In 1John 2:7, we are told that loving one another is not something new, but something we have heard from the beginning. We have heard that command since we began our Christian walk. We have heard it as "do unto others as you would have them do unto you". We have been appalled at the lack of love in such places as Genesis, when Cain killed his brother. Why did he kill his brother? Because Cain was doing evil and his brother was doing what was righteous. (1John3:11-13).
To love one another, it is so simple, yet so difficult. So is playing the piano, or becoming a pole vaulter, or winning a spelling bee. Loving, as in all these things gets easier with practice. The more we practice it, the easier it is to love.
The command is not new, it has been with us from the start. Watch verse 8 following love one another, the same message you heard before. Yet it is new. Now this, Jesus lived the truth of this commandment. Jesus lived it out, He showed love in ways unexpected. He loved the unloveable. He taught loving in a new way, in a deeper, richer way. If we love only those who love us, what credit is that to us? Everyone does that. Jesus challenges us to go beyond that.
Yes, loving others is not a new teaching but loving the way Jesus did and does, is new. His example is the one that guides how we are to love. Love in unexpected ways, love those that don't love us, love those who speak ill of us. When we love in all circumstances, there is no room for anger, hatred or desires to retaliate. Really loving leaves no room to sin. Love takes us to new places, unexpected places, perhaps even places we have not visited often enough.
Continued love and blessings to you all.