calling us to a higher, more demanding standard of love that is both simple and all-encompassing. [03:55]

John 13:34-35 (ESV)
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

Reflection: Think of a specific way Jesus has shown you grace or love in your life—how can you extend that same kind of love to someone in your life today?

Day 2: The Mark of the New Covenant: Love as Our Distinguishing Feature

In the old covenant, outward signs like circumcision marked those who belonged to God’s people. In the new covenant, Jesus declared that love—specifically, loving others as he loved us—would be the distinguishing mark of his followers. This love is not about ritual or belief alone, but about action and relationship. It is the unifying behavior that sets the church apart and serves as the standard by which all our actions are measured. Our devotion to God is authenticated not by looking up in ritual, but by looking around and putting others first in tangible ways. [09:09]

John 13:35 (ESV)
"By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."

Reflection: In what practical way can you put someone else’s needs ahead of your own this week, demonstrating the love that marks you as a follower of Jesus?

Day 3: Jesus’ Example: Leading by Sacrificial Love, Not Authority

Jesus did not compel obedience by asserting his divine authority, but by humbling himself and serving others—even to the point of death on a cross. He leveraged his example of sacrificial love, not his status, to inspire his followers. This shift from authority to example calls us to adopt the same mindset: to humble ourselves, serve others, and let love—not power—be our motivation. The call is to do unto others as Jesus has done for us, letting his self-giving love shape our relationships and actions. [12:21]

Philippians 2:5-8 (ESV)
"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."

Reflection: Where in your life are you tempted to use your position or authority rather than serving others in humility? How can you follow Jesus’ example of sacrificial love today?

Day 4: The Guiding Question: What Does Love Require of Me?

Rather than asking, “Is this a sin?” or “What does the Bible say about this?” Jesus’ new command invites us to a better, clarifying question: “What does love require of me?” This question stands guard over our consciences and guides us through every moral, ethical, and relational decision. It is simple, yet inescapably demanding, closing loopholes and exposing our justifications. When we are unsure of what to say or do, this question points us back to the heart of Jesus’ command and the good of those around us. [16:51]

Romans 13:8-10 (ESV)
"Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, 'You shall not commit adultery, You shall not murder, You shall not steal, You shall not covet,' and any other commandment, are summed up in this word: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."

Reflection: Think of a current decision or relationship challenge you’re facing—pause and ask, “What does love require of me?” What changes when you let this question guide your next step?

Day 5: The New Motivation: Obeying Because We Are Loved

Under the old covenant, obedience was motivated by the desire to gain God’s blessing or avoid punishment. In the new covenant, our motivation shifts: we obey not to get something from God, but because we have already received so much through Jesus’ love. Our actions are now rooted in gratitude and the desire to do what is best for others, not in fear or self-interest. This new “why” transforms our relationships and our approach to every command, centering our lives on love that flows from being loved first. [19:30]

1 John 4:19 (ESV)
"We love because he first loved us."

Reflection: In what area of your life have you been obeying out of duty or fear? How might your attitude and actions change if you obeyed out of gratitude for God’s love instead?

Sermon Summary

In the final hours before his crucifixion, Jesus gathered his closest followers and introduced a radical new way of living—a new covenant that would replace the old one given to Israel through Moses. This new covenant was not just a revision or an addition to the old; it was a complete transformation. While the old covenant was built on a long list of commandments and rituals, Jesus distilled the entire law into a single, all-encompassing command: “As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” This was not merely a call to generic kindness or even to the golden rule, but a call to love with the same sacrificial, personal, and relentless love that Jesus himself had shown.

For those first disciples, “as I have loved you” was not an abstract idea. It was rooted in their lived experiences with Jesus—moments of grace, forgiveness, patience, and unwavering acceptance. Jesus’ love was not theoretical; it was tangible, costly, and deeply personal. He did not leverage his divine authority to demand obedience, but rather his example of humble, self-giving love. The mark of belonging to this new movement would not be ritual or rule-keeping, but this distinctive, Christ-shaped love.

