Loving Jesus in Today's Context

What does love mean to Gen-Z? For them (and indeed for us), love is intrinsically tied to happiness. Love is expected to equal happiness.

Yet the world today suggests that if love fails to deliver happiness, there is no need to lower oneself or make sacrifices for another. Sacrifice is often dismissed as folly, a cause of personal unhappiness and loss.

Gen-Z is characterized by their relentless pursuit of greater happiness. They seek fleeting, yet certain pleasures, gained with minimal cost and time investment... They (We) shy away from genuine connections and personal growth through relationships. They (We) chase after exhilarating, dopamine-driven experiences of love. They (We) desire to find that perfect match. Consequently, love has become an optional pursuit. Why? Because it does not guarantee happiness.

Might our love for Jesus Christ also have become an optional pursuit?

Faced with the challenge of sacrifice, commitment, and the demands of our relationship with Christ, how should we express our love for Him? Is it simply a matter of obedience to a command? Has the essence of love evolved with the changing times, or does an immutable truth remain?

John 15:1-4 (ESV)

1 “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. 2 Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit. 3 Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. 4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me.”

To bear fruit as branches, we must steadfastly believe in our identity as united with the Lord, the true vine, attached to Him. It is not merely about striving to stay connected, but about embracing the truth that we are inherently connected. And within that divine identity, we are called to keep God’s word (chapters 14-15).

Here, the term ‘teleo’ (to keep) in Greek conveys the sense of ‘guarding,’ ‘preserving,’ and ‘maintaining.’ Meditating on this, I found solace in the Lord's revelation.

Matthew 13:44-46 (ESV)

44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.”

The kingdom of God is likened to a hidden treasure and a merchant in search of fine pearls. Upon discovering a pearl of unparalleled worth, the merchant sells all he owns to acquire it, signifying the act of ‘guarding, preserving, and maintaining’ that treasure.

To abide in Jesus, to love Him, means to regard Him as the ultimate treasure. Because He is of supreme value, we must preserve Him above all else. Esteem Him as more precious than anything in the world.

Abiding in Him involves more than passive existence; it means actively cherishing and safeguarding His unparalleled worth.

Matthew 10:37-38 (ESV)

37 “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me. 38 And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.”

Jesus speaks with unmistakable clarity. Loving Him means loving Him above all else, surpassing any other love in our lives, as if addressing Gen-Z directly. This perspective grants love an absolute rather than relative significance.

Loving one's spouse, parents, children... there exists an absolute, unchanging truth in our universal experience of love. No matter how post-modern or self-centred Gen-Z may become, the unchanging truth of love is to treasure what is most valuable.

Thus, loving Jesus Christ constitutes the very essence of worship.

The rationale is straightforward. Worship derives from the compound of Worth (value) and -ship (state of being). Worship is the state of giving God His worth.

Therefore, Jesus commands us to love in this manner:

Matthew 22:37 (ESV)

“‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’”

To love with everything means to exalt Him with the highest worth. This is the singular language of worship.

When He becomes the highest value in our lives, our priorities inevitably shift.

Is Jesus, who sustains my every breath, more precious than money, my job, my time, my children, my dreams, my plans, my vision, or anything else I cherish?

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