Title: Conquering Love
Author: Christopher Harbin
Text: 1 John 5:1-6
When I hear the word conquer, I think of armies. I think of Crusaders. I think of demonstrations of violent power over people with lesser power. The word brings destruction to mind. It speaks to me of devastation, poverty, hunger, abuse, illness, disease, and death. Conquer is not a very positive term in my understanding. It smells of anything else but Jesus. Rather than love, it exudes hate. It subjects and oppresses one's enemies. Perhaps there is some intent to rescue one people from an enemy, but the means of conquest is anything but loving. How, then, can love be considered to conquer the world in any sense whatsoever?
The Lectionary is taking us through John's first epistle, where we find most everywhere that he speaks of love. His words are full of terms of endearment. He speaks of familial relationships. He tells us God is love and all who love do so because of God flooding creation with love and the ability to love. In last Sunday's passage, love was portrayed as a means to conquer the world. Now he refers to the trust we have in God as conquering the world in the same breath in which he again reminds us to love. I have never been on a battlefield. I can hardly imagine, however, responding to weapons of war with love and trust.
John's words today start with the notion of trusting that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. I've been hearing that refrain since before I could speak. That Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise to send the Messiah has been hammered into my head as deeply as most anything else. It seems old hat. It seems like the words John is using have little to no real significance, nothing nearly as deeply significant as to be the central question of whether or not we belong to God. It sounds awfully appropriate to recall James' critique that even the demons believe, but they shudder. John, however, says that this claim is of very great significance, enough to mak ...
Author: Christopher Harbin
Text: 1 John 5:1-6
When I hear the word conquer, I think of armies. I think of Crusaders. I think of demonstrations of violent power over people with lesser power. The word brings destruction to mind. It speaks to me of devastation, poverty, hunger, abuse, illness, disease, and death. Conquer is not a very positive term in my understanding. It smells of anything else but Jesus. Rather than love, it exudes hate. It subjects and oppresses one's enemies. Perhaps there is some intent to rescue one people from an enemy, but the means of conquest is anything but loving. How, then, can love be considered to conquer the world in any sense whatsoever?
The Lectionary is taking us through John's first epistle, where we find most everywhere that he speaks of love. His words are full of terms of endearment. He speaks of familial relationships. He tells us God is love and all who love do so because of God flooding creation with love and the ability to love. In last Sunday's passage, love was portrayed as a means to conquer the world. Now he refers to the trust we have in God as conquering the world in the same breath in which he again reminds us to love. I have never been on a battlefield. I can hardly imagine, however, responding to weapons of war with love and trust.
John's words today start with the notion of trusting that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah. I've been hearing that refrain since before I could speak. That Jesus is the fulfillment of God's promise to send the Messiah has been hammered into my head as deeply as most anything else. It seems old hat. It seems like the words John is using have little to no real significance, nothing nearly as deeply significant as to be the central question of whether or not we belong to God. It sounds awfully appropriate to recall James' critique that even the demons believe, but they shudder. John, however, says that this claim is of very great significance, enough to mak ...
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