C, Epiphany 4 - 1 Corinthians 13:4–8,13 Luke 4:22,28-29 "Love-All Victory"

1 Corinthians 13:4–8,13 (ESV) Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude.  It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;  it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.  Love never ends.  As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.  So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Luke 4:22 And he began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”  And all spoke well of him and marvelled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.

Luke 4:28-29  When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath.  And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff. 

Watching the Australian Open tennis in recent days, one wonders why the word “love” is used as the score for zero, nothing or nil.

The most logical explanation I have found, seems to be, if someone plays tennis and doesn’t win a point, they’re only playing for the love of it. 

Love is not just a tricky word for the tennis court.  Our society struggles with love.  In fact, the church even struggles with love, and has done so for the past two-thousand years.

I remember when I met my wife, we told each other we loved each other.  However, I came away and pondered, “What actually is love?  There has to be more to it than just nice fluffy feelings?”  Three decades and three children later I am still learning what love is.  It’s such a large and all-consuming topic to digest.

And so, I also ponder, “What is the opposite to love?”

To not love could be to hate, to be wrathful, to detest, abhor, despise, loathe, or dislike.  Or perhaps it could be to consider one unworthy, devalued, or to be disregarded.

Jesus stands and delivers his one sentence sermon in the synagogue at his hometown of Nazareth.  What began with words of marvel and encouragement, became wrath, to the point of his town folk taking him to the edge of a cliff to discard over the edge in death. 

The changing love of the Nazarites is a precursory event to holy week and the actions of the crowd at Jerusalem, who worshipped Jesus on Palm Sunday and had him killed on the Friday.  But it was not Jesus’ time to die amongst his own at Nazareth and are simply told, “But passing through their midst, he went away.” (Luke 4:30)

Thinking about love in the context of the Nazarite’s reaction to Jesus, I realise that both reactions were actions of love.  Jesus knew this too when they spoke well of him. 

It seems that he goes on to antagonise the locals  with stories of Elijah and Elisha who served a widow from Sidon and a lepper from Syria.  But Jesus knew their love was not love for him or his Father, but their love was for themselves, their own pleasure, their forefathers and the fatherland God had given to them.  

It's at this point I realise my love is the same as theirs.  And words of Paul ring in my ears showing me my love is impotent to say the least.

How often is human love impatient and harsh?  How much envy, and arrogance boils away within, bursting out in rude outbursts when we think no one will notice.  And when folk are within earshot the boastful desires within, are spoken to coerce others, so one gets one’s own way.  And when one doesn’t get their way, irritability and resentfulness usually become the fruit of revenge. 

Our human love seems to glorify wrongdoing and is quick to take hold of Pontius Pilate’s word of truth.  What’s true for me is good for me, and what’s true for you is good for you! 

Love is love!  But if you tell me, what I love, or, how I love is wrong, then let me show you just how ugly human love can be.  It’s as if humanity loses against itself in a love-all draw!  Love becomes nothing!

Love that quickly becomes hatred, anger, and wrath, is not the love of God!  It’s love-all to nothing without God!

Some might say Jesus acted in anger when he overturned tables in the temple!  It’s true!  He did!   However, Jesus’ anger was a holy anger based on the knowledge of God. 

Our anger, on the other hand, is based on the knowledge of good and evil, which is desire that rises from within the sinful self.  Like the Nazarite’s anger, or the angry mob calling for Jesus’ crucifixion, our anger is born from sin.  And the score is still, love-all to nothing without God!

Last week we heard Jesus finds himself amongst the people of God with God’s word, at the start of his ministry, on the Sabbath.  He was brought into the synagogue by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Even when we are most sincere in our coming into God’s presence, we come with motives far from perfect.

But despite this, when we come, the Holy Spirit struggles with the human spirit within, to bring us to Jesus.  And in the turbid mix of desires and personal demons that the human spirit loves, the Holy Spirit loves to bring true love, the love of forgiveness in Jesus Christ.

We might be led to believe we need to work for this love of God.  But that is just not true.  God is love, and in his love, there is no accusation calling for works of love to acquire God’s love.  Death and the devil do all the accusing that needs to be done.  God loves you and comes into your love-all nothingness.

All the power of human understanding, power in predicting the future, the ability to unpack the greatest mysteries of God or the world, and faith that can move mountains, is love-all to nothing if there is not love.  So how do we love God when we are defeated love-all before we even get on the court.

A community bound together in the forgiveness of Jesus Christ, is where love occurs. 

All community ideals are destroyed in Jesus Christ.  At Nazareth, and at Jerusalem, the community was exposed for its disunity and disfunction, or for its love of self.  Any grandiose dreams of loving God that Peter and the disciples had, were destroyed, and also scattered in fear when Jesus was arrested and crucified.

It seems Jesus was defeated; game, set, match, all love defeated love-all.  But Jesus defeated all love and comes to us with love that covers all.  Not a love-all defeat but a love-all victory over sin, death, and the devil.

Jesus loves us to death.  When all our desire to love God is gone, and your love is exposed for what it truly is!  Jesus loved you so much he died for you! 

Jesus sends the Holy Spirit to be your active doubles partner within.  He makes the serve and hits all the returns.  With Jesus, the Holy Spirit wins your game, and he does it even while he struggles and wrestles your human spirit within. 

The second and third members of the Trinity do this, despite your hellbent human spirit, who seeks to take issue with everyone else on the court.  Like one who thinks they know more about the game than the referee or the Creator.

The beauty of God’s love and our salvation is this: Although we and Jesus are defeated, love-all to nothing, in Jesus’ all-loving victory we too, are being, and will be, raised out of our nothingness to join in Jesus’ all-loving victory.  Amen.

Heavenly Father help me ponder the cruelty of the cross that reduced your Son to nothing.  So that we believe he daily raises us up and makes us something glorious to you.  When we should have been defeated love-all, you saved our wretched lives; game, set, and match in all-loving forgiveness.  Let your Holy Spirit bring us into this victory, let your Holy Spirit continue gathering us as a forgiving community in your victory.

Glory be to Jesus Christ, Son of God, Amen!