In Jesus Holy Name May 3, 2010
Text: John 13:34 Redeemer
“We Love Because……..”
“A new command I give you. Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Jesus
These words of Jesus are challenging. It is a request to do the impossible. Jesus is not asking us to “try harder.” He is asking us to trust Him and allow his love to flow through us to others. He wants us to be the conduit of his love.
Love can not be a static noun… to be real it needs action. You can not command an emotion, but you can command an action. Understanding the difference between emotion and action… between what you feel and what you do… will empower every relationship you have.#
In the gospel of Luke we find Jesus at the home of Simon a Pharisee. For what ever reason Simon failed in the most basic rules of Jewish hospitality…. No customary courtesies. No kiss of greeting. No washing of the visitors feet. No oil for his head. In modern terms, no one opened the door for him. No one took his coat or shook his hand. Simon does nothing to make Jesus feel welcome.#
There is a woman who enters the house. We are not told her name, just her reputation… a sinner. A prostitute most likely. She has no invitation to the party, no standing in the community. Heads turn. Faces blush.
But people’s opinions don’t stop her from coming. Her every move is measured and meaningful. She puts her check to the feet of Jesus, still dusty from the path. She has no water, but she has tears. She has no towel, but she has her hair. She opens a vial of perfume and massages it into his skin. The aroma is inescapable.
You’d think Simon of all people would show such love. Is he not a student of the scriptures? Simon’s “love” is calibrated and stingy. Her love, is extravagant and risky.
What makes the difference? She has discovered God’s love. Did someone tell her how Jesus touched lepers and turned tax collectors into disciples? We don’t know. But we know she came thirsty from guilt, thirsty from regret.
Simon is not happy. Jesus turns to Simon and says: “a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” In other words, we can’t give what we’ve never received. If we’ve never received love, how can we love others? But oh how we try.
What’s our typical strategy for a troubled relationship? Try harder? “My spouse needs my forgiveness I don’t know how, but I’m going to give it.” “I don’t care how much it hurts, I’m going to be nice to that bum.” “I’m suppose to love my neighbor? Okay. By golly I will.
So we try, with teeth clinched. Jaw firm. We’re going to love if it kills us!
Could it be that we are missing a step? Could it be that the secret to loving is first receiving? “We love because….why? He first loved us!
Do you long to be more loving? Begin by accepting your place as a dearly loved child. “Be imitators of God, therefore, just as in Christ God forgave you.” John knows that we can not love others unless we know we are loved first. He writes: “God showed how much he loved us by sending his only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love. It is not that we have loved God, but he loved us first and sent His son as a sacrifice to take away our sins.” (I John 4:9-10)
The secret to loving others is to know that you are loved.
Jesus has stated that “He loves you.” His words mean that you are accepted. Thus you can accept and love others. Does bumping into certain people leave you brittle, breakable, and fruitless? How is it possible when you don’t feel love for another person, even if it is your mother-in-law, or brother or sister or spouse? How can Jesus command us to feel love? The fact is. He does not! He is commanding us to act in a loving way.
If you’ve had a tough day at work and someone says: “Be happy!” The words do not work. You can not command emotion but you can command action. Jesus said. “Love one another.” He does not say” “Feel this way.” He’s saying at this way.
There are moments when not a single fiber of your being feels loving and yet you can choose to act in loving ways. When your child does the same foolish thing for the third time in a week you have a choice. You can yell…. Or respond with kindness in your voice. That’s acting in love.
Feelings are wonderful. We all need them. But they do not get the deciding vote. Feelings follow action. Paul gives the following description of love. “Love is patient, love is kind. Patience, kindness… these are actions.
A community in Florida had been hit hard by a hurricane power was out, houses were flooded, roads were closed. At the red Cross center at the local middle school, a distraught African-American woman asked tearfully for six flashlight batteries. “My kids are afraid of the dark” she explained.
“Sorry”, came the answer. “Only two batteries to a family. However, If you have relatives living with you, you can have two more for each one.”
The woman just stood there paralyzed, feeling helpless when Ryan Abel, who is white, piped up. “I’m a relative.” he said. “So am I,” announced a young Chinese girl nearby.
The Red Cross worker handed the woman six batteries with a smile.
We so often think of the wisdom, the power and the passion of Jesus. He was a miracle worker… but when one looks at these events and others…. You see kindness. The act of kindness gives emotion to the word “love”.
Love is kind. How kind are you? When was the last time you did something kind for someone in your family? Got a blanket, cleaned off the table, prepared the coffee, without being asked? Dried the dishes without being asked?
Think about your school, your work place. Are you kind to the one who doesn’t quite fit in? Do you listen? Letting a car cut into your traffic lane, letting a young mother with three kids in tow go before you in the grocery line. Maybe it’s as simple as rolling the neighbor’s trash bins back to his house. Paul writes: “When we have the opportunity to help anyone, we should do it.”
Luther understood this dynamic of acting in love as he writes his definition to some of the commandments. In the definition to the 7th and 8th commandment Luther explains “What the commandment means”. “…we should defend our neighbor, speak well of him and put the best construction on everything.” “… we help our neighbor and be of service to him…”
Kindness at home. Kindness in public. Kindness at church. Listen to the words that come out of your mouth at church…are they kind? At home…. Are they kind? Does someone need your kindness? Didn’t Jesus say: “Do good to those who hate you, bless those who dislike you… if you love only the people who love you, what praise should you get?” “Show mercy as your Father in heaven shows mercy.”
Pastor Gary Smith tells about a wonderful display of kindness which gives meaning to the word love. It happened a few years ago at the National Basketball association 1st round playoff between the Portland Trail Blazers and the Dallas mavericks. In front of 20,000 people in the rose Garden Arena in Portland at the beginning of the game, a local girl, thirteen year old Natalie Gilbert walked to mid court to sing…The Star Spangled Banner.
Natalie did fine at first, but somewhere around the “twilight’s last gleaming, “ her mind went bland, and she couldn’t remember the next line. She closed her eyes, she shook her head, and was on the verge of tears. Suddenly there was an arm around her. It was Maurice Cheeks, coach of the Trail blazers. With his arm around Natalie, Cheeks began singing the next line and invited the crowd to join in. Maurice, Natalie, and twenty thousand people made it all the way through to “the home of the brave.”
We are called to imitate Jesus. We are called to “love one another”…. Jesus did not say “feel love for one another.” Jesus did give us examples of action that demonstrate “love for one another.”
Kindness is an action of love. Kindness begins when we see the needs of others around us, like the Good Samaritan. To be a kinder person, you must slow down. “Look for the good in others.” (I Cor. 10:24)
Paul gives the following description of love. “Love is patient, love is kind. Patience, kindness… these are actions. Patience is an action of love. Love is not rude, it is not self seeking. Listen to the words that come out of your mouth at church, at home, in the work place…. It is better to excuse yourself from a meeting rather and speak rude or harsh words…. I’ve had to do and so have others….. These are practical actions. Love does not keep a record of wrongs. That is an action. You throw away the note pad in your mind…. Your Father in heaven has said: “I will remember their sins no more.” Paul wrote: “God took this list of sins and nailed them to the cross and left them there.” (Col. 2:14) Can you do the same for your neighbor?
Feelings are wonderful. We all need them. But they do not get the deciding vote. Feelings follow action. How can Jesus command us to feel love? The fact is. He does not! He is commanding us to act in a loving way. Love one another ….because I have loved your first….. Then the world will know that you are my disciples.
The list could go on and on.
footntoes: Max Lucado A Love Worth Giving p. 4
Tom Holladay The Relationship Principles of Jesus
