"And they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love, yes they'll know we are Christians by our love."
How many of you sung that song in Sunday School or Church camp? Learned to play the guitar part to it, or years later still find yourself humming it from time to time?
It is one of those songs that sticks with you and it should, it has a catchy tune and its theme is one of the underlying core principles of Christianity. That we are to be known by our love.
The foundational verses of our faith involve love. When asked what the most important commandments are (note: commandments are commands, not suggestions) Jesus replied to love God, and to love one's neighbor.
"The Greatest Commandment
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" 29 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Matthew 12: 28-31"
Most of us can understand and grasp why it is important to love God, but we start to hedge on the business of loving our neighbors as ourselves. We start to justify not loving some people in our minds, "Well, surely God doesn't mean for me to love so and so! After all, they believe __________. And they act like _________. They're not God's kind of people!"
But when Jesus was asked who is someone's neighbor (no doubt by someone wanting to get out of loving someone they didn't feel like loving) He had a ready answer for that as well.
" But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10: 29-37
This parable was especially upsetting to some self righteous Pharisees I imagine: for the Jewish people did not like the Samaritans; indeed they despised them. And yet, when a Priest of the Jewish faith, and a Scribe of the Jewish faith (both important men in that culture) ignored the injured man, it was the hated Samaritan that stepped forward in love to take action. The self proclaimed righteous men of position had passed the man by; more than that they had traveled to the other side of the road so as not to have to even come near him! The Samaritan must have known that the injured man, very likely a Jew, would treat him badly under every day, normal circumstances; yet here he lay hurt. What to do? The Samaritan helped; he acted in love. At the expense of his time, his materials and his money, he acted in love. Even if this was a wounded man who traditionally may have hated the Samaritan, still the Samaritan acted in love.
So must we.
It is not enough to act in love and kindness to those we are fond of. Everyone does that. The children of the Most High God are called to do more. We are called to love and bless those who call themselves our enemies. Jesus doesn't leave us with an "opt out" button; it is something we must do.
"But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked." Luke 6:35
Does this go against our human natures? Yes! When someone is cruel to us, we want to strike back. When someone makes fun of us, our feelings are hurt and we want to hurt them in return. When someone aligns themselves against us, we want to make them pay for taking that position. That is what our very human natures are telling us to do.
Our Christian nature tells us to do differently. That nature, our higher nature, given to us by God through the Holy Spirit, tells us to love. To do good to them, so that we might be children of the Most High.
How, we cry out to God, how can you want this from us? He wants it from us because He calls us to always strive to be better than our base selves. To be nobler, to choose the higher road, to be the light in a dark world. He calls us to be more than we are.
Sometimes all we can do is earnestly pray for God to bless our enemies, to reveal Himself to them, and to give them peace and love. Sometimes, even just praying and behaving as if we love someone is a good enough first step. For doing so changes our hearts and we can leave the rest to God. Another Anglican, from another era, put it far better than I can, when he said:
“Do not waste time bothering whether you ‘love’ your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this we find one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him.”
― C.S. Lewis
God has called you to not only love Him, which is easy when one considers the depth and magnitude of His grace, mercy and love towards us, but to love your neighbors. Even the unlikable ones. Will you answer His call?
God's grace be with you,
Fr. Charles Butler
How many of you sung that song in Sunday School or Church camp? Learned to play the guitar part to it, or years later still find yourself humming it from time to time?
It is one of those songs that sticks with you and it should, it has a catchy tune and its theme is one of the underlying core principles of Christianity. That we are to be known by our love.
The foundational verses of our faith involve love. When asked what the most important commandments are (note: commandments are commands, not suggestions) Jesus replied to love God, and to love one's neighbor.
"The Greatest Commandment
28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" 29 "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: 'Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these." Matthew 12: 28-31"
Most of us can understand and grasp why it is important to love God, but we start to hedge on the business of loving our neighbors as ourselves. We start to justify not loving some people in our minds, "Well, surely God doesn't mean for me to love so and so! After all, they believe __________. And they act like _________. They're not God's kind of people!"
But when Jesus was asked who is someone's neighbor (no doubt by someone wanting to get out of loving someone they didn't feel like loving) He had a ready answer for that as well.
" But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”
30 In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. 31 A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. 32 So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. 34 He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’
36 “Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”
37 The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.”
Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” Luke 10: 29-37
This parable was especially upsetting to some self righteous Pharisees I imagine: for the Jewish people did not like the Samaritans; indeed they despised them. And yet, when a Priest of the Jewish faith, and a Scribe of the Jewish faith (both important men in that culture) ignored the injured man, it was the hated Samaritan that stepped forward in love to take action. The self proclaimed righteous men of position had passed the man by; more than that they had traveled to the other side of the road so as not to have to even come near him! The Samaritan must have known that the injured man, very likely a Jew, would treat him badly under every day, normal circumstances; yet here he lay hurt. What to do? The Samaritan helped; he acted in love. At the expense of his time, his materials and his money, he acted in love. Even if this was a wounded man who traditionally may have hated the Samaritan, still the Samaritan acted in love.
So must we.
It is not enough to act in love and kindness to those we are fond of. Everyone does that. The children of the Most High God are called to do more. We are called to love and bless those who call themselves our enemies. Jesus doesn't leave us with an "opt out" button; it is something we must do.
"But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked." Luke 6:35
Does this go against our human natures? Yes! When someone is cruel to us, we want to strike back. When someone makes fun of us, our feelings are hurt and we want to hurt them in return. When someone aligns themselves against us, we want to make them pay for taking that position. That is what our very human natures are telling us to do.
Our Christian nature tells us to do differently. That nature, our higher nature, given to us by God through the Holy Spirit, tells us to love. To do good to them, so that we might be children of the Most High.
How, we cry out to God, how can you want this from us? He wants it from us because He calls us to always strive to be better than our base selves. To be nobler, to choose the higher road, to be the light in a dark world. He calls us to be more than we are.
Sometimes all we can do is earnestly pray for God to bless our enemies, to reveal Himself to them, and to give them peace and love. Sometimes, even just praying and behaving as if we love someone is a good enough first step. For doing so changes our hearts and we can leave the rest to God. Another Anglican, from another era, put it far better than I can, when he said:
“Do not waste time bothering whether you ‘love’ your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this we find one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him.”
― C.S. Lewis
God has called you to not only love Him, which is easy when one considers the depth and magnitude of His grace, mercy and love towards us, but to love your neighbors. Even the unlikable ones. Will you answer His call?
God's grace be with you,
Fr. Charles Butler
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