Love Well, 24 May 2020
24 05 20 Filed in: Sermons
Love Well
Big Idea: We must love—God, ourselves, one another, and others—well.
Scripture Reading: John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:11
Love. It can be such a mushy word. Perhaps you’re sick and tired of me saying love God and love your neighbor as yourself. Blame Jesus! He’s the one who said those two commandments summarize the entire Law and the Prophets, the Jewish Bible, the Old Testament.
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
We often depict our love with a triangle (credit: Mike Breen, 3DM).
In our scripture reading for today, Doug Oliver read,
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)
When we love one another well, we prove our faith. It’s how people identify us as true believers, followers of Jesus. Healthy families love one another. Godly families love one another.
We are a Jesus-centered family restoring God’s masterpieces in Toledo and beyond for His glory. (Ephesians 2:10)
While this pandemic has been tragic for many and trying for all of us, I’ve seen God use it for His glory.
One man told me of incredible conversations he’s having with people in the marketplace as people search for hope. Several people have said they feel more connected to our First Alliance family than before the lockdown. We’ve been equipping you and your family with fresh, spiritual content six days a week. Corporate prayer has engaged more people, more often. People have seized opportunities to tutor children, feed the hungry, and help those in need…loving our neighbor as ourselves. Family, we have been living out our mission beautifully during these past two months. I thank you and praise God!
Our video question of the week for this upcoming week is, “How has God used the pandemic in your life?” Make a short, landscape (not portrait) video and send it to abigail@factoledo.org using wispeo.com.
Church is not a building. It’s not an event. It’s a family. You don’t “go to” family. You don’t “close” family. First Alliance Church has never closed! As I’ve said, this season may be one of the most fruitful. This “reset” has allowed us to examine everything we do in light of our mission. Our goal moving forward is not to return to the way things used to be. Everything we add to our menu must be driven by our mission. There are new things we need to create, old things we need to revive, and some things we simply need to leave behind. We need to begin with “why?” Does it further or distract from our mission?
In March, nearly everything on our menu was wiped out, immediately replaced with three items:
Soon afterward, we added three more:
Our entire staff has been hard at work providing these six ministry vehicles as well as personal discipleship and preparations for the future, and I’m very proud of and grateful for them as well as our Elders, Deacons, Deaconesses, and Trustees who have continued to serve behind the scenes. Thanks not only to our leaders, but everyone who has been praying, supporting financially, and participating in the life of FAC.
On Tuesday, our Elders met to discuss—among other things—reopening our physical campus. We closed it in March not because the government required it, but rather because we believed it was the best interest of the health and safety of you and our neighbors. The church left the building because we love people, which is also one of the best ways we love God.
When COVID-19 began, I was encouraged by the unity that I heard as people proclaimed, “We’re all in this together.” Tragically, fake news, conspiracy theories, politics, pride, and fear have brought division…especially within the church.
I have four prayers I pray for First Alliance Church:
I’m aware of only one prayer Jesus prayed specifically for us, his future followers.
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:20-23)
Imagine you and I were as close as Jesus and the Father! It wasn’t necessarily easy and it required effort and prayer, but Jesus and the Father were on the same page. Along with the Holy Spirit, they are one God in three Persons, a mystery we call the Trinity. Jesus wants us to be like this…one church, one body in many persons. He wants us to be one.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know the Church—the Bride of Christ—is not known for its unity. There are literally thousands of Christian denominations that have split off from what once was one church. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for Jesus to see his Bride so divided. I’ve often said my dream is for the global Church to be so unified and beautiful that Jesus would turn to the Father and beg Him to return to earth for us! Right now, we must look like a dismembered mess!
It’s not uncommon for such disunity to appear within a local church. Where two or more are gathered together, there’s bound to be conflict. Family is messy. When it’s hard, it’s really hard…and when it’s good, it’s SO good!
They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and while many of you have been engaging passionately online, many of us long to be physically together. We were created for community, and while a letter is good, a phone call is better, and a video chat is better still, and being in the same room is even better.
