Loving to the End

"Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end.” John 13:1

One of the most amazing examples of loving to the end was Jesus at the Last Supper the night before He would lay down His life. He and the disciples had all gathered together in the Upper Room. The Bible records that Jesus was fully aware that the devil had entered the heart of Judas. Later that evening Judas would betray Jesus, setting in motion the end of Jesus’ life. So what incredible loving gestures did Jesus show to the one who would hand Him over to His death? Kindness…Generosity…LOVE. I can’t imagine the emotions of Judas sitting there as Jesus poured water on his feet, drying them with His outer garment. Did Judas look away, so he would't have to look Him in the eyes? He was so undeserving of the lavish generosity of Jesus. He received the benefits from Jesus, but withheld the loyalty to Jesus. Aren't we just like Judas in some ways? We are called to do as Christ did, not to do as we feel like doing like Judas.

My Bible study calls this emotional generosity. “Emotional generosity is the hardest form of generosity there is to give. It’s incredibly easy for me to write a check or donate an item, but what about not giving people what I think they deserve for how they have treated me?” A Woman Who Doesn’t Quit, Nicki Koziarz, p. 117.

How is emotional generosity walked out in your life and in mine? It is responding with a Jesus heart instead of a Brenda heart, and giving grace where grace is undeserved. It is being generous with our time for a hurting soul, when our calendar is full. It is forgiving someone even when they haven’t asked for forgiveness. It is serving another when we have nothing to gain. It is turning the other cheek when someone has wounded us instead of turning on them. Just as God gave Jesus ‘His own,’ God has given us our own circle of influence. Are we loving them to the end? Are we washing their feet regardless of what is in their heart for us? Only through the love of Christ can we access this type of generosity and the ability to love others well. When we withhold our own emotional generosity we forfeit receiving it from God. Today, may we live in the radical generosity of Christ and give people what we think they don't deserve.

‘Give, and it will be given to you; a good measure – pressed down, shaken together, and running over – will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.’ Luke 6:38