Easter 6 B
“Love in the name of Jesus”
St. John 15:9-17
10 May 2015 – Redeemer
Love is one of the fuzziest words in the English language. You can love your mother. You can love your wife. And you can love fishing. But you dare not and do not love them all in the same way.
“Abide in my love,” says Jesus. That sentence can mean anything to anyone. Someone might say, “Jesus loves me, so I can do whatever I want.” Another might say, “The church is so unloving, but Jesus was all about love.” Some believe the word “love” is a synonym for tolerance. It is unloving to judge homosexuality. Some use the word “love” as an excuse. Jesus loves me, so I don’t have to go to church or fight against sin or care about anyone else but me.
“Abide in my love.” says Jesus. Since Jesus is the very Word of God all our words flow from Him. “Love” is His Word so He gets to define it. His definition starts with His Father. The Father loved the Son. And then that love comes to us through the Son – “I have loved you.” It’s almost impossible not to think of how Jesus defined love in the most memorable verse of Saint John’s Gospel. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16, ESV)
God did not love in a fuzzy, whatever you want way. His love is neither tolerant nor permissive. He loved in this way — in the flesh of His Son. The Word became flesh and lived among us. God gave His Son into the flesh of the Virgin Mary. He gave His Son into a loveless world that wanted nothing to do with God. He gave His Son for you – in your place. His flesh for your flesh. His blood for your blood. God gave His Son to death – to the death you deserved for your lovelessness. You don’t love God as you should. You don’t love your neighbors as yourself. The fact that Hallmark had to invent “Mother’s Day” is likely the result that we don’t love our mothers as they deserve. (And buying them cards, candy, wine, and flowers – that isn’t really love, that’s more an apology – although it doesn’t hurt.) God’s love is for the loveless, for you.
God’s love involves judgment. How did God love you? He judged Jesus guilty in your place. He loved you, but He couldn’t stand you (or rather you could not stand before Him in your sins without being scorched to death.) Your sin and His holiness just don’t mix. So in His love He dealt with your sin. He did for you what you could not do for yourself. God the Father judged God the Son. The cross is your judgment day. The cross is your death. God did not love you by saying, “It’s OK to sin. I don’t care how much damage you do to yourself and each other.” He loved you by saying, “You’re a damned sinner, but I don’t want you damned, so I’m damning Jesus.” Please don’t say, “Love doesn’t judge.” The greatest love in the world was displayed by the Judge of all the world, when the Son of God was judged guilty by God the Father.
Today we have this foolish notion that love never says “no” to anyone. That there are no boundaries or fences for love. So we are not supposed to say ‘no’ to abortion – that’s unloving to women. We are not to say ‘no’ to false teachers – that’s unloving to people who sincerely believe in what they are doing. We are not to say ‘no’ to Jihad and Sharia law because that is unloving to Muslims. We are not to say ‘no’ to our children because that would be unloving to their self-esteem. Do you know the only person it is permissible to say “no” to today? The parents, pastors, and people who actually stand up and say ‘no’ to sin, and lies, and falsehood, who refuse to call evil good and good evil.
True love is all wrapped up in the commandments. Jesus said, “If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in His love.” Love says, “No.” Eight of the ten commandments are “no” commandments.
You shall have no other Gods.
You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not bear false testimony against your neighbor.
You shall not covet.
The two positive commandments are “Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy” and “Honor your Father and Your Mother.” There’s a whole list of behaviors, thoughts, and actions to which God in His love says, “No” in His commandments. No to any sex outside of marriage (and that’s marriage between a man and woman.) No to speaking anything but the uplifting truth about your neighbor. No to complaining and grumbling about what the Lord gave you neighbor and didn’t give to you. And if you say “No” to being in His house on the Lord’s Day or “no” to your mom and dad then you’re breaking His commandments – you’re not loving God and you’re not loving your nearest neighbors – your parents.
There are two ways in which the commandments are loving – first they show us how loveless we are. They show you the depth of your sin – ever said, “OMG” – 2nd commandment. Dirty joke – sixth commandment. Littered – seventh commandment. Spent your money on your things before giving an offering to God – 1st commandment. The commandments show us the depth and ugliness of our sin, our lovelessness and our need for God’s love.
Do you know how did God love us? He kept the commandments for us. I’m glad I wasn’t Jesus’ younger brother. Could you imagine? He always ate his vegetables, picked up his room, helped his mom fold laundry, never stayed out past curfew, never lusted as a teenage boy, never crashed the chariot because he was texting or drinking or speeding, never spoke a vengeful word, never worried about money. “I have kept my Father’s commands.” said Jesus.
He kept all the commandments for you and then laid down His life for you to take away your sins. This is love. This is what Easton received this morning in baptism – the perfect life of Christ and the perfect death of Christ. God loved Easton this morning by making Easton lovely with work of His beloved Son. Now when God looks upon Easton He sees him in Christ and all He has for Easton is love.
What do Christians do with God’s love? Jesus tells us and once again love is tied to the God’s Word – to His Ten Words on Sinai. This is my commandment that you love one another as I have loved you. How has Jesus loved you? By loving His Father and serving His neighbor (you) with everything He has. How do Christians love? The first three commandments direct us to live in faith toward God and the last seven direct us to works of love toward our neighbor. If you believe Jesus loved you with His life and loved you to death – you worship no other gods but Him, His name on your lips is holy not a swear word, on His day you are in His house. If you believe Jesus loved you – you take your mom out for mother’s day and honor her, you reserve sex for marriage with a person of the opposite sex, you respect all human life from womb to the tomb, you look after what is yours and don’t covet or take what is your neighbors, and if you can’t say anything nice about your neighbor you say nothing and still love him.
You see love is only understood in Jesus. Love is God’s Word. He loved us in this way – He loved us when we were downright ugly – He loved us by laying down His life for us when we were His enemies. He loved not with a thought about Himself, but with every thought, word, and action, for us. That is love, that is God’s love for you, in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Pr. Bruce Timm
9 May 2015 anno Domini