As you may know, there are vast opinions about the pandemic, its legitimacy, and its consequences. Anyone who says they know and understand coronavirus is crazy! New discoveries are being made each day, and this is unlike anything in our lifetime. I’ve prayed more for our President and Governor this year than probably any year of my life! They are in a no-win situation, not matter what they say or do. In a small way, I’ve felt that, too. That’s one of the challenges of leadership. However, I don’t operate in a vacuum. We are led by a team of Elders of which I am the non-voting chair person. I’m grateful for the wisdom of our Elder Team: Rich Bradish, Jim Kirkman, Caine Kolinski, Jim Kujawski, Jim MacDonald, Doug Oliver.
Much like our church survey results, there’s a great diversity of views on COVID-19. Some of you wondered why we ever closed our physical campus and others are willing to wait a year or longer until a vaccine is available before resuming in-person worship. After surveying you and consulting with other churches, the Great Lakes District, the Governor’s office, a wide variety of medical experts, we met Tuesday and adopted Phase One of our campus reopening plan.
We began with the “why?” Does a physical gathering for worship further our mission? We said, “Yes,” especially for those who are tech-less and have been unable to connect with the FAC family. I miss our family members from Ohio Link, Cherry Street Mission, and others who may not have access to the Internet.
The next question was “how?” One of our elders shared his three goals: safety, credibility to the unreached, and a quality experience. Put another way, we obviously don’t want people to become sick–or worse—by anything we do together, we don’t want to hurt our witness to our community by acting out of selfishness, recklessness, or rebellion, and we want to continue to create meaningful experiences for people, albeit different from what we did months ago.
Then we wrestled with the “when” question, the one so many of you have been anxiously awaiting.
Beginning next Sunday, we will have Sunday worship in three venues. Next Sunday is Pentecost Sunday, the day we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2. It’s one of the most sacred days on the Church calendar, and one I can’t wait to commemorate. Our reopening coincides with the Catholic Church in Ohio and other congregations, as well.
Next Sunday at 10:30 AM we will offer three options. These three options reflect both the three different groups that presently exist within our family and allow for social distancing (we can’t all fit in the sanctuary together safely). Here are your options:
Safe. Youth Center Assembly Hall. Live stream. Touchless. Social distancing. Masks highly recommended, not for you, but for those around you. It is a proven tool for reducing the spread of disease to others. We love with masks! We will have them available if you don’t have your own.
Safer. Sanctuary. Live. Touchless. Social distancing. Masks required…and provided. This is a safer option, but still has risks. Spending an hour in a room full of people is not the same as being in a grocery store for a few minutes or picking up a pizza. Nobody knows exactly what the risks are, so we will continue to offer a third option.
Safest. Online. Live streaming. No restrictions. If you want to shake hands, hug, and socialize, have a watch party at your home! Likewise, if you are elderly, diabetic, or otherwise at risk, we urge you to stay home. We have no plans to ever discontinue FAC Online Worship. It will be our safest option for your physical health, and it will be your only option when you’re unable to reach our physical campus.
We plan to offer these three options for the foreseeable future.
This will obviously be a different experience than anything in the past. There will be no child care. The restrooms will be available for emergencies, but our goal is for everyone to touch nothing but their individual seats. The new Sunday edition of the FAC Focus will serve as your bulletin. We’ll have offering boxes as you exit (or you can give online).
We won’t be in Phase One forever. We won’t worship in three venues forever. But this is what Sunday mornings will look like for a while. Thank you in advance for your grace, your patience, your prayers, and most of all your love for one another. We love God by loving others…well. Let’s love well, family!
How do we love well? Let me close with some suggestions:
Family, let’s love well. Next Sunday will be a real test of our love, not only for God, but also for one another. None of us knows everything about COVID-19, but we know the One who does! As we gather next Sunday online and on our campus, let’s go the extra mile to extend grace, to respect one another, to do everything possible to set aside our own preferences and rights and privileges to humbly love others well.
We are a Jesus-centered family restoring God’s masterpieces in Toledo and beyond for His glory. (Ephesians 2:10)
I love you, family. Next Sunday is the beginning of a new First Alliance Church. It’s going to be different. The future is going to look different. But the best is yet to come!
