By Deacon Timothy Siburg
Revised Common Lectionary reflection, Fifth Sunday of Easter, Year B
April 28, 2024
Based on 1 John 4:7-21 and Acts 8:26-40
Key Verse: “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.” (1 John 4:16)
When my wife and I were planning our wedding, we wrestled with the design of the service. We spent more time on the liturgy then most anything else. But we’re odd like that. We were a couple weeks away from beginning seminary, so the lessons, hymns, word choice, and flow of worship mattered. I wouldn’t say we fought about the service order. Our only real came over whether to have jello (and what color of jello) as part of the lunch following worship. But we did take quite a bit of time to settle on the lessons. This week’s second lesson from 1 John was one of them. It’s a familiar passage, but not quite as used in weddings perhaps as “Love is patient, love is kind,” as we hear from the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13.
Love is at the core of our understanding of what it means to be a Christian and Child of God. Not some superficial or transactional kind of love, but a life-changing and life-giving transformational kind of love. A love that is grounded first in the identity of who God is (and thus, who we are). The identity and truth that “God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them” (1 John 4:16). This is true for each Child of God individually and also for people in community.
It’s fitting that we dig into this idea of love during the Easter season. Because at its heart, Easter is all about love. Out of love, God acts through the cross and empty tomb. Life is changed, saved, and given out of love. The writer of 1 John even reiterates the new commandment that Jesus gives on the night he is handed over: “Love one another” (John 13:34). The writer concludes chapter 4 with, “The commandment we have from him (Jesus) is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also (siblings)” (1 John 4:21). Love is grace, but it is also law. And this commandment can be heard both ways.
As commandment, love shapes and informs discipleship and stewardship. It is grounded first in the very identity and reality of the love of God and our response to love God, but then also borne out through how we live and show up in life, through the love of neighbor. This is about as basic theology as it gets. But without love, stewardship isn’t really stewardship. Because without love, there is nothing to respond to and there really is no joyful response for what God has done, will do, and promises to do. Love, is really the answer to the question, “Why do we do what we do?”
But what is the response? To abide by Jesus’ new commandment, yes. But also to ponder what it might look like in action and to live life changed through and out of God’s love. To ponder the story we also read this week from Acts 8 about Philip and Ethiopian Eunuch. And the response to God’s work and promise, and the genuine questions at the heart of relationship that lead to faith and the claims and promises of baptism and being part of the life of faith together. We know how the story ends. Philip baptizes the faithful and curious Eunuch (Acts 8:38). And then just as quickly as that happened, and just as quickly as Philip found the Eunuch, Philip was gone. We hear that, “When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; the eunuch saw him no more and went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:39).
The Ethiopian eunuch goes on his way embodying his joyful response to the Gospel, which is what real stewardship looks like, as we respond to all that God has done, will do, and promises to do through God’s love made real.
With these familiar stories there is an opportunity to explore a little more deeply what love looks. How it shapes our daily lives. From feeding the hungry and caring for the poor to being abundant and generous with time to meet someone where they are, we truly embody what love looks like through our very presence. To do the stewardship work of connecting the dots and telling the story. I wonder, what stories of love coming near might you point to in your midst? What stories of resurrection love might be just waiting to be told as this Easter season continues?
And for the rest of the story- I am happy to report that Allison and I worked through our conflict about Jell-o. We had red colored Jell-o with bananas, matching our wedding colors. And we have been happily married ever since.
In worship
The musician in me loves this Sunday’s texts because of the great hymns and hymn tunes that have been composed over the centuries around the theme of love. In particular the hymn, “Love Divine, All Loves Excelling,” rings in my ear. From the words of the great Charles Wesley, the hymn begins, “Love divine, all loves excelling, Joy of heaven, to earth come down!” It starts with the image of incarnation, pointing to the love of God made known particularly through Christ. It’s a beautiful text, and when set to the familiar hymn tune of “Hyfrydol,” it’s nearly impossible not to sing it with joy, a smile, and perhaps a bit of a moderate paced waltz. The stewardship themes really come through the third and fourth verses, and the hymn closes with, “Changed from glory into glory, till in heaven we take our place, till we cast our crowns before thee, lost in wonder, love and praise!” What an image. Wonder, love, and praise. Doesn’t that just sound like being caught up in response and awe of God and of what God has done? (To see more of the hymn, it can be found in most hymnals, including Evangelical Lutheran Worship, (Minneapolis, MN: Augsburg Fortress, 2006), hymn #631.)
With youth and children
In a Children’s Message or Sunday School time, this week might be a great opportunity to ask the younger saints what they think love is. Let their answers teach the whole congregation. You might get some off-the-wall responses, but you’ll probably also hear that love is God and/or love is Jesus. You might also hear some stories of deep love about parents or grandparents, or perfect strangers who have shown love. Perhaps a story of a time the congregation or a child has prayed for another.
After hearing their responses, take a moment to connect their answers with what Jesus says about love. Maybe even sing, “Jesus Loves Me.” To connect this with stewardship, take a moment to show how love is active through and for the congregation. Point to a recent experience of neighbor showing up for neighbor, or of the congregation stepping up and responding to a need in the larger community. Explain how those acts are part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and a steward of God’s love. That would make for a powerful Sunday School lesson and/or Children’s Message anytime, but particularly this week.
Prior reflections for Easter 5B:
2021 – Abide + Love = Good Change
2018 – Get up and go …
2015 – Abiding in love
2012 – Cultivating generous disciples
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