The Day of Love tagged: ,

The Day of Love

Posted by in News & Culture

I remember the Valentine’s Day of my early grade school years. Back then the spasm of self-esteem doctrine was just beginning to envelop the public school system. In my grade school classroom for each year I attended (which was 1st through 6th grade) on Valentine’s Day each child had a paper sack along one wall with their name on it. The teacher’s note sent home the week before the class party instructed that all students should fill out a “Valentine” for each class mate – no exceptions. With the note was a class list of every name of our classmates just in case we forgot, conveniently or otherwise.

Now my mother would have made me write out a Valentine note to everybody regardless if I was required to or not. For one, she often was in charge of those parties at school, and wanted her son to do “the right thing.” For another, she attempted to teach me what the true meaning of love was, even though I was really not up for the lesson. If I was left to my own devices I would have filled out maybe a couple of love grams and left the rest of those sacks of my classmates empty. This was probably because if left to their own devices my sack would have contained only a couple of Valentine notes, since my popularity among my peers during grade school was fairly low. In my mind, why not give them what I had received? Thankfully, my mother was of a different mind.

Now, while everyone was required to give each classmate a “Valentine,” there were no rules on “what” could accompany that little note in each sack. The usual gift to accompany a Valentine of that friend or someone special was a piece of candy, a lollipop, a mint, or some bubble gum. To that someone “really” special, a box of chocolates or a dozen cookies was placed underneath the sack of that revered one, since placing it inside would have split the sack wide open. Some of those kids received enough candy to gorge themselves and their friends on that one day, as well as then to store on the shelf the remainder and give it away at Halloween. For me, I was just happy to lick on a lollipop and chew a piece of gum for that one afternoon before I arrived home. Of course the most dreaded day of the year for the bus drivers of my hometown was February 14th as they had to pick and sweep up all those candy and gum wrappers and those already forgotten Valentine cards for over an hour after getting ‘ole yellow back to the bus barn.

I was reminded of this the other day in preparation for my Sunday sermon series. I preach and teach verse by verse, and so have been going through the gospel of Luke as of late. I was having a particularly embittered day, desiring to extricate myself from all humanity because of their lack of sensitivity toward me and my troubles when at that moment the words of Jesus from Luke 6:32-36 sprang up and tore open my heart:

“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.”

I now realize what my mother was attempting to do, even though now it is about 36 years after the fact. If I merely love those who love me then that is not enough – even those who do not know Christ can do that. The commandment of Jesus makes it plain that I am to do to others as I would have them do to me – with the Spirit of Love forcing His way through me to press a smile on my face. That to truly love means I love those who do not love me in return.

Egaads! How is that humanly possible? The truth is of course it is impossible. Our flesh seeks self-fulfillment and bridles when we consider those who would bring harm and hurt to our fragile self-esteem or even our very lives. It was not enough for Corrie Ten Boom, the author of the Hiding Place to love those Jewish families who were hiding from the Nazis, for they returned her kindness and her love they received in kind. The test of her faith was attempting to love that notoriously evil prison guard who asked for her forgiveness. The only power of love capable of doing that inside of her in that moment was the Love of Christ. The same power that transformed Himself alive and well on the third day is the same power who can break forth and help us be merciful to our enemies in the same manner as He was merciful with us who were His enemies.

That is the message of this day. Not romantic love, or brotherly love, or even friendship. It is agape love. This is the Love that God sent the world in the form of His Son, to redeem God’s enemies and transform them into His friends. Remember that when you are trading cards, buying that box of chocolates, preparing to travel to that packed restaurant this evening, or getting those roses for that someone special. Share His love when someone who does not like you, or to whom you don’t like. Take notes and see if it will change your life and of those around you. If you do this, I think you will find out what love really is all about.

Happy Valentine’s Day to all!