Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends (John 15:13). This verse reveals to us the very essence of Christianity. For at its heart is a self-denying, self-sacrificial love.
It is demonstrated in history by the Lord Jesus. He did not lay down His life for friends only, but for His enemies! As our pioneer, we His followers are called to show this sacrificial love in our marriages, in singleness, in friendship, in family, in the church and towards wider society.
It is a quality of love that reflects something of the joyful, self-giving, sacrificial love of the Trinity, where the Father, the Son, and the Spirit willingly and mutually love and take delight in each other. It is a love that is far and away superior to all other forms.
The idol of autonomy in the West
If I asked you to name one of the great cultural idols of the secular Western world, what would you …