Jesus: The Loving God March 30, 2014
A funny thing happened on the way to work one day....before year end, Richard brought this book to me and asked if I'd read it to see what I thought about using it for Lenten group studies. I got into the book - I really liked it and responded I thought it would be time well spent during Lent. Then, he discovered the Nouwen book would take 7 weeks and he was going to be gone one of those weeks. He suggested we try this other book that was shorter, allowing him to do a preaching series on it before he had to leave. He was fretting about having to ask a guest preacher fill-in and then say, oh, by the way, you have to preach on this....apparently that's not a practice when asking a guest to preach!
I spent some time with Nouwen's book and really wanted to get into it with others in small groups.This little book has some great conversation starters and depth. Having to study another, shorter, I thought "fluffy" text just did not seem right. Plus, Nouwen is a Catholic Priest. I am a proponent that we are all Christians and this author's efforts to help his nephew discover Jesus could help us understand we all serve the same God, saved by the same Jesus, instructed to live by the same Word, guided by the same Holy Spirit.
I pondered on this and kept hearing the same solution over and over...you do the sermon so we can keep the book. Sounded like a good idea...but when I actually said the words out loud in Richard's office, and he just sat back in his chair, crossed his arms and said, "Ok." Yikes! Still, it's a good idea, a scary one, and as I've wandered through the ramifications of taking on a Sunday sermon, I discover that this part of that job is
daunting to say the least.
daunting to say the least.
So there's a few things I can guarantee you at this moment in time....I will do my best to relate this letter about the nature of God's love, it will be short and I will not be doing another sermon anytime soon! So here we go...
In his fifth letter, Nouwen continues to move his nephew into knowing Jesus better by focusing on understanding the nature of God's love. He begins by describing the fraudulent electoral events in the Phillippines in 1986 where President Marco won re-election for 6 more years, continuing his martial law-style of governing. It was discovered that he had manipulated the voting process. A bloody civil war seemed to be their future. Nouwen states for years Christian people, bishops, priests and leading figures in the political life of the this country familiarized themselves with the practice of non-violence. People were taught how to rely on the power of love and with that power, to defeat the dictatorship.
In his fifth letter, Nouwen continues to move his nephew into knowing Jesus better by focusing on understanding the nature of God's love. He begins by describing the fraudulent electoral events in the Phillippines in 1986 where President Marco won re-election for 6 more years, continuing his martial law-style of governing. It was discovered that he had manipulated the voting process. A bloody civil war seemed to be their future. Nouwen states for years Christian people, bishops, priests and leading figures in the political life of the this country familiarized themselves with the practice of non-violence. People were taught how to rely on the power of love and with that power, to defeat the dictatorship.
Quoting the book, "Cory Aquino's struggle against the dictatorship in her country was rooted in love for one's enemy. Before she presented herself as a candidate for the presidency she prayed the whole night for her opponent, Ferdinand Marcos. The Filipino bishops and priests supported her and summoned the whole nation to nonviolent resistance. When Marco ordered his tanks to crush his opponents, the soldiers refused to drive over the people who were praying. Priests wearing their vestments approached the soldiers, embraced them, and invited them to drop their weapons and pray with the people for reconciliation and peace.
Nowen writes to his nephew the words of Jesus that go right to the heart of non-violence are well known:
love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat
you badly. To anyone who slaps you on one cheek, present the other cheek as well.....This scripture begin with the behavior of an eye for an eye, which is retaliation, and to quote Gandhi, "an eye for an eye, and we all go blind." Jesus say, "BUT I say unto you....love your enemy." Nouwen claims the non-violent event in the Philippines is a spiritual victory. A country of people praying for the bad guy. A country of people wholly trusting in God.
Nowen writes to his nephew the words of Jesus that go right to the heart of non-violence are well known:
love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who treat
you badly. To anyone who slaps you on one cheek, present the other cheek as well.....This scripture begin with the behavior of an eye for an eye, which is retaliation, and to quote Gandhi, "an eye for an eye, and we all go blind." Jesus say, "BUT I say unto you....love your enemy." Nouwen claims the non-violent event in the Philippines is a spiritual victory. A country of people praying for the bad guy. A country of people wholly trusting in God.
The author points out the most important thing about a relationship with God is knowing this; He loves us - not because of anything we've done to earn that love, but because God, in total freedom, has decided to love us. Jesus is the revelation of God's unending, unconditional love for everyone on earth. In scripture we are told God gives His best - the sun to warm and the rain to nourish - to everyone regardless; the good and the bad, the nice and the nasty. God's love - true love, makes no distinction between friends and foes and it's the only kind of love that can empower us to live together without violence.
