Moved to Love Jesus

Jesus is a wonderful example of someone motivated by love.  In his prehuman existence, he loved his Father and he loved mankind.  As the embodiment of wisdom, he said:  "I came  to be beside [Jehovah] as a master worker, and I came to be the one he was specially fond of day by day, I being glad before him all the time, being glad at the productive land of his earth, and the things I was fond of were with the sons of men."  (Proverbs 8:30, 31)  Jesus' love moved him to give up his heavenly dwelling and be born as a helpless infant.  He dealt patiently and kindly with the meek and the lowly and suffered at the hands of Jehovah's enemies.  Finally, he died for all mankind   on a torture stake.   (John 3:35; 14:30, 31; 15:12, 13; Philippians 2:5-11) What a fine example of right motivation!

When those with a right heart condition read the accounts of Jesus' life in the Gospels and meditate on how many blessings his faithful course has brought them, this causes a deep love for him to grow within them. We today are like the ones addressed by Peter when he said: "Though you never saw [Jesus], you love him."  (1 Peter 1:8)  Our love is shown when we exercise faith in him and imitate his life of self-sacrifice.  (1 Corinthians 11:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:6; 1 Peter 2:21-25)  On April 19, 2000, a total of 14,872, 086 were reminded of our reasons for loving Jesus when they attended the annual Memorial of his death.  What a large number that was! And how strengthening to know that so many are interested in salvation through Jesus' sacrifice! Truly, we are built up by the love of Jehovah and Jesus for us and our love for them.

Jesus said that we should love Jehovah with out whole heart, soul, mind and strength.  But he also said that we should love our neighbor as ourselves.  (Mark 12:29-31) Whom does that include? And how does love of neighbor help us to maintain a good balance and a proper motive?  These questions will be discussed in the following article. 

Next time: HOW FAR-REACHING IS YOUR LOVE?

The Watchtower, 2001