This new commandment also marked a shift from a vertical, God-focused obedience to a horizontal, people-focused ethic. No longer would devotion to God be measured by ritual or religious observance, but by how one treated the person next to them. The question was no longer, “How close can I get to sin without crossing the line?” or “What does the Bible say about this?” Instead, the guiding question for every situation became, “What does love require of me?” This question is both clarifying and demanding, cutting through loopholes and justifications, and calling us to a higher standard.

Obedience under the new covenant is not about earning God’s favor or avoiding punishment. It is a response to the love we have already received. The imperatives scattered throughout the New Testament are simply applications of this one command—to love as Jesus loved. This ethic, if embraced, has the power to change the world, just as it did in the earliest days of the church. The challenge is simple, yet profound: In every relationship, every decision, every moment, ask, “What does love require of me?”

Key Takeaways

1. Jesus’ new covenant replaces the old system of rules and rituals with a single, all-encompassing command: to love others as he has loved us. This is not an addition to the old commandments, but a complete fulfillment and replacement, even of the Ten Commandments. The new standard is not law, but the example of Christ’s sacrificial love. [06:45]
2. The love Jesus commands is deeply personal and rooted in real experiences. For the disciples, “as I have loved you” recalled moments of grace, forgiveness, and acceptance they had received from Jesus. Our call is to extend that same kind of love—grace that remembers our own story and offers it to others, even when it is undeserved. [03:55]
3. The defining mark of a follower of Jesus is not belief or ritual, but this distinctive, Christ-shaped love. Jesus’ followers are recognized not by what they believe, but by how they love one another. This love is the unifying ethic and the visible sign of belonging to Jesus’ new movement. [09:09]
4. Jesus did not motivate obedience by appealing to his divine authority, but by his example of humble, sacrificial love. He leveraged his love, not his power, to inspire his followers. This means our motivation for obedience is not fear or duty, but gratitude for the love we have received—a love that compels us to love others in the same way. [12:21]
5. The guiding question for every moral, ethical, and relational decision is, “What does love require of me?” This question is both simple and demanding, closing loopholes and exposing hypocrisy. It shifts our focus from rule-keeping to people-loving, and from self-justification to self-giving. In every situation, this question leads us to the heart of Jesus’ new covenant. [16:51]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[00:23] - The Power of Small Groups
[01:10] - Jesus Introduces a New Covenant
[02:30] - The Setting: Passover and Urgency
[03:55] - “As I Have Loved You”: Personal Examples
[06:45] - The New Commandment Replaces the Old
[08:30] - The Mark of the New Movement
[09:09] - Love as the Defining Ethic
[10:45] - From Vertical to Horizontal Devotion
[12:21] - Jesus’ Example, Not Authority
[13:13] - The Demanding Simplicity of Love
[15:00] - The Better Question: What Does Love Require?
[16:51] - Applying the New Command in Daily Life
[18:30] - The New “Why” for Obedience
[20:30] - The Challenge: Love That Changes the World
[21:50] - Closing and Reflection

Bible Study Guide

Bible Study Discussion Guide

Bible Reading

John 13:33-35 (ESV)
> Little children, yet a little while I am with you. You will seek me. And just as I said to the Jews, so now I also say to you, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’
> A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.
> By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.

Philippians 2:5-8 (ESV)
> Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,
> who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,
> but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.
> And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Observation Questions

In John 13:34, what is the “new commandment” that Jesus gives to his disciples? How is it different from previous commandments?
According to the sermon, what did Jesus use as the standard for this new commandment—his authority or his example? ([12:21])
In Philippians 2:5-8, what attitude or mindset does Paul say we should have, and how does he describe Jesus’ approach to power and authority?
What does Jesus say will be the identifying mark of his followers in John 13:35?

