Written by John Pyon 

John is a member of GJH Ministry in Duluth, GA

February is the time of year that brings joy to some people, but can also be an ordinary month for others. when February comes around, what do we think of? Valentine’s Day, right? Valentine’s Day we see heart shapes everywhere. The heart shape is a symbol of love.

We celebrate Valentine’s Day to express our feelings to the ones we love the most. Then, what is the greatest love of all? The love of Jesus Christ…

Jesus’ love is the root or core of our faith; he sacrificed his own life so that we may have eternal life. What love is greater than the love of Jesus Christ (John 15:13)? We may wonder how someone can be like Jesus. How do we follow in his holy footsteps? Remember, Jesus was also human. He came to earth to be our realistic model.

We cannot fathom what it means to be like Jesus, but that is why we have the Bible. It helps us to learn from his life and teachings so that we can apply the word in our lives.

Jesus replied: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This isthe first and greatest commandment.” (Matthew 22:37-38)

“if you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.” (John 15:7)

There’s a reason Jesus gave us thesemessages. Above everything else, we have to develop our relationship with God,with Jesus. In John’s Gospel, Jesus said he can do nothing by himself, and hecan only do what he sees the Father doing (John5:19). It is the same with us. Building our relationship with God, just asJesus did, is the key. We may fall down from time to time, but God will always be with us, ready to pick us up. Just as God was always with the Israelites through a pillar of cloud and a pillar of fire (Exodus 13:21-22), God is always with us.

When we develop our relationship with God, that influences and reaches out to the church, which is the actualization of Jesus Christ. We learn to love our brothers and sisters and that love transforms the Church into a true body of Christ.

“And the second is like it: ‘Loveyour neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:39-40)

Our relationship with Christ will help us love our friends, our family, our community, and our enemies. Ultimately, we live as mini-Jesuses. We are the salt and light of the world. Let God’s love overflow from you so that you share the kingdom with the world.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!” by Jeremy Stark is licensed under CC BY 2.0