The Power of This Love

September 19, 2007

 

Dear St. Paul’s Family,

 

A quick reading of 1 John would suggest that this book of the Bible would deserve to be called "The Precious Moments Epistle."  It is cute, pithy, and adorable, just like the figurines.  And it is full of poetic reminders of the love that God has for us, and the love that we can have for each other.  Reading some of its more famous passages just makes you feel warm and fuzzy inside:

            

 "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.” (3:1)

 "Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God”.  (4:7)

 “Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another.” (4:11)

 

Now for the curveball.  Most scholars agree that 1 John was written toward the end of the first century, which would put its writing around the time of the early church's period of fierce persecution.  Emperor Domitian, who ruled from A.D. 81-96, was characterized by the early Church Father Tertullian as a "man of Nero's type in cruelty," who "tried his hand at persecution," but who "soon put an end to what he had begun." (from Tertullian’s Apology)

 

So now imagine these words read by the first Christians not in the context of peace and comfort, but against a soundtrack of piercing swords and roaring coliseum lions.  Amid an atmosphere of violence and bloodshed, these words take on new, profound meaning:

 

"For this is the original message we heard: We should love each other.  We must not be like Cain, who joined the Evil One and then killed his brother. And why did he kill him? Because he was deep in the practice of evil, while the acts of his brother were righteous. So don't be surprised, friends, when the world hates you. This has been going on a long time.  The way we know we've been transferred from death to life is that we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who doesn't love is as good as dead. Anyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know very well that eternal life and murder don't go together."  (1 John 3:11-15, from The Message)

 

Since the earliest days of the church, Christians have been called to love others, even in response to hateful aggression and persecution.  We have always been called to counter violence with love, war with peace, and revenge with forgiveness.  It has never been ours to choose whether or not to love others:  if we are called "children of God", we must love.  

 

In 1957, while preaching at Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama, in 1957, Martin Luther King, Jr. concluded his sermon with the following challenge:  

 

So this morning, as I look into your eyes, and into the eyes of all of my brothers in Alabama and all over America and over the world, I say to you, "I love you. I would rather die than hate you." And I’m foolish enough to believe that through the power of this love somewhere, men of the most recalcitrant bent will be transformed. And then we will be in God’s kingdom. We will be able to matriculate into the university of eternal life because we had the power to love our enemies, to bless those persons that cursed us, to even decide to be good to those persons who hated us, and we even prayed for those persons who despitefully used us.

 

This Sunday, we continue our series on "How to Have a Child-Like Faith in a Grown-Up World" with a sermon titled "You're Just Like You're Father!  Having a Child-Like Love".  We'll dig deeper into the words of 1 John and discover how our love can help transform the world.  This would be a great Sunday to invite an unchurched friend to join you for worship.  See you on the journey!

 

Grace and Peace,

 

Magrey

 

 

1 John 3:1-11

1  See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

2  Beloved, we are God's children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is.

3  And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure.

4  Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness.

5  You know that he was revealed to take away sins, and in him there is no sin.

6  No one who abides in him sins; no one who sins has either seen him or known him.

7  Little children, let no one deceive you. Everyone who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous.

8  Everyone who commits sin is a child of the devil; for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The Son of God was revealed for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil.

9  Those who have been born of God do not sin, because God's seed abides in them; they cannot sin, because they have been born of God.

10  The children of God and the children of the devil are revealed in this way: all who do not do what is right are not from God, nor are those who do not love their brothers and sisters.

11  For this is the message you have heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.

                    

 

NEW CLASS ON THE APOCRYPHA

 

Have you ever wondered about those books in some Bibles between the Old and New Testaments?  While they are not a part of the official canon of Protestant Bibles, they contain stories that provide a unique historical perspective on the lives of Jewish people right before the birth of Jesus. This seven-week class will be taught by Dr. Jessica deVega, Professor of Religion at Morningside College.  It begins this Sunday, September 23, at 9am in the church library.  The class will conclude in November and will serve as nice preparation for this year's Advent season.  Readings for the class will be provided at the first class.  For more information, call the deVega's at 221-4899.

 

 

ANNUAL PORK FEED

 

It's time once again for our annual pork feed, scheduled for September 30, from 11:30am-1:00pm.  The Parker family will again be providing some choice Iowa hog loins, slow-cooked in a giant cooker and injected with a secret special sauce.  We are aiming for a big turnout this year from the community - as many as 250 people, so we would like to have many of you provide homemade desserts and sides.  Donations will be accepted, and all the proceeds will go toward the repayment of the sanctuary renovation debt.  We encourage you to invite your friends, family, co-workers to what will be a great time of friendly outreach and delicious food.  To sign-up to provide sides and deserts or to get a flyer suitable for display in your office or workplace, please call the church office.