There’s nothing like tucking your little one in bed at night. You put the covers over them so that they are snuggly warm, you give them a great big hug and a gently placed kiss on the cheek and whisper, “good night sweetie” and then, the moment of all moments, with those innocent little eyes looking up at you through the dark this tiny little voice replies: “I love you mommy,” “I love you daddy” and off to sleep they go…(sigh)
What endearing times! Such precious words! There’s nothing quite like those words!!
Yet, even more specifically, there’s nothing quite like that one word! What is it about “love?” It has the potential to turn even a heart of stone to “soft, moldable clay,” in the right person’s hands.
Well, in my attempt to find the “correct” definition of this word I turned first to the dictionary to see what it might have to say. And, as I suspected, in there, I found no less than 5 different definitions for that word ranging from the idea of “loving” the beauty of a sunset to a sexual attraction to the maternal kind of love I was talking about just moments ago. And in looking around, I see that the world doesn’t disappoint us…what I mean to say is that that word ”love” is indeed used in all those various ways AND MORE which leaves us all wondering about this word. It seems to hold such power, yet it’s used so generally so generically. It’s like it’s been emptied of its real meaning and instead it’s become a word that’s tossed to and fro, flippantly used throughout our culture.
No wonder we’re so confused when it comes to “love” and God. And yet, THIS is the love I want to spend time unpacking this morning.
In order to accomplish this, the very first thing we need to do is to find that volume controller, the one that allows all those voices from the outside world to shout their definitions of love at us… and let’s just shut it off!
And in its place let’s hear again, what God has to say about “love” because, I believe, that if we can get this…then everything changes!!!
So I begin with God’s words found in Jeremiah 31:3 which say, “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.” You see, to God, “love” is a loyal, steadfast, covenant kind of love. His love isn’t the fickle, floundering one we find in the world. No! God loves is intentional and purposeful. It’s committed and unending. You see in 1st Corinthians 2 beginning with verse 7 we are told that before time began, because of God’s great love for us, He put into motion a plan that began with the creation of this world in order to create man, in his very own image, and out of his desire for us to freely love Him in return we have been given the ability of free choice, the ability to decide for ourselves…which is exactly what we did as we disobeyed the one prohibition that day in the Garden, and yet, because of God’s steadfast love, He began to draw a people to Himself through which one day One would come who would be the salvation for all mankind!
And so, God, out of this loyal and steadfast love, drew this people, and though they were easily distracted and quick to turn aside, He persisted, continuing to pursue them. And at the perfect moment in history He brought forth Jesus who loyally and steadfastly loved those God gave Him. You see, Jesus was God’s plan from the very beginning. He was the fulfillment of God’s inexpressible love for mankind. He lived a perfect life (one without sin) and then He gave Himself up for us so that we might have life in Him. 1 John 3:1 puts it this way, “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” and 1 John 4:10 says, “This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.”
Jesus’ parable of the Father and the prodigal son is an amazing example of this kind of love. You see, there’s a son who is tired of living life under the rules of his father, what he really wants is for his father to keel over so that he could take his portion of the father’s inheritance and go and live life any way he’d please. And so, he approaches his dad, and lets him know, “Hey Dad, if I had it my way, you’d already be out of the picture and I’d be living life ‘high on the hog.’ I don’t really want to be here, so let’s just cut to the chase. Will you give me my portion of your inheritance NOW so that I can take off and do life my way?”
And the father agrees!! The very moment the father hands the son his portion that son is out of there. He makes certain to put a lot of distance between him and his father as he takes off for a land that is far, far away!!! And while he’s busy living this “good life,” things take an unexpected turn. The economy hits hard times and he quickly finds himself depleted. After desiring the food of the pigs that he finds himself tending he comes to his senses and begins his journey back home in hopes that he could at least work for his father as a hired hand.
