Does Love Trump All?
I read the following the other day on a youth pastor's blog. He had just visited a church and was impressed by how well they seemed to love each other. As a result he wrote the following:
"I have spent a long time in church, and I think I forget that the church is in the business of love. Above everything else, the church should be about loving well. Above doctrine, above polity, above finances and above good theology. Seems like a no brainer, but I get caught up in that stuff so often that I think I lose sight of what is imprtant sometimes."
I've been thinking a lot about what he said. My gut reaction is to think "okay, maybe above some things, and maybe above most things, but above doctrine and good theology"?
Hmm...
Things like good judgement and reason just naturally come up high on the list for me. If feels like if I say that "love" trumps all those things then it take you down a path where there are no absolutes. Or does it?
I know I could be loving better. So what does that mean for me? I've been thinking a lot about this. Does the world see love in my actions? How do we teach our new church plant about loving well? Does loving well mean helping the woman at church? Or does it mean inviting the prostitue I pass every day to our ESL class in the hope that maybe through English she would find a better future? Or does it mean both? Do I only love when it is easy?
How would Christ be loving differently than I am if He lived in my shoes? What decisions would He make that I do not? What risks would he be willing to take all in the name of love?
I wonder the Foothills Church did so well, or so different from the norm, that a youth pastor sat up and took notice. What are they doing that everyone else isn't? I did notice one thing on their vision statement that was impressive to me in an American culture:
"We're going to develop people more than programs".
Imagine that!
So tell me, do you think your church or small group loves well? I mean really. loves. well. And I'm not just talking about loving the easy ones.
Do you think you love well?
Post a Comment