“True Love”
1 John 3:16-24
Providence United Presbyterian Church
May 3, 2009 (Easter 4B)
Rev. Dr. Mary Jane Hitt
= A group of young children was asked, "What is love?" Here are some of their answers:
"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne=
and
they go out and smell each other." Karl - age 5
"Love is when you go out to eat and you give somebody most of your Fre=
nch
fries without making them give you any of theirs." Chrissy - age 6
"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip
before giving it to him, to make sure it tastes OK." Danny - age 7
"Love is when Mommy gives Daddy the best piece of chicken."
Elaine-age 5
"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone=
all
day." Mary Ann - age 4
"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint h=
er
toenails anymore. So my grandfathe=
r does
it for her all the time, even when his hands have got arthritis too. That's
love." Rebecca- age 8
= These descriptions of love bring smiles to our faces. They are sweet and innocent, and at the same time profound. Ask a child what love is all about, and= they answer with something specific – something they have seen – something we can see, too, in our imagination.
= We grown-ups, though, have a tendency to get more abstract. “What is love?” or Love is a feeling that sweeps you off your feet, we say, or Love is what binds a family together, = or Love is a way of living in service = to others. And before long, we’re= into an academic and philosophical discussion of the nature and properties of lo= ve, yawning all the way.
= Fortunately, today’s scriptures don’t wax philosophical about love. Instead, they draw word pictures of wha= t love looks like in action. “What is love?”
·
Love=
is a
man named Jesus, who died on a Roman cross because of the sins of the world=
;
·
Love=
is a
good shepherd, who lays down his life for the sheep;
·
Love=
is when
a person who has worldly possessions shares them with those who do not.
Love is not a matter of our words, but of our actions.
= You already know that, of course. How = many times have you said to someone (or wished you could), “Don’t tell me you love me: Show me!” Don’t just say you love me: wash the dishes; mow the grass; come over once= in a while; bring me flowers (or chocolate); paint my toenails. We know from our own life experience th= at it’s easy enough to say words of love, but those words don’t amount to much= if they aren’t backed up by action. <= /p>
=
And so
it is that God calls us to show our love not simply with words, but with ac=
ts
of generosity and compassion and self-sacrifice to those who are in need.
= And so we struggle with God’s command that we love not in word or speech, but with tr= ue love, acted out. To be completely honest, most of us aren’t much interested in sacrificial sharing of all tha= t we have worked so hard to accumulate, to say nothing of laying down our lives = for one another. And so we look for a = little wiggle room – an exception here or there – a way to show kindness and generosity to some people (those who deserve it, those we like, those who l= ook like we do and live as we live), but not to all. Loving everyone the way God does, in tr= uth and in action, just seems to be more than we can do.
= And that’s the point, really. The abil= ity to love as God loves is not something that we have inside us, just waiting to = come out. It’s not something we can dru= m up on our own if we just try hard enough. This kind of active, giving, sharing love that places the needs of others above our own needs is entirely unnatural. It doesn’t come from within ourselves, = but from God’s own Spirit. The God who commands us to show this kind of love also empowers us to reach out to othe= rs with acts of compassion. And that = power is yours this very day, a gift of God given to you so you can be the body of Christ in the world.
= Ah, but you aren’t feeling too loving, you say? You are still harboring resentment toward that neighbor who is always complaining about your dog, or the uncle who always shows up for family par= ties three sheets to the wind, or the teacher who has it in for your child, or t= he public official who has it in for you? You are having trouble conjuring up anything remotely like a feeling= of love? Well, don’t worry about that= . Heed the advice of C. S. Lewis in his cl= assic book Mere Christianity: “Do not= waste your time bothering whether you ‘love’ your neighbor,” he wrote. “Act as if you did. As soon as we do this, we find one of t= he great secrets. When you are behavi= ng as if you love someone, you will presently come to love [them].”
= I can’t put it any better than that. Don’t= wait for feelings of love, but just engage in acts of love toward everyone you m= eet, as much as you can. Someday some o= ther children will be asked “What is love?” and their answers will be your stories:
Love is when my daddy mows Mrs. Brown’s lawn, even if she never says
thank you.
Love is when my mommy takes flowers to people in the hospital becau=
se
it helps them get better.
Love is when my grandma makes two pots of soup for supper and then
gives one away.
Let us love not in words= or speech, but in truth and action.
Amen.