In my previous church I had a rather large pulpit. And normally I put my sermon notes out across the pulpit. And usually if I have more pages than the pulpit can hold, my sermon would be too long. Now I have a much smaller pulpit. But I just must tell you that there are more pages today than this pulpit has room for. So, bear with me today. There is a lot to talk about. And when you’re talking about God’s love it is endless!
If I were to ask you, “What are distinguishing marks of a Methodist?” I wonder what you would say. I hope you might say holiness and love for God and others. And an emphasis on grace; prevenient, justifying and sanctifying grace. But it’s not just Methodists. Whether we’re Methodists, Presbyterians, Baptists, or whatever our denominational background may be. And this points to the question in the text which still has great relevance today and the sermon title: “What is the greatest commandment?”
Now Jesus answered this question rather quickly and directly. Sometimes Jesus told parables and answered questions by asking other questions. But here Jesus said very directly, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind.” Some versions of this incorporate strength as well.
A couple of quick observations from Jesus’ answer. This love incorporates the whole of our being. There is no part of our lives left out of this instruction. Another observation is that this commandment is not a new commandment. Many may miss this. But it is actually in Deuteronomy which has the same commandment to love God with all our heart, soul, and strength (Duet 6:5). God has always desired that we love Him. But even more to love Him first and foremost with every fiber of our being.
Jurgen Moltmann was German theologian who was visiting professor at Emory Theological Seminary for many years. He died last year. But Moltmann had a very great thought about the creation related to love. He taught in accordance with Genesis that the majesty and beauty of our creation were made by God. But why did God create? If we believe God is an all-sufficient God who does not need anything, why did God create the world? I think Moltmann gave great insight in suggesting that the creation was inevitable because God is love and the essence of love is SHARING. God out of the superabundance of His Being and of His love, created. And further, God created human beings in His image.
So, the creation happened because of the nature of God. And then we as humans are created in the image of God which means we are to love as God loves us. We are created both to receive God’s love and to give God’s love. That is a vital part of being created in the image of God. I believe this is such a powerful insight into the greater nature of God’s love. And fits so well into this greatest commandment.
But we look around in our world today and it is evident that the plan of God has been defied or defaulted on. Since Genesis 3 and the fall of humanity, there has been brokenness and hate and all kinds of negative emotions that are a part of the reality of our world. What’s wrong? The bad news is that we have defied God’s design, God’s desire. And God’s commands. The image of God (Imago Dei) has been marred and tainted by sin and rebellion. And quite clearly, we need God’s grace. We need God’s help to recover it. The good news is this is the story and plan of redemption that finds its ultimate fulfillment through Christ. The great story of the Bible is the redemption of humanity through God’s saving action. The great stories in the bible all point to the greater story of God’s plan of salvation and redemption of our fallen world. And the ultimate fulfillment of this is seen in the sacrifice of Christ. But the gospel of John reminds us…For God so love the world… He did what? He gave. The true nature of God’s love is giving. God gave. But God not only gave, but He also gave personally and sacrificially through His Son to redeem us.
Included in this redemption is a great teaching of John Wesley which parallels what I mentioned about the image of God in us. John Wesley emphasized the restoration of the image of God in us. It’s renewed so that we have the capacity to love God and to love others as God originally intended. Without this renewal we cannot love as God designed us.
As I talk about redemption and restoration, one of the great passages about the nature of love is found in John 21. Jesus appeared to Peter and the disciples after he rose from the dead. And of course, Peter is in what we might call a back-slidden condition. Remember he denied Jesus those 3 times. Now Jesus is reappearing to the disciples and particularly to Peter. And Jesus comes to the Sea of Galilee and has bread and fish on the fire while Peter’s out in the boat. Then Peter looks and sees Jesus, and Peter jumps out of the boat to come meet the Lord. They have breakfast. And after breakfast Jesus asked Peter the same question 3 times. I’m sure nearly everyone here remembers the question, “Peter, do you love me? We remember Peter’s responses. “Yes, Lord”. Let me give a little more context. Peter had stopped fishing for people and gone back to his old trade of fishing for fish only. And this was an important time in Peter’s life when Jesus was asking the questions about Peter’s love. What was happening here? Jesus was recommissioning Peter. Very personally and gracefully, Jesus was redeeming Peter by asking those simple, yet soul searching questions, “Do you love me?” But then Jesus added the words, “More than These”. Do you love me MORE THAN THESE? (John 21:15-17) Now there is a lot of debate over what Jesus was talking about here. Was Jesus talking about loving him more than the other disciples? OR loving Him more than his fishing boat and business? Notice here that Jesus was not excluding the other loves of Peter’s life, but he was placing them in a holy relationship. This love of God would be the key principle that would place all the other loves and desires of his heart together holistically. All the other experiences and events of Peter’s life would make sense, would blend holistically as he loved God first, as he loved Christ first in his life. If we miss this order, we will never have true harmony with God or others. We will not be able to love God with our heart, soul mind and strength.
