Text: John
13:1-17; 31b-35 Ann Ferrell Lewis
First Presbyterian Church
April 5,
2007
Love Redefined
Beautiful day – it smells
different. Spring is coming.
Love smells different
One way of
studying a concept in the Bible is to do a word study. You look up every place that word appears in
the scriptures, note its frequency and explore the way in which it is used in different
contexts, noting variations in meaning.
Some of you might wonder what would possess a person to do such a thing,
but at the risk of sounding like a nerd, I confess that word studies can
capture my excitement as I make new discoveries. And thanks to online Bible study tools, word
studies have become far less tedious than you might think. I did a word study today. The word I chose to look up is “love.” I found that the word “love” occurs in the
Bible 488 times. That may sound like a
lot – but the word “law” appears far more frequently (6,195 times you can find
the word “law” compared to 488 times for the word “love” that means that for
ever time the word “love appears” the word “law” occurs over 12 times.
I began this search because it seemed to me that when Jesus washed the feet
of his disciples, he demonstrated a new understanding of what it means to
“love” another. So I decided to see how
the word “love” was used elsewhere in scripture. What I found is that in the Old Testament,
love is used to refer to love found in families and romantic love, and of
course there are some references to love of God’s law – but most of the time
the word “love” is used in the Old Testament, it describes God’s love with the
adjective “steadfast.” Again and again
you can find, “Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his steadfast love
endures forever.”
But something different happens when Jesus comes on the scene. It is because Jesus, who embodies the very
spirit of God, redefines the meaning of love – God’s steadfast love for us
takes on a human form – and Jesus, who lived so close the heart of God,
redefines the way God wants us to love one another. When Jesus speaks of love, he quotes the Old
Testament command to love God with our heart, soul, strength, and mind, and to
love our neighbor as ourselves. In
Jesus’ parables, he illustrated the love of neighbor as he told the story of a
stranger who gave care to a man he found beaten on the road. In his preaching he expands the context of
love to include not only neighbors, but even one’s enemies. And he modeled this kind of love by
socializing with those the people most avoided:
tax collectors, the unclean lepers, the Samaritans, the poor beggars in
the streets.
But it wasn’t until this Holy Night, that I think the disciples began to
really understand the meaning of the new kind of love Jesus was teaching. It was a love that was demonstrated as he got
on his knees, and as a servant would, he washed their feet. Their dirty, dusty feet that had followed him
mile after mile down rugged roads, up onto mountain tops, and into hostile
towns – Jesus washed each one bending himself down. He washed the feet of each one: Philip and
Andrew, his beloved disciple John, and
Judas, who he later indicated would betray him – he knelt before each one of
the twelve, with a towel wrapped around his waist. And as he cradled their heel in his palm, he
spoke words of love to each one. It was
such an incomprehensible thing for their Lord and Master to do, that Peter
couldn’t stand it. He couldn’t bear the
thought of his Lord humbling himself so severely. And so he refused. But Jesus insisted, “Unless I wash you, you
have no share with me.” So it was put to
Peter, be washed by me, and know my love, or reject me completely. Peter responded, “Lord, not my feet only but
also my hands and my head.” And at that
moment, the son of God bent down to touch the one who the next day would even
deny knowing him, and he poured out his love upon him as he washed each foot.
On this holy night we look beyond what happened in the upper room to the
cross, where Jesus’ love became evident even as he was stripped of every manner
of honor and respect, as he was ridiculed and mocked, beaten and scourged, with
hands and feet pierced by nails, he hung in utter humility, and the Son of God,
called out in love, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”
Genesis 32:9-12
9 And Jacob said,
"O God of my father Abraham and God of my father Isaac, O Lord who said to
me, "Return to your country and to your kindred, and I will do you good,' 10 I
am not worthy of the least of all the steadfast love and all the faithfulness
that you have shown to your servant, for with only my staff I crossed this
Jordan; and now I have become two companies. 11 Deliver me,
please, from the hand of my brother, from the hand of Esau, for I am afraid of
him; he may come and kill us all, the mothers with the children. 12 Yet
you have said, "I will surely do you good, and make your offspring as the
sand of the sea, which cannot be counted because of their number.' "
Ex 34:7 - Show Context
keeping steadfast love for the thousandth
generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, yet by no means
clearing the guilty, but visiting the iniquity of the parents upon the children
and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation."
Le 19:18 - Show Context
You shall not take vengeance or
bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as
yourself: I am the Lord.
Le 19:34 - Show Context
The alien who resides with you
shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself,
for you were aliens in the
Nu 14:18 - Show Context
"The Lord is slow to anger,
and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and
transgression, but by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of
the parents upon the children to the third and the fourth generation.'
De 6:5 - Show Context
You shall love the Lord your God with all
your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
De 10:12 - Show Context
So now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God
require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his
ways, to love him, to serve the Lord
your God with all your heart and with all your soul,
2Sa 1:26 - Show Context
I am distressed for you, my
brother Jonathan; greatly beloved were you to me; your love to me was wonderful,
passing the love of women.
Pr 15:17 - Show Context
Better is a dinner of vegetables
where love is than a fatted ox and hatred with it
Pr 20:13 - Show Context
Do not love sleep, or else you will
come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.
So 1:2 - Show Context
Let him kiss me with the kisses
of his mouth! For your love is better than wine,
Ho 11:4 - Show Context
I led them with cords of human
kindness, with bands of love. I was to them like those who
lift infants to their cheeks. I bent down to them and fed them.
