Place me like a seal over your heart,
    like a seal on your arm;
for love is as strong as death,
    its jealousy unyielding as the grave.
It burns like blazing fire,
    like a mighty flame.
Many waters cannot quench love;
    rivers cannot sweep it away.

Song of Songs 8:6-7

Have you ever considered that Jesus could have chosen to be popular with more or less everyone? The people loved him for his miracles, his works of power, and his fearless teaching – but if he’d just kept to healing six days a week, and not challenged some of the practices of the Pharisees and Sadducees, he might never have become unpopular – and the authorities wouldn’t have sought to have him crucified. He’d probably be looked back on by history as a kind of supercharged Mother Theresa character – always doing good, showing kindness and love, and performing miracles too.

And we would still be dead in our sins.

“We love because [God] first loved us.”

1 John 4:19

It’s good to repeatedly return to this truth from John’s first letter, to remind ourselves that the source of our own love is God’s love for us. And if the source of our love is God’s love, it follows also that our love should look like His love. In fact, Jesus says this to His disciples explicitly:

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.”

John 13:34