Eugene Peterson put it like this. First God, God is the subject of life. God is the foundation for living. If we don’t have a sense of the primacy of God, we will never get it right. We will never get life right. We will never get our life right. It’s not God in the margins. It’s not God as an option. It’s not God only on the weekends. God at the center and circumference. God first not God last. As it says in Genesis, “In the beginning God…”
This is so important because God’s love does unite all the other loves and experiences of our life together harmoniously. Our heart, our soul, our mind, and our strength are all centrally focused and directed by God’s love. That’s what Peter needed. That is what we all need.
Stever Harper in his little book on Marks of a Methodist states this, “There is no greater day in the Christian life when we discover that salvation means wholeness.” I want you to hear this because it is so important. He says, “Salvation does not merely mean going to heaven when we die. Certainly, that is true. That is one reality of our salvation. But it doesn’t mean just that. It means that we live abundantly while we are here. It is living in God’s love now, not just waiting for eternity!
And if we say we have received God’s love what is our response? This is like your wife or cherished family member looking over and saying, “I love you”. And how do you respond? Well, I hope you respond in like manner saying, “I love you too! If you do not there will be problems or misunderstandings.
1 John 4:19 teaches we love God because he first loved us. So, this love of God is first and of greatest importance in our life. Well, how do you know you love God? How do we know that anyone loves God? That’s a very subjective question, isn’t it? The Bible does give us some clear indications about how we can know we love God. And what we find is that our love for God is more than words that we say in a worship service or more than lip service. John has some very sobering words about how we know we love God.
One of the first indications is found in 1 John 4:20. “Whoever claims to love God and hates his brother or sister is a liar. Or whoever does not love their brother or sister whom they have seen cannot love God whom they have not seen. 1 John 4:20. And a little earlier John gives us this command, “Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister.” There is a parallel passage in 1 John 3:17, “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and truth.”
Simply put, our love for God is evident in our love for others. That’s why the greatest commandments to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength was followed with love your neighbor as you love yourself.
Several years ago, I presided over a funeral service for Darwin Nothwehr. Darwin had struggled with health issues for a long time but was very faithful to worship when he was able. But his infirmity overcame him. As we were preparing for his service, his neighbor, Mr. Slade, introduced himself to me. I had never met Mr. Slade before and he came up to me and asked, “You’re the pastor and you are going to be presiding over this service?” And I said, “Yes I am”. He said, “I would like to say a few words at some point in the service”. I’m always a little cautious about someone saying a few words particularly if I don’t know them and I don’t know what they are going to say. Especially during a funeral. I looked over at Linda, Darwin’s wife, and she said nodded that it was ok for him to share. And during the service Mr. Slade came up behind the pulpit and he began to share. He said, “I’m Darwin’s neighbor. Darwin would often come by my house in the mornings. He always had an encouraging word. On this particular morning, Darwin came up to my house, and said, “I have a proposition for you. I want to do something for you if you do something for me.” Mr. Slade was quite cautious about the proposition wondering what it was. He said, “OK! I’m game… but let me know what it is”. And Darwin informed him that he just got a pressure washer and wanted to come and pressure wash Mr. Slade’s driveway, sidewalk, and porch. He told Mr. Slade he wanted to do that for him, then he wanted Mr. Slade to do something for him. Mr. Slade was thinking it was really great to get his driveway pressure washed and his sidewalk and porch. But he asked Darwin, “What is it that you want me to do?” Well Darwin pulled out a church bulletin. At that time our church placed scripture readings on the back of the bulletin as a plan for people to read their bibles for the year. Then Darwin said to Mr. Slade, “I want you to read these scriptures for a couple of months. Will you do that?” Mr. Slade said, “you know I’ve been going to church for a long time. I’m a believer but I’ve never read my Bible. Darwin looked seriously at him, and he asked, “Will you do this?” And I am happy to say that Mr. Slade did. That’s why he showed up at Darwin’s service and wanted to share.