Mt 5:43 - Show Context
"You have heard that it was
said, "You shall love your neighbor and hate your
enemy.'
Mt 22:37 - Show Context
He said to him, " "You
shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your
soul, and with all your mind.'
Mt 22:39 - Show Context
And a second is like it:
"You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'
Lu 6:32 - Show Context
"If you love those who love you, what credit is
that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.
Lu 6:35 - Show Context
But love your enemies, do good,
and lend, expecting nothing in return. Your reward will be great, and you will
be children of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Joh 12:25 - Show Context
Those who love their life lose it, and
those who hate their life in this world will keep it for eternal life.
Joh 13:34 - Show Context
I give you a new commandment,
that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.
Joh 13:35 - Show Context
By this everyone will know that
you are my disciples, if you have love for one another."
Joh 14:15 - Show Context
"If you love me, you will keep my
commandments.
Joh 14:21 - Show Context
They who have my commandments
and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I
will love them and reveal myself to them."
Joh 14:23 - Show Context
Jesus answered him, "Those
who love me will keep my word, and my Father will love them, and we will come
to them and make our home with them.
Joh 14:31 - Show Context
but I do as the Father has
commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let
us be on our way.
Joh 15:9 - Show Context
As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.
Joh 15:10 - Show Context
If you keep my commandments, you
will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide
in his love.
Joh 15:12 - Show Context
"This is my commandment,
that you love one another as I have loved you.
Joh 15:13 - Show Context
No one has greater love than this, to lay down
one's life for one's friends.
Joh 21:15 - Show Context
When they had finished
breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, "Simon son of John, do you love me more than
these?" He said to him, "Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said
to him, "Feed my lambs."
Joh 21:16 - Show Context
A second time he said to him,
"Simon son of John, do you love me?" He said to him,
"Yes, Lord; you know that I love you." Jesus said to him,
"Tend my sheep."
Joh 21:17 - Show Context
He said to him the third time,
"Simon son of John, do you love me?" Peter felt hurt
because he said to him the third time, "Do you love me?" And he said
to him, "Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you." Jesus said
to him, "Feed my sheep.
Ro 5:8 - Show Context
But God proves his love for us in that while we
still were sinners Christ died for us.
Ro 8:28 - Show Context
We know that all things work
together for good for those who love God, who are called according
to his purpose.
Ro 8:35 - Show Context
Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will
hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
sword?
Ro 8:39 - Show Context
nor height, nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus
our Lord.
Ro 12:9 - Show Context
Let love be genuine; hate what
is evil, hold fast to what is good;
Ro 12:10 - Show Context
love one another with mutual
affection; outdo one another in showing honor.
Ro 13:8 - Show Context
Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the
one who loves another has fulfilled the law.
1Co 13:4 - Show Context
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or
boastful or arrogant
1Co 13:13 - Show Context
And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and
the greatest of these is love.
Eph 4:2 - Show Context
with all humility and
gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love,
1Pe 1:22 - Show Context
Now that you have purified your
souls by your obedience to the truth so that you have genuine mutual love, love one another deeply from
the heart.
1Pe 2:17 - Show Context
Honor everyone. Love the family of
believers. Fear God. Honor the emperor.
1Pe 3:8 - Show Context
Finally, all of you, have unity
of spirit, sympathy, love for one another, a tender
heart, and a humble mind.
1Pe 4:8 - Show Context
Above all, maintain constant love for one another, for love covers a multitude of
sins.
1Pe 5:14 - Show Context
Greet one another with a kiss of
love. Peace to all of you who are in Christ.
2Pe 1:7 - Show Context
and godliness with mutual
affection, and mutual affection with love.
1Jo 3:1 - Show Context
See what love the Father has given
us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The
reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
1Jo 3:1 - Show Context
See what love the Father has given
us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The
reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.
1Jo 3:11 - Show Context
For this is the message you have
heard from the beginning, that we should love one another.
1Jo 3:14 - Show Context
We know that we have passed from
death to life because we love one another. Whoever does not love abides in death.
1Jo 3:16 - Show Context
We know love by this, that he laid
down his life for us?and we ought to lay down our lives for one another.
1Jo 3:17 - Show Context
How does God's love abide in anyone who has
the world's goods and sees a brother or sister in need and yet refuses help?
1Jo 3:18 - Show Context
Little children, let us love, not in word or speech,
but in truth and action.
1Jo 3:23 - Show Context
And this is his commandment,
that we should believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he
has commanded us.
1Jo 4:7 - Show Context
Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone
who loves is born of God and knows God.
1Jo 4:8 - Show Context
Whoever does not love does not know God, for
God is love.
1Jo 4:9 - Show Context
God's love was revealed among us
in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through
him.
1Jo 4:10 - Show Context
In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to
be the atoning sacrifice for our sins.
1Jo 4:11 - Show Context
Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also
ought to love one another.
1Jo 4:12 - Show Context
No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives
in us, and his love is perfected in us.
1Jo 4:16 - Show Context
So we have known and believe the
love that God has for us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God
abides in them.
1Jo 4:19 - Show Context
We love because he first loved us.
1Jo 4:20 - Show Context
Those who say, "I love God," and hate
their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister
whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen.
1Jo 4:21 - Show Context
The commandment we have from him
is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters
also.
1Jo 5:2 - Show Context
By this we know that we love the children of God,
when we love God and obey his commandments.
1Jo 5:3 - Show Context
For the love of God is this, that we
obey his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome,