Lay Down, as Christ Has Done

I will strive to lay down my life for others as Christ has done for me.

Verse

John 15:13 

Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.

God, the thought of laying down our lives for others as you have done for us is simply terrifying.

No matter how much we want to be like you and follow your example, the reality is that the sacrifice you made for us is one we could never imagine being expected of us.

To die. On the cross. To have our bloodshed for another.

This is the sacrifice you made for us because you love us and chose to be obedient to your Father in heaven. But could we ever be that obedient? Ever filled with that much love for a friend?

Lord, please show us what it practically looks like to love others to the extent of laying down our life for them.

In the strong name of Jesus, Amen.

I will strive to lay down my life for others as Christ has done for me.

How often does the thought of laying down your life for someone else cross your mind? Hmm. Likely not too often, as we carry on about our days, maybe sacrificially serving through preparing a meal, washing a load of clothes, or pouring a cup of coffee for a friend or colleague. Maybe for those who serve as caregivers, the thought of laying down our lives to the point of death probably is something much more tangible. And for those who have received an organ in order to continue living and breathing, the reality of life-for-life is entirely true.

But for the vast majority of us, we don’t understand this call from God, to lay down our lives for a friend as we follow the example of Jesus.

Until that moment of crisis comes, when we come face-to-face with the brokenness of our earthly frail bodies and the preciousness of life.

When a loved one gets so sick they can’t care for themselves.

When what once was considered private no longer has such stigma.

When living becomes harder than dying because you can no longer do it on your own.

In those kinds of situations, we get a taste of what Christ has done for us . . . but only a taste.

When our friends sat across from us on our porch that early fall night, with a crisp breeze blowing through, we had no idea what storm was actually coming our way. They shared the cancer diagnosis, and we knew the trial was impending. But we didn’t know how integral our role would be. Sure, we’d pray. Of course, we’d cook some meals and care for the kids. But nothing could prepare us for that night in the emergency room when post-surgery complications made our friend so horribly sick and weak.

You just don’t think about what it will be like to care for your brother-in-Christ in a way that friends don’t normally do — caring for their bodies and not just their hearts.

That night, I watched my husband serve. I saw his Christlikeness afresh. He moved one step closer to fulfilling the call to lay down his life for a friend as he entered into the uncomfortable, the intimate, the necessary steps to love.

In what ways is God calling you to love sacrificially to the point of laying your life down for a friend? 


 

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