Now, don’t miss this part, as the boy begins his journey back, as he’s practicing his speech for his father, his father is found out on the front porch looking, yet again, for his son…hoping that today’s the day he might return. And, finally, today happens to be that day, for in the distance he sees someone heading his way. He recognizes his son. Where he’s been, and what he’s been up to doesn’t matter any longer. His son his heading back home. And so, the Father runs towards his son…he doesn’t want his son to hurt one second longer! He throws his arms around his son, welcomes him home and celebrates his return. Because, the Father, had never stopped loving that boy with a loyal and steadfast love and every day, he looked to see if THAT was the day his son might return.
Such an intense story. How could Jesus tell a story of such radical love? Well, He could tell that story because He is the one who has lived that story. We’ve had everything we’ve ever needed. And yet we’ve turned our backs and decided our way’s better and so we’ve wandered to distant lands and have squandered our portions…and all the while the Father has been looking a long way off, wondering if today’s the day we’re coming back home!! That is the kind of love God has. Radically different from what we hear in the world. It’s a love that is loyal and steadfast. Psalm 130:7 tells us to “put [our] hope in the LORD for with the LORD is unfailing love…”
And when we get that, everything changes!!!
Now in the midst of describing God’s loyal and steadfast love we’ve been hinting at the idea of a love that gives! That’s how it’s described in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world, that He GAVE…” It’s nothing we’ve done…we haven’t earned a thing! And yet, out of His great love, God gave us his son.
The very nature of this loyal, steadfast, giving kind of love demands a response?
God has done everything necessary and now He waits and offers this love to you. Hear His words from Revelation 3:20: “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him and he with me. “
What are you going to do? For Paul, it was “Christ’s love that compelled him!” Can you say the same thing? What are you living for? What are you running after? How do YOU define the kind of love that you have?
You see, IF we respond by accepting his love, we are told in Romans 5:5 that God will pour out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us enabling us to live life with the very same kind of love God has for us!!
You have a choice…everyone has a choice…in fact, not choosing is a choice. Is today going to be the day your journey with your Father begins?! Or maybe you’ve been journeying with him but today you get something different about his love; something that you have never understood before. It’s not like the world’s.
This compelling kind of love. One that we are unable to keep to ourselves. You see, when Jesus told us to “love the lord our God with all our heart, mind, soul and strength and in turn to love our neighbors as ourselves.” More than seeing this as a command, view it instead through the eyes of one who is describing for us what this radical kind of love actually looks like. It’s a love that is impossible to keep to ourselves! It can’t help but spill out all around us.
We see this played out in Luke 7:36-47. It goes like this:
When one of the Pharisees invited Jesus to have dinner with him, Jesus went to the Pharisee’s house and reclined at the table. 37 A woman in that town who lived a sinful life learned that Jesus was eating at the Pharisee’s house, [and] so she came there with an alabaster jar of perfume. 38 As she stood behind Jesus at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears [and] then she wiped them with her hair, kissed them and poured perfume on them.
39 When the Pharisee who had invited Jesus saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know who is touching him and what kind of woman she is—that she is a sinner.”
40 Jesus turned [to the Pharisee and said], “Simon, I have something to tell you…”
41 “Two people owed money to a certain moneylender. One owed him five hundred denarii,[c] and the other fifty. 42 Neither of them had the money to pay him back, so he forgave the debts of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43 Simon replied, “I suppose the one who had the bigger debt forgiven.” “You have judged correctly,” Jesus said.
44 Then he turned toward the woman and said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I came into your house. You did not give me any water for my feet, but she wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You did not give me a kiss, but this woman, from the time I entered, has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You did not put oil on my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. 47 Therefore, I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven— as her great love has shown. But whoever has been forgiven little loves little.”
That woman couldn’t contain her love for God. That’s what God’s love does. It’s a steadfast, loyal, giving and compelling kind of love that can’t be silenced. It calls for a response. It calls for action.
So, again, I ask, what are YOU going to do? What kind of love are YOU going to choose? Are you going to continue to run after the things the world calls love or are you going to go after God and his kind of love? God has made his love available for everyone who asks and as Paul said I too am convinced “that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from God’s love, the love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
I am also convinced of this: when we get this, when we truly get God’s kind of love…….at that moment and from that point on…..everything changes!
