The Easter season is a time filled with light, hope, and quiet joy. It reminds us that the Lord is truly risen and that love, not death, has the final word. But it also gently calls us to remember that this love is not only something we receive—it is something we are meant to live. In today’s Gospel, Jesus shares something deeply personal and lasting with his disciples before his departure. He says, “Love one another as I have loved you.” These are words we have heard many times, but their beauty is renewed each time we listen with an open heart.
The love Jesus speaks of is not merely a feeling or a polite gesture. It is something far deeper—something that transforms those who dare to live it. It is love made visible. Jesus does not simply say that he loves. He shows it. He touches those who are untouchable, forgives those who have failed, kneels to wash the feet of his friends, and stays beside those who suffer. In him, love becomes real—love that wears a face, love that grows tired and yet does not give up, love that stays even when others walk away.
As Saint Augustine once wrote, “What does love look like? It has the hands to help others, the feet to hasten to the poor and needy, the eyes to see misery and want, the ears to hear the sighs and sorrows of others. That is what love looks like.” This is the love that Jesus embodied, and this is the love he commands us to live. There is a simple story of a boy named Jonas who had a quiet habit that said more than words ever could. Each morning before school, Jonas would leave a small piece of chocolate on the kitchen table for his grandmother. She lived with the family and was quite elderly. Her memory had faded, and she often forgot his name or repeated the same story many times. Still, Jonas never missed a day. One morning, his mother gently asked, “Why do you keep doing this, even though she often does not remember who you are?” Jonas smiled and replied, “Because I remember her. And I love her. And I think love means doing something kind, even when no one sees it.”
That simple act speaks volumes. Love is not always about what we feel—it is about what we do. And especially when it costs something, especially when it is unseen, it becomes something holy. Love does not need to be noticed to be true. It does not need to be grand to be great.
When Jesus gives us his commandment, he is not speaking of an easy or convenient kind of love. He is speaking of faithful love. We are called to love as he loved—with patience, with tenderness, and with the courage to give something of ourselves. In the end, the world will not recognize Christians by the churches they build, the books they read, or even the prayers they say. It will know them by their love. As Jesus says in the Gospel: “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). People will begin to believe in love when they see it. They will begin to believe in him when they feel his compassion through us.
So today, let us hear his words again—not only as a commandment, but as a gentle invitation. Let us take one step toward someone in love. Let us offer one act of kindness. Let us become the visible love of Christ in a world that longs to see him. And in doing so, we may not change the whole world. But we will change someone’s world. And that is where resurrection begins.
Rev. Dr. Mathew Charthakuzhiyil