Dear Friends,
Christians talk often about how much they love Jesus.
But what exactly does that mean? How does one love Jesus?
Is loving Jesus an act of worship?
Is it adhering to a set of beliefs?
Is it an adherence to a set of doctrine?
Is it through acts of personal piety?
How exactly does one love Jesus?
One thing a career in ministry has made clear to me is that people rarely learn to love through abstract philosophy or theology. Not even a really good, well thought out sermon makes that much of a difference (sigh!) We need concrete and practical experiences to learn the ways of love.
That is why we have Jesus. Jesus shows us love in concrete and practical form. When we look to Jesus we see what God’s love looks like. In Jesus, love is merciful. It is compassionate. It is inclusive. But at its core, it is personal – Jesus sought to love each person in front of them as if they were the most important person on the entire earth.
He loved through touch.
He loved by addressing needs.
He loved by seeing each person’s pain.
Jesus loved each person as if they were an unrepeatable miracle of God.
We love Jesus by loving like Jesus. Like Jesus we strive to show kindness, compassion and mercy to all those who walk through our doors. Like Jesus we love by loving the ones in front of us like they are the most important person on the earth. Like Jesus we strive to see each person as an unrepeatable miracle of God.
We want to be known as a people who love Jesus.
To do this, we will seek to be a people who love like Jesus.
Grace and Peace,