Nouwen gives examples: Cory Aquino realized hatred for President Marco could not lead to peace; Martin Luther King understood hating whites could not lead to true equality; Mohanda Gandi knew that hating the British could not bring about genuine independence in India.
It is the fruit of God's love, which we limited humans are to make visible in our lives in accordance with the words of Jesus, "You must therefore set no bounds to your love, just as your heavenly Father sets none to his."
Nouwen refers to the human condition. We're inclined to see our whole existence in term of quid pro quo; people will be nice if we are nice to them. This, he describes, seems deeply rooted in people - that being loved is something you have to earn. The author thinks it's this mentality that lies behind a lot of anxiety, unrest and agitation - trying to prove to each other we deserve to be loved; drowning in our own lack of self-respect; feeling worthless without that which we seek: recognition, admiration, popularity, etc. Nouwen calls this the "commercialization" of love. Nothing for nothing. Not even love.The result is a state of mind that makes us live as though our worth as human beings depends on the way others react to us. Submitting the most intimate awareness of who we are to the fickle opinions of those around us - essentially selling our souls to the world.
Nouwen suggests this low opinion of ourselves reinforces the desire to receive signs and tokens of love; stating the longing for love often takes on "inhuman" proportions. Loneliness and low self-esteem can lead to a kind of desperation; looking to anyone for love. He points out as humans we are not capable of dispelling one another's loneliness and lack of self-respect, which leads to disappointment in each other and the temptation to extort love. It is Nouwen's impression the prisons are full of people who couldn't express their need to be loved except by hurting others.
This brings us back to the answer - we seem to always be looking for answers - and as it turns out, God is always the answer.Jesus came down, was sent, became human in order to show us that the anxious concern for recognition and the violence among us springs from a lack of faith in God's love. When Jesus himself says to the people he had healed, "Your faith has saved you," He's saying they have trusted in God's love. This
faith, this trust in God's love these people expressed was so unreserved, it healed them! This is the trust we must have in God. This is the faith in that kind of love that can drive away every false way of obtaining love. This is the way to which Jesus call us.
Nouwen's nephew confessed that the cynical reactions from his peers, when he is in conversation with them about Jesus is, difficult. Immediately the author recites the words of Jesus, "But it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it", which we find in the book of Matthew. The need for a community of support is important in our Christian journey. Real vulnerability can only be fruitful in a community of people who are searching for God together.
If we are to learn the love of God, we have to begin by praying. The author suggests each time we pray,
really pray, we'll notice our hearts being made new; growing deeper and broader and opens up more to all the human beings God has peopled the earth with. Praying for our enemies makes us conscious of the hard fact that, in God's eyes, we are no more and no less worthy of being loved than any other person; you'll discover you cannot stay angry after praying for your enemies and you may begin speaking differently to them or about them.
Because God loves us, even before we existed, in fact, he presented us with the gift of His son, Jesus. This same Jesus, who tells us to pray for our enemy. The same Jesus whose words have been written for our instruction. A gift for our heart and soul. This same Jesus who sat at supper with his disciples, breaking bread and passing the cup in the fashion he did, leaves us with another gift; something solid with which to share in God's love. In the words of a loving God; Fear not, do not be anxious, do for others, be generous, pray for your enemy, come to the Lord's table for your share in what is good and right and true. ALL are welcome.
Amen
Nouwen's nephew confessed that the cynical reactions from his peers, when he is in conversation with them about Jesus is, difficult. Immediately the author recites the words of Jesus, "But it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it", which we find in the book of Matthew. The need for a community of support is important in our Christian journey. Real vulnerability can only be fruitful in a community of people who are searching for God together.
If we are to learn the love of God, we have to begin by praying. The author suggests each time we pray,
really pray, we'll notice our hearts being made new; growing deeper and broader and opens up more to all the human beings God has peopled the earth with. Praying for our enemies makes us conscious of the hard fact that, in God's eyes, we are no more and no less worthy of being loved than any other person; you'll discover you cannot stay angry after praying for your enemies and you may begin speaking differently to them or about them.
Because God loves us, even before we existed, in fact, he presented us with the gift of His son, Jesus. This same Jesus, who tells us to pray for our enemy. The same Jesus whose words have been written for our instruction. A gift for our heart and soul. This same Jesus who sat at supper with his disciples, breaking bread and passing the cup in the fashion he did, leaves us with another gift; something solid with which to share in God's love. In the words of a loving God; Fear not, do not be anxious, do for others, be generous, pray for your enemy, come to the Lord's table for your share in what is good and right and true. ALL are welcome.
Amen
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