Love That Looks Like Jesus

“By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” – John 13:35

When Jesus said, “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35, NKJV), He wasn’t talking about a soft feeling or a polite smile. The word He used was agape—a love that gives, serves, and shows kindness no matter how someone behaves. It is the love God shows us every day. It is the love Jesus displayed when He prayed, “Father, forgive them” even as the nails held Him to the cross (Luke 23:34, NKJV). Agape is not emotion—it is action. It is the choice to treat others with the same mercy God has shown us.

In John 13, Jesus didn’t just talk about love—He demonstrated it. The King of kings wrapped a towel around His waist and washed the disciples’ feet. This was the job of the lowest servant, yet Jesus did it willingly. When He finished, He said, “For I have given you an example, that you should do as I have done to you” (John 13:15, NKJV). He wasn’t commanding them to start a foot‑washing ministry. He was showing them what real love looks like—humility, sacrifice, and putting others before yourself. Charles Spurgeon once wrote that the world points out the dirt on people’s feet, but Christ quietly takes the basin and washes it away. That is agape.

It is easy to criticize, gossip, or judge. It is easy to point out the dirt on someone else’s life. But Jesus said the world will know we belong to Him by our agape—not our opinions, not our arguments, not our church attendance, but our love. When we see someone’s “dirty feet,” may we not point at the stain but pick up the basin. May we choose restoration over criticism, compassion over condemnation, and humility over pride. That is the way of Jesus.

Ask the Lord today to help you love with agape—the kind of love that serves, forgives, and restores. Look for someone whose “feet” need washing, and quietly show them the kindness of Christ. Let your love be the evidence that you belong to Him.

“The measure of love is love without measure.” — Bernard of Clairvaux