If You Love Jesus…

February 17, 2026

Do you love Jesus? I mean really love Him? It is of utmost importance that we develop a true love for Jesus, because loving Him is the key to a deeper, more satisfying, more obedient spiritual life. Here is what I mean: Jesus said to His apostles in John 14, “…If anyone loves me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him” (John 14:23 NASB95). What tremendous promises flow from loving Jesus! Loving Jesus leads us to obeying Jesus. Loving Jesus leads to receiving a special love from the Father Himself. Loving Jesus leads to the Father and Son coming into us to live within us. But it all starts with love!

Let us examine the first part of Jesus’ statement: “If anyone loves me, he will keep My word.” Notice that love comes first and obedience is the result. If we love Him, then we will obey Him.

And don’t we have every reason to love Jesus? We love Jesus because of what He has done. It was Jesus who loved us first. It was Jesus who sought us out while we were yet sinners. It was Jesus who gave His life for us when we had nothing to offer Him in return. His death on our behalf was the ultimate expression of love for us. Not only this, but we love Jesus because of who He is. We marvel at His power, His grace, His humility, His compassion. As we think of these attributes of Jesus, how could we not love Him?

And what does it mean to love Him? It may be helpful to think about what it means to love the special people in your life. We delight in the people we love. We are drawn to them because of their qualities. We want to be near to them. In a similar way, to love Jesus is to cherish Him for who He is, to delight in Him, and to desire a close relationship with Him.

And this kind of love for Jesus is the key to living a life of obedience. Think about this: the next time you are faced with temptation, think about your love for Jesus. Say to Him, “Lord, I will turn away from my sinful desires because I love you so much.” Say to yourself, “How could I hurt my Lord Jesus by continuing in this sin?”  Our love for Him is a powerful motivator to keep walking with Him.

Today, let us reflect on all the many reasons we have for loving Jesus. May our love for Him control every aspect of our lives and empower a willing, joyful obedience to Him that comes from the heart.

—Scott Colvin

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Posted by Scott Colvin

Would You Let Jesus Wash Your Feet?

January 6, 2026

Jesus gave a powerful object lesson to His disciples just before He went to the cross. During supper, Jesus wrapped Himself in a towel, poured water into a basin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet, and wiped them with the towel with which He was girded (John 13:4-5). But when Jesus came to Peter, he vigorously protested and said, “Never shall you wash my feet!” (John 13:8a NASB95)

Some commentators frown upon Peter’s response and imply that in this moment, he was displaying a false humility that was masking a deep spiritual arrogance. I don’t think that is the case at all. I think I know exactly where Peter was coming from. Washing feet was the job of a slave!  Jesus is no servant!  He is the Master, the Lord, the Teacher!  I think that if I had been there, I would have said the same thing as Peter: “Lord, never, ever will I let you wash my feet!”  I might have said, “Lord, give me the basin and I will do it myself!”  What about you?  Would you have let Jesus wash your feet?

Listen to Jesus’ response to Peter: “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me” (John 13:8b). You see, the foot washing wasn’t just about clean feet or ancient hospitality customs. There was something deeper that Jesus was trying to teach. Of course, Jesus was not saying, “Peter if you have dirty feet, you and I can have no fellowship.” 

What He was saying is this, “Peter, if I don’t cleanse your heart and soul, you can have no fellowship with Me.”

What are the lessons for us?  We cannot cleanse ourselves of sin. Sin has left a crimson stain that we cannot wash away, no matter how hard we try. Cleansing can only come if we humbly submit to Jesus’ washing. We must humbly and gratefully accept His supreme act of service on our behalf—His death on the cross. If we’re not willing to let Him wash us, we cannot be a part of Him.

I cannot help but think of baptism when I read this story. Baptism was the moment in time at which we humbly submitted to Jesus and let Him cleanse us with His shed blood. Have you submitted to Him in this way?  Will you let Jesus wash you and keep you continually cleansed?

—Scott Colvin

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Posted by Scott Colvin