Truly He Taught Us to Love One Another (from “O Holy Night”)

By Justyne Topuz

Berlin, Germany

Scripture Reading:

John 15:12

Matthew 22:37- 40

Matthew 25:31-46

Each of us knows this commandment: Love one Another.

In the so-called double commandment of love in the Gospel of Matthew, love of others is placed in direct connection with love of God as the two highest of all commandments.

I am so thankful that God is letting me do a job where I have no choice but to remind myself almost every day of this commandment. I have to love those around me just to be able to do the job at all. It keeps me humble, grateful, and spiritually awake. 

I have been working for HOPE worldwide for several years now. I run HOPE worldwide-Germany and have been responsible for many projects in our HOPE center in the middle of Berlin. Currently, my team and I are taking care of the elderly, the sick, the homeless and many refugees from all over the world. I am also responsible for the placement of hundreds of Ukrainian refugees in Europe since the outbreak of the war.

In this photo, Justyne (far right) and other volunteers organize supplies donated to help Ukrainian families displaced by war. HOPE worldwide, working with their partners, has been able to place more than 1000 Ukrainian refugees in homes throughout Europe.

I love my job! It’s my calling and my way of life.

It's varied. It’s never boring. It’s fun and a blessing. But I am also confronted with a lot of suffering, pain, injustice, and many, many needs. There are so many situations full of sorrow and sadness and pain, that sometimes I can only escape myself into prayer. 

Yes, my lifestyle—the lifestyle of disciples—can be tiring and overwhelming sometimes. Especially in our fast and busy world. And yet, a living a life of love is the commandment that sums up everything that God, the law, and the prophets require. We can’t avoid or replace it with other actions, even if we are so busy with other so-called important things.

God’s Love Language  God wants us to love Him with all our hearts, and loving others and serving the poor and needy changes our hearts only like the Bible and Jesus can.

Jesus is our Lord and He taught us to love one another. Loving others is not just a commandment from Jesus; it shows us who and how He is. It's His love language. It’s God’s love language. 

This is how God feels loved by us (1 John 4:11-12). It is something very personal and individual between us and God and yet at the same time universal for all of us. That is what we were actually created for – to love. 

When loving becomes difficult for me—especially when I am surrounded by disaster, illness, poverty, and suffering—then I make myself aware of who I am really doing it for at that moment. Focusing on God has always given me comfort and changed my view of the world and how I see others.  It helps me to look behind the scenes and to see what is not so obvious. If we love others, we love God. It’s so simple.

 HOPE worldwide volunteers working with school children in South Africa. 

There is so much light, power, hope, and beauty behind it. That's exactly what the world desperately needs. These moments when we overcome ourselves, comfort others, help, smile, keep going, and don’t give up, can make a huge difference in the lives of others. Whatever we do for one of the least, we do for Jesus (Matthew 25:40). 

It’s Christmastime. We commemorate the birth of Jesus our King. What gifts and offerings do we bring to Him? Let’s give something very personal, something that makes Him happy and is His love language. Let’s live the dream and bring love, light and beauty into darkness. Let’s love one another and our fellow human beings! Then our King will reply, “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.”

Merry Christmas! 

Questions for Reflection:

1. How deep is your understanding of loving others? Do you think outside the box and love outside of your comfort zone?
2. Are you willing to love “one of the least of these” as Jesus talks about in Matthew 25?  Who are some of “the least” who you can love?

Today I will:

Spend time today in prayer asking God to help you to open your eyes to see those in need and to love others even more.  Then, step outside of your comfort zone and love “one of the least of these” in some way.  

About the Author:

Justyne Topuz lives with her husband, Can, and two daughters in Berlin, Germany. They are part of the church leadership team and lead the youth and family ministry in the Berlin Church of Christ.  

To hear a special version of "O Holy Night" performed by your sister Amy Kinzer, please click the image below: