Love IS Our Weapon

Yesterday during worship, we were singing about the name of Jesus, and I started thinking about the heavenly reality, and what we were saying.  We believe that His name is supreme over every name, that at His name every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess He is Lord (Phil 2:9-11).  I was thinking about that reality including all the universe, not just our world, but every world as well (in case there is life somewhere else).  

I suppose I have read too many comic books and have a good imagination, but when I was thinking about this theme, I could see in my mind, all the worlds, all the heroes, all the warriors, every man, woman and child, every creature, bowing down before Jesus Christ.  I was thinking that its not that collection of letters, for Jesus name is spelled different and is pronounced differently in the languages of man, instead it is the person Jesus Christ, all His power, His character, everything about Him that is so far above every other being!  In my imagination it was a bit like the Last battle scene in the recent Avenger movie where all the creatures come together, but not in battle, but rather to honor Jesus.

As I was thinking through all that, I thought about the reality that this all was accomplished, and motivated by love.  I guess I was a bit in the battle mindset and thought about how love was such a surprising weapon!  We would expect the Lord of all the universe to be this awesome warrior with amazing power, and Jesus came to earth, with amazing power, but power that was applied in and through love!  

Jesus came to earth because of God's love (John 3:16).  He set people free because He loved them.  He healed people because He loved them.  He forgave sins because He loved them.  He cleansed lepers because He loved them.  He raised the dead because He loved them.  He went to the cross out of His love for us all.  He is still doing everything He did when He walked the earth as a man, because He loves us and He is still alive!

He issued a new commandment to His followers, saying, “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”  ( John 13:34-35 NIV).  I believe that when He said these words, every single person sitting at that table knew EXACTLY what He meant.  They had each experienced His love, seen His love first hand, watched Him interact with one another, seen His Love transform lives!  They knew how deep and personal this call was!  They had followed Him for at last a few years, and had countless experiences of His overwhelming love, expressed in ways that surprised and challenged them.  They saw Jesus love sacrificially, unafraid to serve and put others first. They saw His relentless love, and knew this was the call, the command.

Sometimes it seems to me that somewhere we seem to have lost our way, thinking that love is  pointing people towards the right application of the right doctrine.  We have lost our sight of the fact that we are called to "love one another", and by this love everyone will know that we are HIS disciples.  We have made right interpretation, right theology, right application and right living more important than love.  We have laid down our primary weapon (Love) and instead picked up judgment as our weapon of choice.  Oh Lord, forgive us!  

Oh, that we would once again learn to wield love as the world-changing, captive-freeing, blind-seeing, lame-walking, sick-healing, dead-raising, sin-forgiving, leper-cleansing, weapon that it is! 

Oh, that all Christians would look across the world, and choose to unite under the banner of love, rather than under our individual congregational or denomination banners!

Oh, that once again, the world would look and see the church loving one another to such an extent that they recognize that we must be followers of Jesus Christ!

Oh, that we would once again make love our motivation, love our weapon and LOVE all the peoples, all the nations, all the people groups!

Lord, help us to embrace Your great command to love one another as You loved us!  Help us to finish the ministry that You have called us to go to all the world, to every nation, tongue and tribe, to every people group, large and small, and love them as You loved us!  

Amen!