What is “Greater Love?”

Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain. He who loves his life will lose it, but he who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there my servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him my Father will honor. — John 12:24-26

This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends. — John 15:12-13

By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. — 1 John 3:16

In this the love of God was manifest toward us, that God sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. — 1 John 4:9-11

We ask ourselves: what is ‘greater love?’— in its essence, at its core. Easily, we list off a variety of descriptions which are accurate and true: It is sacrificial. It lays down itself for the sake of another. It is pure in its intent. It is genuine, enduring, unfailing. It is not of ourselves. Our understanding of each of these things, though, is what brings pause. Making a list is one thing, while recognizing the reality of these very things is quite another.

Looking to Jesus Christ, our descriptions fall like dust at His pierced feet. Could we ever describe His love? Could we truly describe Him? The One who spoke the very words, “Greater love has no one than this” revealed how great His love was towards us in, literally, laying down His own life for our sake. Freely. No man took His life from Him, and He died with no attempt to save it. Jesus did what no other could do—and what He alone who appointed to by the Father: He became the Sacrifice for our sin. Oh, what a path... but oh, what a victory He wrought for us to be freed from sin, from death! The foundation of our hope to even know God as Father is shown forth radiantly in Jesus, His Son. Our Father’s love is on full display as He gave His only Son that we might live through Him— fully forgiven and redeemed— and have fellowship with Him forever.

But what compelled Jesus to stay His course?— to be this Sacrifice? What caused Him to take up such a Cross?—and not only take it up, but be crucified upon it and die there? “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us.” Love. Love stayed His course. Love held Him there. This— Jesus Christ, crucified—is who we look to as we grapple with the question in our hearts: ‘What is greater love?’ He epitomizes it. We can only look to Him for the answer, point to Him when asked, and seek for Him to show us what this means in actuality in our own lives today.“By this we know love... and we also ought to lay down our lives...” We also ought to love “as He loved us.”

But the thought of casting off “this life” like a grain of wheat to be buried in the earth to die isn’t an appealing one. Even noble thoughts of self-martyrdom for a good cause glow with an aura, but is it at all like the reality of “dying so another may live?” There is an immediate reckoning when we see what true love is, and it banishes all the vainglory of our illusions of what we thought a life of self-sacrifice meant before we saw Jesus, held upon the Cross by the love of God. His humility, His Sacrifice, cuts to the heart of our proud imagination. We find ourselves in dust and ashes, quieted and in awe before Him whose name is Love.

“If anyone seeks to come after Me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” (Matthew 16:24) Our Lord Jesus reveals to this day a love unlike any other in this world. We desire to follow Him and hope that others, too, might know the depths of His great love... and that they might join us as we take up our cross today, deny ourselves and follow Him!

Oh, the love of God which brought us to this road! May His love hold us to it, no matter the cost. It is the road to life— eternal life.

What is the Greater Love Mission Community?

Greater Love, the mission community, began operating out of a physical location in Marble Falls, Texas, October 2024. With a deep desire to see our own hearts “stirred up” to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ, locally, we inquired of the Lord and asked Him for direction toward this end. With the resounding words “Greater Love” washing over our hearts, time and again, we began to consider what it would look like to have a space open to the public toward this end: to exalt Jesus Christ; to know Him more; and, to make Him known. As a mission community, we desire to pursue a deeper love for our God and for our brother and sister, neighbor and enemy, to learn the true meaning of greater love... a laid down life, a cross and a call to follow Jesus.

Greater Love is open Tuesday-Saturday, from 10:00am-4:00pm, to engage people with the love of God. The space provides a central location for prayer meetings, Bible studies and one-on-one discipleship. Early mornings and evenings we host meetings on a weekly basis for deeper community with a missional focus.