Week 12 - Love
This week in summary| Day 1 : Love One Another | 1 John 1 |
| Day 2 : Love Lived | 1 John 2 |
| Day 3 : Love Lost | 1 John 3 |
| Day 4 : Prepare | 1 John 4 |
| Day 5 : Team Building: | 1 John 5 |
| Day 1 : Love One Another | 1 John 1 |
| Day 2 : Love Lived | 1 John 2 |
| Day 3 : Love Lost | 1 John 3 |
| Day 4 : Prepare | 1 John 4 |
| Day 5 : Team Building: | 1 John 5 |
Biblical love is a verb. It is not a feeling or a lofty idea or an unreachable utopia that only shows up in storybooks. It is something that is born out of an attitude that genuinely believes the person you love is more important than you are.
Can you imagine a church community filled with people who genuinely care more about the other people in the community than they do about themselves? It would look very similar to the early church:
Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common... There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.
Acts 4:32-35
This is what a loving faith community looks like! It is filled with people who are not self-absorbed, but community-absorbed. They are "one heart" with the others in the group. They are connected at soul.
I recently went on a bike ride with a group of Christian men and women from various churches. I didn't know most of their names or anything about them, but we spent the entire morning riding against strong head-winds, up killer hills and through some beautiful trails. We stopped and took a few breaks. We talked, we laughed, and when we were done with the ride, several of us ate pizza together. On the ride home I found myself thinking, "I really like those people!" It's like we were family because we had shared a morning going through hardships, enjoying nature and just hanging out.
Over the years I have attended a lot of churches while traveling, but I can't think of a single time I ever left a Sunday morning with that kind of feeling or thought. Because the reality is, singing a few songs and hearing the same sermon together doesn't exactly build a loving community; it's just a worship service. It is what you do outside of the Sunday morning gathering that forms a loving community.
A loving community is formed by people who care about each other and are aggressively seeking ways to meet each other's needs. They share life together. They talk together, cry together, laugh together, play together, pray together and study together. Through living out their faith together, they can't help but get to know each other's struggles and successes and when they see a need they are compelled to act, because that's what love does.
Some of the most treasured memories I have of our church family are the times we have pulled together and helped take care of a need that was beyond the ability of a family to do themselves. I've seen this more than once, where the church family pooled their resources, purchased supplies and then descended in mass upon the home of a family who was about to lose their house because it needed so much repair work done.
To see the roof of a house lined with workers talking and laughing and pounding nails into new shingles, and a home-owner standing in awe, finding it difficult to even express their gratitude for the transformation that was happening in front of their eyes. The work is hard, but the fellowship is sweet. Nothing says love like gathering around a generator with a hammer in one hand and an iced tea in the other!
Of course it's not just the big stuff that shows love, it's the little stuff too. The first century church believed that nothing they had was their own and they shared everything in common (Acts 4:33). Can you imagine thinking that way about your church? Can you imagine driving your car until someone else needed it or living in your home until someone else needed the space? Can you imagine purchasing groceries each week, assuming part of it will end up feeding someone else? Or instead of purchasing one pair of shoes, getting two because you know of some kids at church who could use them? It doesn't even have to cost money. What if you spent your time looking for that person who obviously needs a hug or a word of encouragement? These are all acts of love!
Some people think negatively about wealth. They think it is "holier" to be poor and live in a tent, or "more Godly" to own a beat up car than to own a Beemer. But the issue isn't how much money a person makes - that's irrelevant. The issue is how much they think belongs to them and how much of it they think belongs to God and His Kingdom. Why would someone do something as insane as sell their land or house and just to give it to the Apostles? Because they understood it wasn't theirs. It was God's, and sometimes God takes care of His people through blessing other people and letting them share. In other words, God has blessed you (at whatever income level you are at) so that you can be a blessing to someone else.
A community that has lost its love is a collection of people who have lost their way. Somewhere along the line, they allowed church to become nothing more than a series of meeting times and a collection of groups. They come together for a nice show on Sunday mornings where they listen to the singers sing and the speakers speak, but there is no real connection to the people sitting just a few feet away from them. You may not even know their name. But then, why would you care - as long as the music was stimulating and the sermon made you feel good about yourself.
A community that has lost its love is a community filled with individuals who are mostly focused on themselves. There is no compelling reason to help out the person who has fallen on hard times; they probably deserve it anyway. There is no motivation to help other people succeed; they'll probably find a way to use it against you. Church becomes a place of competition. Who has the best car? Who has the coolest kids? Who is the best parent? Rather than celebrate other people's wins in life you become jealous and angry.
A community without love is an empty, pathetic, narcissistic gathering of selfish people who are too afraid to make genuine relationships because they refuse to be vulnerable with anyone. A community without love becomes a place where people point fingers of blame and distrust is rampant.
Is it possible to salvage a community without love? Sure. It starts with you loving people the way God loves you; unconditionally, unswervingly and unashamed.