“No one has greater love than this,
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

john 15:13

John 15:12-17

Reflection

Jesus tells the disciples to love one another as he has loved them. He calls them friends because he has told them everything that the Father has relayed. Jesus tells them he chose them and that they must remain in him and love one another.

We may not often think of Jesus as our friend. We might call him different titles in our minds: Lord, Savior, God, Son, Christ, and more. But Jesus reveals another layer of his relationship with us, that of a friend. He is the ultimate friend, one that died for us. Would you truly die for a friend? Many of us would die for a spouse, sibling, or family member, but not necessarily for a friend.

Yes, Jesus is more than just our friend, but he shows us how deep friendships can go. We must love each other as Jesus loved us, showing the same care and compassion to each person in our lives. Likewise, Jesus has chosen us as his friends, and so we must extend that same love to him, our best and most trusted friend.

Jesus will never disappoint or let us down. He loves us so completely and fully that he died for us. How can you die to yourself in order to grow in relationship with the Lord?

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Saint of the Day

St. John Baptist de Rossi: 1698 – 1764

“The poor come to church tired and distracted by their daily troubles. If you preach a long sermon they can’t follow you. Give them one idea that they can take home, not half a dozen, or one will drive out the other, and they will remember none.” St. John Baptist de Rossi