Love: The greatest Commandment
Mark 12:28-34
How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.
I love thee to the depth and breadth and height
My soul can reach, when feeling out of sight
For the ends of Being and ideal Grace.
I love thee to the level of ever day's
Most quiet need, by sun and candlelight.
I love thee freely, as men strive for Gith;
I love thee purely, as they turn from Praise.
I love the with the passion put to use
In my old griefs, and with my childhood's faith.
I love thee with a love I seemed to lose
With my lost saints, --I love thee with the breath,
Smiles, tears , of all my life! -and if God choose,
I shall but love thee better after death.
The subject of the morning is love.
Love is feeling, and emotion. It is the strongest postive emotion we have. It expresses itself in acceptance, trust, and respect.
Said Jesus the law of God can be summerized thusly,
1. Love God with all your heart, soul, and strength.
2. Love your Neighbor as yourself.
The Common Denominator of love is LOVE OF SELF.
In his book PSYCHOLOGY OF PASTORAL CARE, Paul E. Johnson, states that man has a difficult time with himself. He is raised with impossible goals of goodness, and achievement imposed upon him. When he discovers that he can not reach these goals he gets down on himself. He dislikes himself. Says he; man even goes so far as to punish himself by:
1. driving himself beyond his limits to succeed
2. intolerant of other people so they will hate him
3. castigates himself by constantly downgrading himself before others
4. forces himself to be dependent upon people he dislikes
5. May become deeply depressed and feel that he has committed the unpardonable sin (p.218)
A couple of weeks ago in the Sunday Evening T.V. program ...KUNG FU ...
Caine, the main character was counseling a police officer who was a wife beater. The main was a good man who had pushed himself to the limits of stress. At times he would momentarily break.
Said the officer, "It's like a Tiger within me that breaks loose, I panic. I'm afraid!
I know said Caine. How do you know? asked the officer.
"Because I have one in me, also."
"How did you conquer yours," as the officer?
"I didn't answered Caine." "I embraced the Tiger within me."
What he was saying was ...He learned to love the most unlovable part of himself. Like the unruly child that changes when someone really cares. The inner Tiger changes.
Not by punishing it.
Not by imprisoning it.
But by embracing it.
Years ago the Administrative Board of Fairview Church, Elon College met. There was a man on that board who was one of the real leaders in the church. Give him a job, and he would always come through. The same was true in the community, and in the factory where he worked.
Then it happened.
He came to the board meeting and everything that came up found him violently opposed to it. I was never so shocked in my life. Things just were not natural with Fred. The next week I caught him during his lunch hour. I knocked on his door, He came to it and when he saw me said, "I reckon you have come to straighten me out?"
Come on in. I replied, "I have come to see if I can help."
"I don't know what is the matter with me. Things just seem to have come unhinged. The kids have been sick all Winter. It's $25 dollars here and $50 there. I went to the doctor last week and discovered I have Sugar Diabetes. Now I have to go on a diet and loose 25 pounds. I guess I don't have it anymore."
His inability to embrace himself, made him afraid. He hurt! Diabetes ran in his family and he knew what it could do.
It wasn't long until he had lost his weight. Summer came. The kids were better. Fred's life changed back to his old self.
Preacher, Let me tell you about the MOMENT WHEN I EXPERIENCED CHRIST, she said.
I was washing dishes. I was thinking over the difficulties I was having with my husband. My son is a real problem. Between the two of them, I have had all I can handle. I asked God to help them both. Even though they were making my life miserable. I asked God to bless them both.
It was like the sun came from out behind a cloud. Everything got brighter. I saw some birds outside the window in the feeder. I watched them eat, and heard them sing.
Then I began to feel good all over. I had never liked myself before. But for a while I just loved myself. I just sat down on my couch and cried ... It felt so good.
DR. LESLIE WEATHERHEAD, Prescription for Anxiety, "One of the inevitable things about life is that we have got to live with ourselves. What a misery it is to live with a person you despise, a person who has allowed fear to defeat him. Even if it is yourself! Unaided we cannot help despising ourselves, the more we know ourselves."
However, it is when we realize that God loves us like we are (in our imperfections). Then we can love ourselves. We can then love an imperfect neighbor, and we can love God above all because God made it all possible.
"In that while were yet sinners, Christ died for us."