You can listen to this message and others at the First Alliance Church podcast here.
You can watch this online worship experience here.
Big Idea: We must love—God, ourselves, one another, and others—well.
Scripture Reading: John 13:34-35; 1 John 3:11
Love. It can be such a mushy word. Perhaps you’re sick and tired of me saying love God and love your neighbor as yourself. Blame Jesus! He’s the one who said those two commandments summarize the entire Law and the Prophets, the Jewish Bible, the Old Testament.
Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
We often depict our love with a triangle (credit: Mike Breen, 3DM).
Love God (up). Love others (as we love ourselves; out). Love one another (in).
We’re taking a break from our series on the Gospel of Mark to examine some important and timely topics. Pastor Keith shared a good message with us last Sunday. Today I want to talk about what it means to love well.
We love God. I hope that’s obvious…not only to us, but to the world. We love because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). We are to love God well, our “up” relationship.
On the surface, it can be easy to love God. Sing Him a song. Give Him an hour of your week on Sunday morning. Give a portion of your income. Spend some time in prayer and Bible study.
I want to suggest one of the primary ways we love God is much more challenging: love your neighbor as yourself. If you like your neighbor, that might not be a big deal. We have great neighbors who live on either side of our house. I’m sad one family is moving away (they will either sell or possibly rent it; let me know if you want to be my neighbor!). The thing about loving others is you can sometimes get away from them! You can avoid other people in many cases. Tolerance—which is almost the opposite of love—is usually possible. We are to love others well, our “out” relationship.
Often the hardest people to love are…family—biological or spiritually, our “in” relationship. John wrote,
Whoever claims to love God yet hates a brother or sister is a liar. For whoever does not love their brother and sister, whom they have seen, cannot love God, whom they have not seen. And he has given us this command: Anyone who loves God must also love their brother and sister. (1 John 4:20-21)
We are a family. Family can be messy. People typically don’t leave family. They learn to do life together. In a spiritual family, our love for one another does three things:
- 1. It shows our love for God.
- 2. It shows our love for one another.
- 3. It is a witness to others, the watching world.
In our scripture reading for today, Doug Oliver read,
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13:34-35)
When we love one another well, we prove our faith. It’s how people identify us as true believers, followers of Jesus. Healthy families love one another. Godly families love one another.
We are a Jesus-centered family restoring God’s masterpieces in Toledo and beyond for His glory. (Ephesians 2:10)
While this pandemic has been tragic for many and trying for all of us, I’ve seen God use it for His glory.
One man told me of incredible conversations he’s having with people in the marketplace as people search for hope. Several people have said they feel more connected to our First Alliance family than before the lockdown. We’ve been equipping you and your family with fresh, spiritual content six days a week. Corporate prayer has engaged more people, more often. People have seized opportunities to tutor children, feed the hungry, and help those in need…loving our neighbor as ourselves. Family, we have been living out our mission beautifully during these past two months. I thank you and praise God!
Our video question of the week for this upcoming week is, “How has God used the pandemic in your life?” Make a short, landscape (not portrait) video and send it to abigail@factoledo.org using wispeo.com.
Church is not a building. It’s not an event. It’s a family. You don’t “go to” family. You don’t “close” family. First Alliance Church has never closed! As I’ve said, this season may be one of the most fruitful. This “reset” has allowed us to examine everything we do in light of our mission. Our goal moving forward is not to return to the way things used to be. Everything we add to our menu must be driven by our mission. There are new things we need to create, old things we need to revive, and some things we simply need to leave behind. We need to begin with “why?” Does it further or distract from our mission?
In March, nearly everything on our menu was wiped out, immediately replaced with three items:
- - FAC Online Worship
- - Zoom Prayer (weekdays at 9 AM)
- - Pastor Kirk’s Daily Briefing (4 PM weekdays on Facebook Live)
Soon afterward, we added three more:
- - Zoom Small Groups
- - Kids Club United Online (Wednesdays on Zoom)
- - Elevate Youth Online (Thursdays on Zoom)
Our entire staff has been hard at work providing these six ministry vehicles as well as personal discipleship and preparations for the future, and I’m very proud of and grateful for them as well as our Elders, Deacons, Deaconesses, and Trustees who have continued to serve behind the scenes. Thanks not only to our leaders, but everyone who has been praying, supporting financially, and participating in the life of FAC.
