Title: The Look of Love
Genuine love (without hypocrisy) is the mark of the Christian community.
verses 9-13 - Love within the church.
verses 14-21 - Love reaching out into society.
I'm going to start by considering the word 'genuine'. How do I know that you are being genuine? How do I know the the diamond/leather I am buying is genuine? We live in an increasingly cynical society who are looking for genuine love in action - even if they don't always like the shape of God's tough love. Some early thoughts from a Canadian in Scotland.
Labor Day weekend.... I was thinking about work, jobs, etc. I love my calling as a pastor. I love to go to work, as do a lot of people. So there is this, "Thank God it's Monday" aspect to work if you love what you're doing. Of coarse, in the church we are also celebrating our call to be Christians, and hopefully we love going to work for Christ. The passage from Romans reminds me of a job description for working for Jesus. It's one thing to have a job description that reads, "Is responsible for administrating the work of the public school and supervising the teaching staff", it's another to embrace a job description that simply reads, "Live a life of love." Paul gives us, in Romans, shape and form to the abstract job description Jesus hands us when he says, "Follow me and love..." My sermon title? "Get to Work."
revdlk in nebraska
We have had a heated public debate in Chattanooga over the posting of the Ten Commandments in public buildings. Everywhere you turn, there are copies of the decalogue in yards, on walls in businesses, and until recently, in our County buildings.
Against that backdrop, I am going to preach about "The Twenty-nine Commandments." These verses have, if I have counted them right, twenty-nine ethical statements. Yet at the heart of these Christian ehtical imperatives, we find the two themes of the law: How we realte to God, and how we relate to each other.
-Dale in Chattanooga
Genuine Love, Love your Vocation, The 29 Commandments... So much here. Thank you all for your posts. It's like going to an all-you=can-eat buffet, or a smorgasbord. I haven't figured out yet where the texts are taking us in this community, but everyone keep posting, because it's nourishing to the rest of us!
Michelle
I am also thinking about a three week series focusing on Romans and Paul's "love lessons."
This week: loving your enemy.
Which in the aftermath of September 11th and the talk about attacking our enemy is probably timely.
So far, I think about love as a decision not a feeling; and it may be a decision to embark on a process. And it is a decision that is made based on an understanding of your place in the world - loved by God who is in control. (vengeance is up to God and not us) And clearly we can't do this thing - loving our enemies - on our own.
I guess one question is: how do middle class "nice" Christian folks relate to the idea of enemies in their day to day life.
Beginning the process ......
Margot
OOH, Dale, I like the 29 commandments thang!
Up here in Rutherford County we had the same thing. I think our posting of the 10 Commandments lasted about 2 months before coming off the courthouse wall. How great it would be if more of us had these 29 inscribed on our hearts.
Hmm... A strange thing just happened. I was typing fast and clumsy, as is my way, and where I was typing "we had" above, my finger hit between the H and J keys printing both putting "jhad" in my post. I glanced back and made the mental leap. "Jihad?", I puzzled,"Why would I type jihad?" There for a moment I thought it was Freudian or something, thinking about peace with one another but subconciously writing out war. Nah, I just goofed. If I had an old typewriter I would buy "Wite-Out" by the case. But I digress. Keep the good stuff coming folks. tom in TN(USA)
A comment on the ethical exhortations: People long to have clear definitions of right and wrong. In my background, the commandments were held up as a measuring stick of success or failure, salvation or damnation. In my own spiritual and theological journey, I have come to understand that the ten commandments and these ethical exhortations are not a set of do's and don't whereby we stand or fall. Rather, they are descriptive of the way in which my human relationships are transformed when my life has been touched by the grace of God. Obedience to the 10 commandments or these ethical urgings is not a duty but a response. Obedience flows out of hearts and lives made new by the Spirit.
Let me put it another way: there are people who keep the ten commandments as a set of rules (in a legalistic fashion) but who do not know the love of God that lies behind the commands. If these 'ethical exhorations' are treated as a set of 'commands' people may see them as something to measure up to rather than as a natural, logical outcome of God's mercy demonstrated towards them.
The comments thus far have been very helpful. I trust that mine are comprehensible.
A Canadian in Scotland.
These verses are a group of exhortations that shed light on what Paul said previously. He spoke about being a transformed community of grace in Christ. We have received His mercies and are to respond with not being conformed to the world, but of being living sacrifices for God, being transformed by the renewing of our minds. These verses seem to show images of what that looks like in daily living: from genuine love, service to God, contributing to the needs of others, our responses to our enemies and to evil, etc. These are the things which we are to "do" but they themselves flow from who we "are": God's transformed people.
Bob in VA
I don't normally preach on the Epistle... although with recent events in our community I may.
There is a pastor in Topeka, Kansas that is supposedly coming to town on Friday to as he calls it "Fago, ND"... he is the same group that protested Matthew Shepards funeral... on his website he has a daily running total of days Matthew Shepard has been in "hell" 1,416 days... also there is the woman mauled by the dogs in California which he also claims is in HELL...
Apparently this "Pastor" supports his ministry by getting in the faces of those that disagree with him until "they" become so frustrated with Mr. Phelps that they end up using physical violence to shut him up and then he sues them.
I have a hard time with this passage and persons like "Rev." Phelps.He even has the "supposed" voice of Matthew Shepherd from "hell" screaming how we should listen to "Pastor Phelps"... The local Gay/Lesbian population will meet in a local park this Friday... I ask for your prayers...
12:21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.
pulpitt in ND
pulpitt in nd- That Phelps hatefilled voice is so loud and so insane. It does provide an extreme example of how offensive is the experience of having an enemy to feed; I guess Paul's "29" remain an irrational concept until our minds have been transformed. I don't feel very transformed when faced with the kind of mindset expressed by Phelps.
Aslanclan
I will pray for you in Fargo this weekend. I was at the Cathedral in Topeka for 3 years where the Phelps clan is part of daily life.
What a *perfect* example for our Romans reading this week. The best way to deal with Phelps is JUST how Paul said. If you allow yourself to get upset or to try to dialogue or any of that, you end up worse than when you started.
But pray for your enemy. Be hospitable. Feed them and give them something to drink. And do not be overcome!
You couldn't ask for a better sermon example!
God's Peace-
Momma Helen
I thought of how everyone talks about living up to these ethical standards, yet so few of us succeed. I decided it would be refreshing to state the obivous, "living the Christian Life is Hard Work." Bonhoeffer, et. al., come to mind. Maybe that will help some of the others, too.
Steve in NC
