Got Love
1 Corinthians 13:4-8A
I went to a wedding yesterday. It was one of thoes events that brought the reality of time and how many years have passed into clearer focus.
The groom was the son of some really good friends. He is about the same age as James. I congratulated our friends on winning the race. They have a child that was married off first.
Melanie accused me of calling her old and I explained the reality that it meant that we were all getting old.
We watched the couple cut the wedding cake. All the normal problems of holding the knife and give each other a bite. I am not sure that having 5 ladies telling them when an how to do everything helped them much.
Renee commented, “They are just babies.” It hit me that we were about the same age when we got married. She said “that was different.”
I am still trying to figure out how.
Well that got me to thinking about young love again. The feeling of excitement and fear of a wedding, how was life going to change…..
For the past couple of months I have had stuff on my mind and heart hat was like some of that packing tape that sticks to you. It starts out stuck on your shoe and when you pull it off it is sticking on your hand then the other hand. Eventually, you go to the trash can and stick it to it so you can be free.
The thing that has been on my heart is Love. I guess last night brought a little clarity to the problem. 24 years ago I was the groom. I was totally in love with my first wife……..Renee. As my mined shifted back to current day, It felt like there was something different.
It would probably be easier to name something that stayed the same. I still have a real love for Renee. But even it has differences. The selected scripture today gives me some things to try to measure how.
Love is patient - when I feel good and am not in a hurry to do something I want to do.
love is kind – when I want something
It does not envy – unless Renee is happy
it does not boast – except to show how important I am
it is not proud – OK I better stop there. I don’t meet any of the baseline qualifications that a Christian should have when it comes to love.
If I get to rude or self-seeking or not easily angered -- it will make my pride lead me to consider lying.
Love keeps no record of wrongs – That is not fair, I have a memory, I can’t help myself.
Folks, when I look at my love for my family, which is normally the best I can do. Well, I fall short.
When Paul describes love in chapter 13 he ends the chapter by saying that love is better than spiritual gifts and is even more powerful than faith and hope.
Love is good stuff. I like the way it makes me feel. However this letter is not written to individuals and how they are to love their spouse and family this is written to the church in Corinth, a church that has a lot of problems.
They have people in their church that are sinners. Not just little sins, but big ones. They have people in their church that think the old way was better and are trying their best to change the opinions of all the members. They have people that really have no understanding of how to approach Holy Communion. They have people that are talented and rich that want to control everything in the church.
Paul addresses all kinds of problems.....We get to the 13th chapter and it seems to me that Paul is trying to address the real problem. Paul is saying that all these issues in the church can be addressed with one real fix.
He defines love, Christian Love.
For the most part this letter is written to the church and is dealing with problems inside the church. Sometimes we have a tendency to fight with our loved ones and have less patience with family. When we fight we tend to know how to land blows – normally verbal – that really sting. Because we are so close we know the weak spots. Paul is saying that if we all make LOVE the foundation of what we are as Christians, the other stuff will take care if itself.
Paul’s letter is no less relevant today than it was back then. Christian love is difficult to do even with the ones we claim we love. The root of the problems in many churches today is a failure to understand and live a life of Christian love.
For most churches, I would guess that, when they started, their love and sacrifice in the name of love was probably very close to Paul’s description and it is likely that they never needed to be told how to act.
New love and new relationships bring out the best in our human nature. New love makes you treat people special and do things that are extra nice. New love makes you take risk and spend all you have, money and time. New love says I want to do what you want to do…square dancing… football…shopping…Let’s go!
Why does that change? Why is it that after some period of time the way we act seems to change? Not that the love left, but the special little things change, the time and excitement or emotion appear to fade.
It appears to be something that wears down with time, like being on a motorized treadmill. After a while we get tired and can’t seem to keep going. It is not that we don’t want too.
I guess it is really more a level of being comfortable. When we re comfortable we don’t dress up as much. We don’t need to do the extra things. We know we love each other and it does not have to be said as much.
How about as a church? Do you think the same thing happens in church? We just get sort of tired or we get comfortable with being here. We all know what chores we will do. Do we loose the excitement of the value of the love of Jesus Christ and let it be taken for granted.
Christian love ends up being pretty expensive too. Talk about a time killer. Calling and visiting missing members, speaking to strangers and finding out who they really are. That requires listening, really listening. (Love Listens)
Christian love requires that we are disturbed by people we don’t know that go hungry tonight. We are bothered by wars and oppression. That we hurt when mankind hurts. (Love is not only within the church.)
It requires that we practice what we profess as important. Christian love cost money from our pockets because children need a place to go after school or that the power is going to be shut off. (Love makes us react to help thoes in need)
Christian love is inconvenient because others fail to do what is expected and leave us hanging or we have to change our schedule and preference to accommodate another person. (Love does not get upset when it does not go our way.)
As a church, Christian love seems like a lot of trouble.
Paul is sharing a real treasure in out scripture today. His description of love is actually a mirror image of the love that has been poured out on Creation.
The full measure of love that Paul describes is God’s love for us. The whole chapter is really about loving others the way God loves us. Not that it is really possible to love like God. But, we should all try.
When I look back over my history I start to notice God’s love for me, It has always been there. I can also see that there are many people that have loved me on behalf of God. The Sunday school teachers that were there every Sunday to teach the classes and direct the plays. The people that called to ask if I was ok when I missed and sometimes just to say hello. The cards and hugs during the good and bad times that proved the connection between me and my church family.
You know, I always wanted to be perfect. I don’t believe that I have ever made it in any category. I seem to be able to notice a particular failure in the area of love.
I guess as I consider the image that Paul gives, I sometimes fulfill portions of perfection. I guess I have figured out that as an individual I really am incapable of getting anywhere close to perfection. As a member of a body of Christ, our church, I come a lot closer.
Folks, as we move into the earliest part of Spring and we see new growth and life appearing all around us. I so hope that you are ready to renew your love. Look back on your relationship within the church and reach for the spirit of new love.
Be willing to pay the cost required to let it show.
Enjoy the excitement that comes with uplifting emotion.
Hold on to the feeling that puts that smile naturally on your face.
All Glory be to God!
Holy Communion
