Jesus said, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another;
as I have loved you, that you also love one another" (John 13:34). Did
Jesus replace the clear definitions of the Ten Commandments with a new
religious principle, that love alone can guide our lives?
Does this new commandment supersede the Ten Commandments and replace
all other biblical laws? Jesus clearly answered this fundamental question
when He said, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the
Prophets" (Matthew 5:17).
Yet many people who believe in Christ as their Savior also believe
this new commandment frees them from any obligation to obey God's laws.
They misunderstand what Jesus said and meant. The Holy Scriptures,
in the Old and New Testaments, teach that we should love each other
(Leviticus 19:18). Jesus did not introduce love as a new principle.
That was already in the Bible and a fundamental part of God's
instruction to ancient Israel.
What, then, was new in Christ's "new commandment"? Notice His wording.
He said we are to "love one another; as I have loved you."
What was new was His own example of love! The whole world has a perfect
model of the love of God in Christ's perfect example of loving obedience.
Christ loved us so much that He sacrificed His own life for us. He Himself
explained: "Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one's
life for his friends" (John 15:13).
