Love as Jesus Loves

On Sunday, September 9 I preached a sermon on the scripture text of Mark 7: 24 - 30 where Jesus heals the daughter of a Syrophhoenician Greek woman.  During their conversation Jesus says to her, "Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs."  Jesus was giving reference to a common meal time practice where children were fed before the remaining food scraps were given to the dogs.  What is interesting in this verse, according to the Greek, is that the word Jesus used for "dog" is not the general use of the word which had a derogatory meaning in application.  As Barclay points out, Jesus made use of the diminutive word which is translated as "little pet".  In the Greek langauge, the use of diminutive words conveyed affectionate feelings.  While Jesus first came to the Jews, and she is a Greek, there is a loving affection God has for all people, including the Gentiles.  Jesus tested her faith to discern if she understood the expanse of God's love.  The Greeks, who were good at repartee, was illustrated in this woman's response when she said, "Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs."  Her response is one that God will provide, and whatever crumbs God chooses to give her, they will be enough.  Jesus rewards her telling her the demon has left her daughter.  What really makes this miracle powerful, is the historical setting where the story takes place, in the region of Tyre.  In Joshua 19:28 - 29 the allocation of the land to Joshua's armies was to include the region of Tyre, but Joshua's armies failed to take the land.  Joshua lost the war, but Jesus won the peace, armed not with military might, but with unconditional love.  It is a reminder to the Church that we will never win the world to our Lord through war, but only through love.

But - how can we learn to love as Jesus loves?  It takes a lifetime, but here is discipline to get you started.  Spend two days reading and meditating on the love chapter in I Corinthians 13.  Let the words find a deep place in your heart.  Then, spend two days in prayer, asking God to fill and reshape your heart in the image of his love.  Then, spend two days finding pratical way to show your love to others, especially those hard to love.  On the seventh day, simply give thanks for God's great love and pray for those you have shared his love with on days 5 and 6.  It will take more than a week to learn how to love like Jesus, but this is a good place to begin this journey.  Remember, it's never too late to share w/ someone the great gift of God's love.

- Dennis