Renewed Through Jubilee

Love Renewed

1 Cor. 13:13                                                                       February 16, 2003

   And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

         Jubilee means renewal. In Leviticus 25-27 we learn about Jubilee. In these chapters the procedure for restoring equality in the land is presented. While it is apparent the people never implemented this part of the Law, these chapters highlight God’s priority for the land. No one was to be permanently held in slavery, no debt was to crush individuals. There was a time for renewal.

         For the last several weeks we have looked at the virtues that Paul said will last throughout time. The virtues of Faith, hope and love. In each of our lives there are times when we need to have our faith, our hope and our love renewed. Sin, stress, fear, disappointment, and simply living can erode our sensitivity to God’s call in our lives. We need renewed, and that is the message of the letters written to the churches of Asia Minor found in Revelation 2 and 3.

         The first of these letters was written to the church in Ephesus.

Rev 2:1-7

   "To the angel of the church in Ephesus write:

  These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands: [2] I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. [3] You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.

[4] Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. [5] Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. [6] But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.

[7] He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.

CCI: No matter how good we are, no matter what we accomplish, God’s great desire for us is not a long list of accomplishments, what he desires is our passionate love.

         John Piper writes: “The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison but apple pie. It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but endless nibbling at the table of the world. It is not the X-rated video, but the prime-time dribble of triviality we drink in every night. For all the ill that Satan can do, when God describes what keeps us from the banquet table of his love, it is a piece of land, a yoke of oxen, and a wife (Luke 14:18–20). The greatest adversary of love to God is not his enemies but his gifts. And the most deadly appetites are not for the poison of evil, but for the simple pleasures of earth. For when these replace an appetite for God himself, the idolatry is scarcely recognizable, and almost incurable.”

         The church of Ephesus had a lot going for it. It was a church where Paul had spent two years. It was a church that knew truth and loved the truth. It was a church that had been faithful in hardship and persecution. They had stood the test of the false teachers. Their commitment to Jesus Christ had actually had an economic impact on the city, the sale of Diana idols had almost dried up completely. The tearful goodbye scene in Acts 20 when Paul is sent off by the Ephesian Elders is one of the most moving in the Bible. The church of Ephesus was a church that had made a tremendous impact in the world for Jesus Christ. But there was something missing. And for all the wonderful accomplishments of the Ephesian Church, the thing they are remembered for throughout the ages is what Jesus says to the church in verse 4. “Nevertheless, I have this against you, you have forsaken your first love.”

         First love. If you have never experienced it, you can not imagine it. If you are in the midst of that experience you can not imagine being without it. If you have lost it, you sometimes will say, we have matured in our relationship while deep down longing to return to that time. What is it about first love that sets it apart from every other human experience? I think it is unique because it is summed up in the word “passion.”

         Passion is a word that we are often afraid of. And we may be afraid of it for good reason. Passion is defined as “very strong emotion; intense sexual love; an outburst of very strong emotion.” Passion is frightening. By definition, passion is out of control. In addition, the word itself is derived from the Latin word “pati” which means suffer. We are so afraid of passion, so afraid of the potential for pain, so afraid of losing control that we avoid it all together. Once, I even heard a sermon that presented the premise that Christians should consciously avoid doing anything with passion because it meant acting out of your emotions.

         Because passion and first love can be frightening we sometimes choose to give up on passion. Some think they have grown beyond the passion of first love. The story is told of “Two old fellows were walking along the shoreline of a lake when a frog came hopping up to them.

         “Creaking with age, one of the old-timers slowly bent down and scooped up the frog in his hands. As he stood there gazing at the frog, fascinated by its ugliness, the frog croaked, "Hey, mister! I'm not really a frog. If you kiss me, I'll turn into a beautiful princess who will meet all your heart’s desires."

         “Startled, the old man slipped the frog into his pocket and headed on down the shoreline. For the longest time he and his friend trudged along in silence.

         "Well?" his buddy finally blurted out. "You gonna kiss it?"

         "Naw, I guess not," the first codger replied. "At my age, I think I'll have more fun with a talking frog."

         Now, there may come a time in life when a talking frog may be more appealing than a beautiful princess, but if all you want is a talking frog, haven’t you lost something important? I think that if we give up on passion, if we believe first love is unreachable, we end up with little more than the novelty of a talking frog.

         Sometimes we lose the passion in our relationship with Jesus because we spend all out time thinking about the good old days, reminiscing on times that have past. “In Hot Springs, Arkansas, is the Morris Antique Mall. Nothing on the inside distinguishes this antique store from dozens like it in Hot Springs. There's a musty smell and dusty relics from the past. But if you look closely at the outside of the Morris Antique Mall, you'll see something that makes it distinct: before it was an antique store, it was a church building.” By losing it’s passion and choosing to focus on the past, the church became a musty old place for antiques.

         But usually first love is tamed by lethargy. Larry Crabb has said, “The core problem is not that we are too passionate about bad things, but that we are not passionate enough about good things.” In other words, we don’t become enamored by evil and suddenly become deaf to Christ’s call, rather we become lethargic and the Love of Christ which at one time stirred our hearts becomes commonplace. John Piper’s statement that I quoted earlier is exactly right, “The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison but apple pie. It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but endless nibbling at the table of the world.”

         We can choose to “grow beyond” first love passion, we can so long for the past that we lose our first love passion, we can even become focused on so many good things that our first love dimishes. Oswald Chambers has said, “Beware of anything that competes with loyalty to Jesus Christ. The greatest competitor of devotion to Jesus is service for him.” There is a price to pay whenever we permit even good things to replace first love. Jesus said, “I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love. Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.”

