Do you love me?

So 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.” He said to him, “Tend My lambs.”
He said to him again a second time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” He said to Him, “Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.” He said to him, “Shepherd My sheep.”
He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, “Do you love Me?” And he said to Him, “Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Tend My sheep."
“Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!” (John 21:15-19)

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time; if we love one another, God abides in us, and His love is perfected in us. (1 John 4:7-12)

I have been hearing this constant drumming in the back of my head over the last few weeks. It actually started off quite faint, almost a whisper. Slowly it started to resound louder and louder. Eventually it became a full on rhythmic pounding. It was calling out to me, "Do you love me?"

I love myself. I know this much. I love my own gain, my own sound, my own tune. I love everything there is to love about Jason. I also love everything there is to hate about Jason. I know that sounds really weird, but when you're this self-absorbed, even hating things about yourself becomes a sort of love affair.

But Jesus' love for me has been dredging something up from the depths of my soul. How can I say that I love Jesus, if I don't love His sheep, His lambs, His children? Oh, it most certainly would appear that I am a loving guy. I have a wonderful family, I minister out the word to God's people, and I am always ready to assist in times of need. But, do I love them?

Love has flown under the radar for too long in our churches. It has too long been defined as an abstract, congenial, warm feeling that we pass out on Sunday mornings. We have sought to package it and parade it around. But love is not this way. Love is more like what Jesus tells Peter he will have to endure.

Love is willing to sacrifice myself joyfully for others. Love is more concerned with the needs of others than my own. Love is 1 Corinthians 13, love is bigger than being nice to each other. Love means I am at your house in time of crisis, because I want to be there. Love is a phone call at 5:30pm on a Thursday afternoon because I need someone to be there for me. Love is stopping by unannounced and sitting down for dinner. Love is messy, love is hard, and love produces joy.

I realize that my capacity to love is limited. I am not loving, nor am I really that lovable. (Please don't try to convince me otherwise.) But yet, God loves me because He is love. It is unthinkable. And He gives me the capacity to love big time. I want to know the power of His love better. I want to love His sheep better. I want to love His children better. But it is not just my duty to love better. It is for my joy that I would come to love better. And your joy. And our joy together.

Lord God please help us to love better. Help us be done with a religion that begins and ends one day a week. Move your Spirit of love through us, so that all week long we become a community of love. Thank you for loving us first in your son Jesus. Teach us what it means to love.