Interpretation Questions

The sermon says Jesus’ command to “love one another as I have loved you” is not just a revision but a replacement of the old covenant, even the Ten Commandments. What does this mean for how Christians should approach rules and rituals today? ([06:45])
The disciples had personal experiences of Jesus’ love—grace, forgiveness, acceptance. Why do you think Jesus wanted their love for others to be shaped by these experiences rather than by abstract rules? ([03:55])
The sermon describes a shift from a “vertical” (God-focused) obedience to a “horizontal” (people-focused) ethic. How does this change the way we think about what it means to be devoted to God? ([10:45])
According to the sermon, why is the question “What does love require of me?” both clarifying and demanding? ([16:51])

Application Questions

The sermon says the mark of a follower of Jesus is not belief or ritual, but Christ-shaped love. If someone looked at your life this week, what would they see as your “defining mark”? Where do you see room for growth? ([09:09])
Think of a time when you experienced grace, forgiveness, or acceptance from someone. How did that impact you? How might you extend that same kind of love to someone in your life right now, especially if they don’t “deserve” it? ([03:55])
The sermon challenges us to ask, “What does love require of me?” in every relationship and decision. Is there a current situation—at home, work, or church—where you need to pause and ask this question? What might love require of you there? ([16:51])
Jesus motivated obedience not by demanding it as God, but by showing sacrificial love. When you think about following Jesus, is your motivation more about fear, duty, or gratitude? How could you shift your motivation to be more about gratitude for his love? ([12:21])
The sermon says the new commandment “closes loopholes and exposes hypocrisy.” Are there areas in your life where you tend to look for loopholes or justify your actions instead of asking what love requires? What would it look like to change that? ([16:51])
The old covenant focused on “How close can I get to sin without crossing the line?” The new covenant asks, “What does love require?” How does this change the way you think about gray areas or things the Bible doesn’t specifically mention? ([16:51])
The sermon suggests that if the church truly lived out this Christ-shaped love, it could change the world again. What is one practical step you can take this week to love someone as Jesus has loved you? ([21:50])

Sermon Clips

“Jesus didn't issue his new command as an additional commandment to the existing list of commands. Jesus issued his new command as a replacement for everything in that existing list, including, are you ready for this? Including the Big Ten. Just as his new covenant fulfilled and replaced the old covenant, Jesus' new commandment fulfills and replaces the old commandments. In other words, participants in the new covenant are not required to obey any of the commandments found in Moses' instructions to ancient Israel. Instead, participants in the new covenant are expected to obey the single command Jesus issued as part of his new covenant. Namely, as I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

“Jesus' new command, this one another brand of love would be the mark of the man or woman who chose to participate in the new covenant. New command brand love was to serve as the unifying behavior for his new movement, the church. Jesus went on to say that this new command would serve as the governing ethic, the standard against which all behavior was to be measured for those who called him Lord.”

“His primary concern wasn't what they believed. His primary concern wasn't that they believed something. He insisted they do something. They were to love as he had loved. Now, the men gathered that night had some inkling as to what this might look like. But three days later, it became agonizingly clear.”

“Jesus didn't tether his new command to the anchor that all the other Jewish commands were traditionally tethered to. Love for God, fear of God, dedication to God. Jesus tethered his new command to himself. As I have loved you. In other words, this was Jesus' way of inserting himself into an equation that mere mortals have no business inserting themselves into.”

“The litmus test for being a Jesus follower wasn't the ritualistic...day of the week, festival -driven, don't -forget -your -goat worship of an invisible and sometimes distant God. Following Jesus wouldn't be about looking for ways to get closer to God who dwelled up there, out there, somewhere. Jesus followers would demonstrate their devotion to God by putting the person next to them in front of them.”

“Jesus' love for the men in the room rather than his authority over the men in the room is what he leveraged to instruct and inspire the men in that room. And on a personal note, Jesus' love for you, not his authority over you, is what he leverages to inspire you as well.”

“It was his gory and gritty sacrifice, not an old covenant, keep your hands clean holiness that compelled his disciples to eventually take up their own crosses and follow him. And that should stop us in our tracks.”