I was moved in that moment to recognize how much a simple act of extending God’s love put into action to serve others can bring change and transformation. I’m so glad Mr. Slade came forward to speak, because he relayed something more important than anything I had to say that day. What a simple act Darwin performed but it went way beyond pressure washing! His action had eternal significance!
Mother Teresa put it like this. “Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love.” Mother Theresa Very often it’s the simplest actions we do that give evidence of God’s love extended to others. People know that we love God because we love them. That’s the simple message of John. And the greatest evidence that we love God. Yet there is another great mark or indication of our love for God that I need to cover before I close. This is especially needed in our time.
I mentioned this last week. It is found in John 14:21. This one may be a little more difficult. It says, “Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. And the one who loves me will be loved by my Father and I too will love them and show myself to them.” (John 14:21).
Our love for God is not only shown in our loving action for others. But is also shown in how obedient we are to God’s commands. I repeat a statement I made last week also; Love does not free to do what we please but only what pleases God. We find throughout the Bible from Adam and Eve to Cain and Able to Jacob and Esau, all the way down to the story with Peter shared today. We are in that long list of those who have not responded obediently to God’s plan, to God’s desire, to God’s commands. Disobedience is truly a problem of our love for God. Henry Blackaby made that really clear in his book, Experiencing God, when he stated that an obedience problem is really a love problem. If we love God, we will obey Him.
Lee Ecklov, a pastor in the Northeast shared a true story that happened in his church between Max who was a first grader and his father, Todd. His father asked, “Max, why didn’t you answer me when I called you?” Max said, “I didn’t hear you, Dad.” Dad said, “What do you mean you didn’t hear me? I think the next-door neighbor heard me!” Max didn’t respond. Then his father said, “Max how many times didn’t you hear me?” And Max replied, “I don’t know maybe 3 or 4 or 5.” This reminds me of the song which says, “I know you can hear me but I’m not sure you’re listening.”
More seriously, Blackaby shared a tragic story about the importance of obdience. He relays that the first funeral he conducted was for a beautiful 3-year-old girl. She was the first child born for a couple in the church. She was the first grandchild in their extended family, and she was spoiled rotten. Unfortunately, on visiting the little girl’s home one day he observed that she would always ignore her parents’ request. When they told her to come, she went the other way. When they told her to sit down, she stood up. And they kind of laughed it off and chuckled at her childish behavior. But one day their front gate was inadvertently left open. The parents saw the little girl escaping out toward that gate toward the street. They yelled for her to stop and of course she didn’t. She ran right out into the street and was hit by a car. The parents rushed out to the little girl. She was rushed to the hospital, but her injuries were too severe, and she died. Blackaby relayed that as a young pastor it was a very difficult event. But there was a profound lesson for him. Not all events end so tragically. But he realized then and there that he had to teach God’s people not only to recognize God’s commands and teachings but to respond immediately and obediently. Jesus said we know our love for God through the way we obey his commands.
So today, how about you love for God? Some questions to consider: Can you say you love God with all your being? Are you showing God’s love to others? Are you responding obediently to what you know God is calling us to do or what God has commanded you to do through his Holy Word? Where might you need to make some changes or be redirected or recommissioned like Peter?
May we pray. Lord, I pray today, in the midst of our brokenness, in the midst of our disobedience, that your grace would redeem and restore us and enable us to love as you love us. Maybe we are like Peter or like the church at Ephesus who lost their first love. Lord wherever we are today, remind us that you do love us and your desire from creation is that we would simply love you in return. This is really the only way we find true wholeness and completeness in our lives and relationships with others. And as we receive your love, we pray your Holy Spirit will direct us into those places where You desire that we take Your love. In the name of Christ, I pray. Amen.