On Tuesday, our Elders met to discuss—among other things—reopening our physical campus. We closed it in March not because the government required it, but rather because we believed it was the best interest of the health and safety of you and our neighbors. The church left the building because we love people, which is also one of the best ways we love God.
When COVID-19 began, I was encouraged by the unity that I heard as people proclaimed, “We’re all in this together.” Tragically, fake news, conspiracy theories, politics, pride, and fear have brought division…especially within the church.
I have four prayers I pray for First Alliance Church:
- 1. Direction. Jesus Christ is our Senior Pastor. We want to be led by the Holy Spirit. I am not the boss! Our staff and elders seek God’s wisdom, guidance, and will. We begin every meeting by celebrating wins and engaging in open-ended prayer. This is not my church. This is not our church. First Alliance Church is God’s.
- 2. Protection. We have a real enemy who wants to steal, kill, destroy, lie, and divide. He’s having a field day right now, not only here but also around the country. I pray God would protect us from the physical, mental, emotional, financial, and relational pain of the coronavirus.
- 3. Passion. I want to want God! I want my heart to sync with His. I want God to give all of us His heart for the lost, the unborn, the least of these, the widow, the stranger, and the orphan.
- 4. Unity. This is where I want to focus for a few moments.
I’m aware of only one prayer Jesus prayed specifically for us, his future followers.
“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one—I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me. (John 17:20-23)
Imagine you and I were as close as Jesus and the Father! It wasn’t necessarily easy and it required effort and prayer, but Jesus and the Father were on the same page. Along with the Holy Spirit, they are one God in three Persons, a mystery we call the Trinity. Jesus wants us to be like this…one church, one body in many persons. He wants us to be one.
It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know the Church—the Bride of Christ—is not known for its unity. There are literally thousands of Christian denominations that have split off from what once was one church. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be for Jesus to see his Bride so divided. I’ve often said my dream is for the global Church to be so unified and beautiful that Jesus would turn to the Father and beg Him to return to earth for us! Right now, we must look like a dismembered mess!
It’s not uncommon for such disunity to appear within a local church. Where two or more are gathered together, there’s bound to be conflict. Family is messy. When it’s hard, it’s really hard…and when it’s good, it’s SO good!
They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, and while many of you have been engaging passionately online, many of us long to be physically together. We were created for community, and while a letter is good, a phone call is better, and a video chat is better still, and being in the same room is even better.
As you may know, there are vast opinions about the pandemic, its legitimacy, and its consequences. Anyone who says they know and understand coronavirus is crazy! New discoveries are being made each day, and this is unlike anything in our lifetime. I’ve prayed more for our President and Governor this year than probably any year of my life! They are in a no-win situation, not matter what they say or do. In a small way, I’ve felt that, too. That’s one of the challenges of leadership. However, I don’t operate in a vacuum. We are led by a team of Elders of which I am the non-voting chair person. I’m grateful for the wisdom of our Elder Team: Rich Bradish, Jim Kirkman, Caine Kolinski, Jim Kujawski, Jim MacDonald, Doug Oliver.
Much like our church survey results, there’s a great diversity of views on COVID-19. Some of you wondered why we ever closed our physical campus and others are willing to wait a year or longer until a vaccine is available before resuming in-person worship. After surveying you and consulting with other churches, the Great Lakes District, the Governor’s office, a wide variety of medical experts, we met Tuesday and adopted Phase One of our campus reopening plan.
We began with the “why?” Does a physical gathering for worship further our mission? We said, “Yes,” especially for those who are tech-less and have been unable to connect with the FAC family. I miss our family members from Ohio Link, Cherry Street Mission, and others who may not have access to the Internet.
