Abundant Love - No Fear

February 24 Genesis 15. 1-6*Luke 13.31-35 “Abundant Love – No Fear” 

If you’ve ever had children, you have probably been around the block a time or two with what is called “puppy love.”  Puppy love is a phase of young life. It refers to the adoring affection that young people may have for each other or someone that they admire.  Puppy love is basically innocent. There is another kind of emotion that we call love that is not as innocent. Psychologists warn us that when we fall head over heels for someone, we are at risk. When you think about it, none of us wants to fall, especially in regards to love. Strong, intense emotions that sweep us off our feet are more of a warning to step back rather than a signal to rush into a relationship. Relationships are not necessarily healthy just because the bump in one head fits the dent in the other.  (That may have been the case with ex-law enforcement officer Drew Peterson in the news this week who lured 4 wives into his wicked clutches.)

They say love is blind, but close relationships open both our eyes.  When we finally open our eyes, we may be shocked to see that love is not a bed of roses. Love is hard and satisfying work. It may even involve blood, sweat and tears. We want love to be free and easy, but that is so unrealistic because nothing great is free and easy. Education is not free and easy – ask any homeowner who pays taxes, any graduate who passed from one grade to the other. Ask any teacher, doctor or lawyer who spent $90-$175,000 dollars in tuition and fees.

Being a good US citizen is not free and easy – ask any parent who commits to raising children in this world full of greed and obscenities. Ask anyone who has experienced months of unemployment in this the richest country in the world, ask the judges who sentenced the 2 million prisoners we have, costing as much as $60,000 per year to feed and house. Ask the United Methodist Board of Pensions who last year divested a million dollars from private-for-profit prisons used for white collar criminals and detained immigrants.

Nothing of any value is free and easy.  Why would we ever think something as profound as love could be free and easy?

Perhaps we read too many fairy tales. We may live our whole life in fear of losing that perfect life and love that we can only experience in fairy tales.  But, scriptures (1 John 4.18) tell us - There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears has some things to learn. Our fear tells us that we have more growing and maturing to do in our faith in God.

Max Lucado tells the story of a woman who was returning home from her niece’s recital when a 20-year old driving in the other direction stuck his head out of his window and threw a frozen turkey into her windshield. The only reason she survived was because the surgeons managed to put her jaw back together and reconnect her cranium. We live in fear of what hurts each day may bring. If hurts were hairs, we’d all be grizzly’s. We are learning to face each day with faith. God has our back and always has a plan to work all things together for our good. Nothing is too hard for God. Nothing can separate us from his love.

The Pharisees warned Jesus that Herod had a contract out on his life. (He had already beheaded his cousin John the Baptist.) Herod had it out for Jesus because he thought Jesus wanted to take over his throne, since there were many who followed him as he turned water into wine and fed the 5000.

Usually, the Pharisees competed and argued with Jesus. This time, the record says the Pharisees tried to protect him from the Herod.  The Pharisees weren’t all bad. There were even times according to Luke’s gospel that they invited Jesus to dinner ( Luke 7:36, 11:37; 14:1).   Invitations to share meals were taken even more seriously in the ancient world than they are today.  Eating together meant unity, fellowship, and peace where war was brewing. If the Pharisees invited Jesus to dinner, they no doubt were open to a holy covenant, a sacred communion. It was a serious matter to sit together at table in the presence of God. Keeping a holy covenant makes us all feel secure and keeps fear at a distance.

Jesus boldly and fearlessly told the Pharisees  “Go tell that fox,   I will be casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work…” Instead of running from Herod, Jesus sent a defiant message. He showed no fear. There are three reasons why Jesus was not afraid. Those three reasons have to do with his will, his well-being, and his work.

The first reason Jesus had no fear was not because he was not doing what he wanted to do. He was doing the will of almighty God. Our will does not add up to a hill of beans. Our will does not lead to the salvation of those who are lost or to the outpouring of blessings that God has for each of us. Our will is too often a selective and self-centered will. We have the will of God in us. Even if we know nothing of Christianity, Romans 1 tells us we are born with a conscious and a sense of God’s will in our hearts. When our will lines up with God’s will, we have less to fear.

The second reason Jesus had no fear was because he trusted in his heavenly father for his well-being. Every day we get up in the morning, we have no guarantee what great blessing or challenges we will face before we lay our heads down again at night. Life is much too complicated for us to keep up with every detail. Our lives are too big and too delicate for us to take care of ourselves. Has not our Creator promised to be our healer, our savior, our counselor, our provider? When we fearfully and feverishly try to control our lives, we may be tempted to do so at any cost. We may go across forbidden lines and wind up farther away from God than ever. When we trust God for our well-being, we have less fear.

Thirdly, Jesus had no fear because he had work to do.  He worked to heal and cure and he had a timeline to finish that work. Each of us has some work to do to fulfill God’s purpose and plan. Each of us has something in our hearts that can heal. Each of us has something in our hands that can cure some evil, even if it is only our own.  We have less fear when we are doing God’s work.

Jesus was not afraid because love drives fear out. God’s will is filled with love that drives out fear. Trusting in God to take care of us fills us with love that drives out fear. Involving ourselves in the work God has for us connects us to a whole lot of love that drives out fear.

James Dobson tells the story of a dog competition. A dozen dogs were commanded to “Stay!” and then expected to remain statue-like for eight minutes while their owners left the ring. Judges scored them on how well they were able to hold their composure during their master’s absence. About four minutes into the exercise, a magnificent German shepherd named Jake was beginning to lose  his poise, slinking slowly toward the ground. By the time his trainer returned, poor Jake was lying flat on his stomach with his head on his paws. Jake saw the disappointment in his owner’s eyes and began crawling toward him on his belly. Everyone was expecting the trainer to scold the dog for his poor performance. Instead, he bent down, cupped the dog’s head in his hands, and said with a smile, “That’s OK, Jake. We’ll do better next time.”  

As we grow and mature, we are able to sense God smiling at us and hear God’s heart, not condemning us when we lose our poise or lose our way, but encouraging us, loving us and saying, that’s ok we’ll do better next time. Love drives out fear.

“A recent study at the Yale University Infant Cognition Center reminds us that we are created to show and receive loving kindness. In the study, researchers had babies—ranging in age from six to ten months—watch a wooden toy try to climb to the top of a roller-coaster incline. As the toy climbed, some toys came along to help it over the top, while others came along to push it back down. Then the babies were given the chance to play with any of the toys. Almost every child chose the toys that had helped!

We are created in the image of a loving and kind God. That means we are drawn to kindness—and even search for it—from the time we are very young. We never lose our need for kindness, but as adults we sometimes value ambition and prestige more.[ Particularly in the business world, it can be easy to forget that] our minds and emotions were made to respond to kindness, not harshness.

When we act kindly toward others, they will be drawn to us and to God. That's why being kind is so energizing. When we are kind, we are acting as we were created to act.”( Gary Chapman)

Love is strong enough to drive out the fear that could easily overwhelm us. May God’s abundant love take us to a place where there is less and less fear and more and more love and kindness. Amen.