“Jesus, Jesus did not leverage his equality with God to stir us to action. He leveraged his love. This represented a total departure from the Old Covenant. Jesus did not anchor his new command to his divine right as king. He anchored it to his sacrificial love. Why should his disciples obey his command to love? Because he loved them first. He loved them best.”

“Jesus leveraged his compelling love to compel his followers to love. By this, by this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another. You see, Jesus' new covenant commandment established the governing ethic for his new movement, the church. It was simple, it was all -encompassing, it was far less complicated than the current system, but it was actually far more demanding.”

“One thing that most of us didn't know growing up is that the imperatives that we find scattered throughout the New Testament are simply applications of Jesus' new covenant command. The New Testament imperatives are simply examples of how to love the one another's that Jesus commanded us to love. Again, his way is far less complicated, but in the end, it is far more demanding.”

“This question takes us to the heart of Jesus' new covenant command, the standard by which we are to evaluate our behavior, conversations, and attitudes. And here it is, the better question. What does love require of me? What does love require of me? This clarifying, but honestly terrifying question should stand guard over our consciences. It should serve as a guidepost and signpost and compass as we navigate the complexities of our culture.”

“It should inform how we date, parent, boss, manage, and coach. It should form a perimeter around what I say and do in my role as husband, pastor, and neighbor. This question gives voice to the New Covenant on issues where our New Testament is silent. It fills the gaps with disquieting precision. It succeeds where concordances fail. It quashes the insipid justification of, but the Bible doesn't say anything about this, and the Bible doesn't say anything is wrong with that. It closes loopholes. It exposes our hypocrisy. It stands as judge and jury. It is so simple, but it is so inescapably demanding.”

“There are many things the New Testament doesn't specifically or directly address, and honestly, that shouldn't surprise or even concern us. Why? Jesus' overarching ethic of love intersects with every imaginable scenario we will have to face in this lifetime. New Covenant people don't begin or end with the question, what does the Bible say about? That is, that is so Old Covenant. New Covenant people begin with this better question. What does God's love for me require of me? What does love require of me?”

“When unsure of what to say or do, ask what love requires of you. When unsure of what to say or do, simply ask what love requires of you. Again, the command scattered throughout our New Testament, answer that question. The New Testament imperatives are simply examples of how to love others as God and Christ has loved us.”

“New Testament imperatives aren't there for your benefit, though you may benefit by complying. New Testament instructions aren't there for God's benefit. He's fine. New Testament imperatives are there for the benefit of the one another's around us. They illustrate what love for others looks like. To say it another way, Peter, Paul, James, and John did not add to Jesus' new command. They simply applied it.”

“While Jesus' new command obligates us to wrestle with this new and better question, it does something else as well. His new command provides us with a new answer to an old question. His new command forces us to upgrade our answer to the question, why? Why obey? Why forgive? Why tell the truth? Why be generous? Why do all those things we were told to do growing up?”

“With the inauguration of the new covenant, why would no longer be associated with appeasing God or purging property? Jesus' followers aren't instructed to obey in order to gain something from God. Christians obey in light of the fact that we've already been given so much.”

“The New Testament, the New Covenant answer to the question why is always this. That's what love requires of me because that's what's best for them. That's what love requires of me because that's what's best for them. The Old Covenant why centered on doing right by God. New Covenant obedience is always connected to a who and often it's the who beside you.”

“Perhaps the main reason is that in our mixing and matching of covenants, we've lost the purity and the power of Jesus' New Covenant command to love as he loved. You know, that changed the world once and perhaps it could again. And perhaps, perhaps it begins with us. So what does love require of you? What does love require of you? At home, at work, at school? What does love require of you in the community? There are no loopholes or workarounds in Jesus' new command brand of love. Again, it is far less complicated than what many of us grew up with, but in the end, it is far more demanding. So what does love require of you?”

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