The next question was “how?” One of our elders shared his three goals: safety, credibility to the unreached, and a quality experience. Put another way, we obviously don’t want people to become sick–or worse—by anything we do together, we don’t want to hurt our witness to our community by acting out of selfishness, recklessness, or rebellion, and we want to continue to create meaningful experiences for people, albeit different from what we did months ago.
Then we wrestled with the “when” question, the one so many of you have been anxiously awaiting.
Beginning next Sunday, we will have Sunday worship in three venues. Next Sunday is Pentecost Sunday, the day we celebrate the coming of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2. It’s one of the most sacred days on the Church calendar, and one I can’t wait to commemorate. Our reopening coincides with the Catholic Church in Ohio and other congregations, as well.
Next Sunday at 10:30 AM we will offer three options. These three options reflect both the three different groups that presently exist within our family and allow for social distancing (we can’t all fit in the sanctuary together safely). Here are your options:
Safe. Youth Center Assembly Hall. Live stream. Touchless. Social distancing. Masks highly recommended, not for you, but for those around you. It is a proven tool for reducing the spread of disease to others. We love with masks! We will have them available if you don’t have your own.
Safer. Sanctuary. Live. Touchless. Social distancing. Masks required…and provided. This is a safer option, but still has risks. Spending an hour in a room full of people is not the same as being in a grocery store for a few minutes or picking up a pizza. Nobody knows exactly what the risks are, so we will continue to offer a third option.
Safest. Online. Live streaming. No restrictions. If you want to shake hands, hug, and socialize, have a watch party at your home! Likewise, if you are elderly, diabetic, or otherwise at risk, we urge you to stay home. We have no plans to ever discontinue FAC Online Worship. It will be our safest option for your physical health, and it will be your only option when you’re unable to reach our physical campus.
We plan to offer these three options for the foreseeable future.
This will obviously be a different experience than anything in the past. There will be no child care. The restrooms will be available for emergencies, but our goal is for everyone to touch nothing but their individual seats. The new Sunday edition of the FAC Focus will serve as your bulletin. We’ll have offering boxes as you exit (or you can give online).
We won’t be in Phase One forever. We won’t worship in three venues forever. But this is what Sunday mornings will look like for a while. Thank you in advance for your grace, your patience, your prayers, and most of all your love for one another. We love God by loving others…well. Let’s love well, family!
How do we love well? Let me close with some suggestions:
- 1. Pray. There may be no greater way to love others than prayer. The FAC Focus which will be in your e-mailbox in a few minutes always has a link to our Prayer Connection. Let our office know how we can pray for you. We have Zoom Prayer each weekday at 9 AM and it will continue for the foreseeable future.
- 2. Give. I love the stories of how people have been giving meals to one another, giving time to one another, and even sharing resources via the Benevolence fund. Our family is so generous, and if you have a need, please let our office know.
- 3. Here’s a new one. Masks. There are conflicting reports about a great many things, but one of the most consistent things I’ve heard is masks protect others. They don’t necessarily help you, but they make it harder for you to spread germs and viruses to others. I know they can be uncomfortable. I recognize it’s not necessarily easy to sing with one. They limit non-verbals which is frustrating. But masks send a message that we love others, that we love one another.
- 4. Listen. We all have opinions on the pandemic. It’s easy to look at someone with whom you disagree and condemn them for being too fearful, reckless, cautious, or ignorant. One of the reasons we are offering three venues next week is you told us there are three distinct groups within our family when it comes to gathering together. We’re blessed to have the resources to serve all three during this season.
Family, let’s love well. Next Sunday will be a real test of our love, not only for God, but also for one another. None of us knows everything about COVID-19, but we know the One who does! As we gather next Sunday online and on our campus, let’s go the extra mile to extend grace, to respect one another, to do everything possible to set aside our own preferences and rights and privileges to humbly love others well.
We are a Jesus-centered family restoring God’s masterpieces in Toledo and beyond for His glory. (Ephesians 2:10)
I love you, family. Next Sunday is the beginning of a new First Alliance Church. It’s going to be different. The future is going to look different. But the best is yet to come!
You can listen to this message and others at the First Alliance Church podcast here.
You can watch this online worship experience here.