         First Love, passion, that is what Jesus longs for from us. First love draws us to the Word. In West Virginia a woman came to Jesus one Sunday. I visited her on Monday and gave her a copy of a NIV New Testament. On Sunday I asked if she had begun reading it, she told me she was really glad to have a Bible she could understand, that afternoon she was going to start Revelation. In one week she had read through the NT. That is what the passion of First Love can do in us.

         First Love results in simple faith. While in High School a friend of mine came to Jesus. His life was transformed. Vic was a kid who enjoyed tinkering with matching MGB’s. One day shortly after becoming a Christian he was switching engines when he dropped one on his left arm. He told me later, “I don’t know if I broke it or not, it was bent really strange, but I put some ice on it, went to bed and prayed that God would heal my arm. The next day, it was not even bruised.” That was faith that grew from first love.

         First love results in bold witness. When Dan McGrath came to Jesus he was strung out on narcotics. However, his life was changed and he longed to see the lives of his friends and family changed as well. I met Dan 5 months after he had come to Jesus and by that time all of his family had become Christians and many of his friends as well. First love results in bold witness.

         First love results in fervent prayer. Several months ago a close friend came and told me that she was going to pray daily for a co-worker. She then wrote a letter to this person and gave it to her. Immediately the co-worker came to her in tears to thank her, then within weeks the opportunity came to counsel and pray for this person as she went through a marriage crisis. That is first love prayer.

         And first love results in a love for truth. When C.S. Lewis came to Jesus his pursuit for philosophical knowledge was transformed into a pursuit of truth and a way to communicate that truth with the world. Mere Christianity, Miracles, Screwtape Letters, and even the Chronicles of Narnia were written to convey the truth of the Gospel to a world lost in lies.

         According to Paul, you can be as eloquent as angels, and act with such faith that moutains are moved and sacrifice everything, even your body, but if you do not love, it is worthless.

         So how do we come back to that first love? Jesus said, “Do the things you did at first.” What are they?

         Fellowship with other believers. This means to share those things in life that really matter. When I took Angela back to College in Columbus she was greeted by a friend from her Bible Study with these words, “How’s your faith?” That is the core of fellowship and it is fellowship that draws people together that keeps first love fresh.

         Those first things include feasting on the Word. To feast on the word is to consume God’s revelation in the Bible and in creation. Let the Word of God dwell in you richly. Read it, study it, meditate on it, and obey it. Then open your heart to God’s revelation through creation as well. The Heaven’s declare the glory of God! The slide show we were a part of this morning declared God’s glory both through the written word and the natural world. The scientific revolution was fueled by Christians who believed that God had revealed himself through creation. Feast on His revelation, the feast will keep first love fresh.

         The first things Jesus spoke about include loving our Brothers and Sisters in Christ. It has been said of the church, that “we are the only army who shoots it own wounded.” Many congregations pride themselves on being friendly, yet they are unaware that they are only friendly to their own. Eight years ago I visited a church outside Colorado Springs. Steve and I had just spent the night sleeping in a tiny tent on the front ridge of the Rockies. We were not dressed for church but we wanted to worship. We arrived early at a church that advertized itself as a friendly congregation. We sat for 20 minutes before the service and were greeted only by a person with a bulletin. 5 years ago, I returned to the same church with Janet. And the same thing happened. I am sure they cared deeply for one another, but for someone who was dirty and tired there was little concern. The following was seen on a church sign:

We Care About You

Sundays 10 a.m. Only

         When Christ renews our first love, our compassion does not stop at Noon on Sunday.

         The church of Jesus Christ must renew that first love or our lights will go out.

         A large church in Sudbury, MA had several pastors, each with a specific title such as Senior Pastor, Pastor of Caring and Fellowship, and so on. One day a woman came to the church office, see the Pastor of Missions. Searching her mind for the exact title, she became momentarily confused and asked the church receptionist, "May I see the Minister of Passion?"

         We snicker, but I wonder is that what we need? Perhaps we need a church full of Ministers of Passion, a church that understands that we are all called to passionate first love everyday.

         Let me suggest a few things that may help, we’ll call them Passion Training because as we love one another, we will find that first love passion restored:

         First there is sacrifice training. Paul said, “the Lord loves a cheerful giver.” The word cheerful comes from the Greek word “hilaros”. In other words, God is passionate about hilarious givers, people who get joy out of sharing. If you want your passion for Christ to grow, be a hilarious giver to His work through the church or through any channel that he opens.

         Second, there is impact training. We make an impact on people when we show them love in unexpected ways. Is there a co-worker who needs prayer? Is there a family member who is struggling with stress? Is there a neighbor who is lonely? Then love them, pray for them, offer an evening out. Let God’s love impact these folks through you.

         Third, practice Guerilla compassion: Annie Dillard speaks of blessing strangers quietly wherever you meet, this is first love action. Pray a prayer of peace on people you pass on the street. Pray of protection on people in the car next you at a stop light. Use guerilla tactics to love others.

         Fourth, take listening training. All around you are people who have a story they need to tell. Through the love of Christ learn to listen to their stories. Ask Him to remove the urge from you to tell your own story, rather listen.

         And fifth, do surprise training. First Love flourishes when surprises are abundant. Use special events or even common things to be the package that a love surprise is wrapped in. In Christ’s name take a child to a hockey game; in Christ’s name provide a meal for a neighbor; in Christ’s name show up at your spouse’s place of work unexpected with a bouquet.

         Let first love live in you and your love will be renewed. John wrote, “we love because he first loved us.” That love was shown through sacrifice, impact, and surprises. But most clearly God’s love has been poured out on us through the cross. May we today let Him restore our first love and then live in that love.