09/18/2024
What Kind of Love Do You Have For God?
In Sunday’s message about Job, I talked about how important relationship is when it comes to getting answers to our questions about God. The question that Job is really being tested on is this: can he love God for who God is—or does he only love God for what God can do for him?
It got me thinking about the various kinds of love.
1. There is the love we offer because I get something positive in return. This is a relatively selfish and transactional kind of love.
2. There is the love I offer because I enjoy our time together; because you are funny, interesting, insightful. I am even pleased when good things happen to you—especially when I am part of those good things or when those good things make you more generous or affectionate toward me. This is slightly better, at least the one I love matters a little more, even it is still a bit self-serving.
3. And finally, there is the love I have for you simply because of who you are. I love you because are my child, you are my spouse, my parent, my church, my country. This is the kind of love of which God is worthy. This is the kind of all-encompassing love that God brought us into this world to share and enjoy with Him.
At one point, Job’s wife tells him to curse God and die. His friends tell him to just admit that you’re a sinner and God is just in punishing you. But Job has too much integrity and too much faithfulness to do either. In the end, Job sticks with God, learning first hand what it means to be loved for who he is and what it means to love God for who God is. In that sense, it is a book that ends more or less happily ever after.
Archived Posts
The Cars Are Looking for A King
I don’t have a thing to add to Pastor Jessica’s excellent sermon this last Sunday. The fable/parable she shared has been one of my favorites for all the lessons she pulled from it in her message. I was playing around with my friend Chat GPT and after several abortive attempts, we came up with the following modernized version of Judges 9:7-15.
The Lost Benediction
Depending on the length of the sermon, I try to add a little something extra in my benedictions. This week I wrote up a benediction but then realized we’d be singing and waving our umbrellas to some New Orleans jazz.
Change of Focus This Week
Instead of sharing with you about yesterday’s sermon I’d like to invite you to do some background reading for next Sunday’s “Only Murders in the Bible.” Seeing that it is All Saints Day this Sunday, we are going to look at the very first Christian martyr, Stephen.
You Might Be Thinking It’s All About You If…
In working on Sunday’s sermon I asked my computer’s AI if she/he could come up with a few suggestions in answer to the above: "You Might be thinking it’s all about you, if…."
Prayer Changes Things
Here is a transcript of the prayer I prayed at the end of yesterday’s sermon.
Optimism, Faith, and Hope:
Practical Steps For Increasing All Three
Here are some practical, spiritual, and relational ways to grow faith, hope and optimism:
Listening Heart
It’s kind of crazy when you think about it. Wisdom in the Bible is all about listening. Of course it makes sense that wisdom would start with listening to God, to God’s law and commandments, as well as the promptings and leadings of the Holy Spirit.