Sunday
01/30/22 - Sidney UMC
Sermon Title: “Without Love I Am Nothing” (“1 Corinthians” Series: Part 3 of 5)
Old Testament Scripture: Psalm 71:1-6
New Testament Scripture: 1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Gospel Lesson: Luke 4:21-30
This
morning, I am continuing my five-week sermon series from our Sunday morning
lectionary readings from the New Testament Book of 1 Corinthians. So far in
this sermon series, we have talked about spiritual gifts, as well as the gifts
and graces that God has given us all. When all of our gifts and graces are combined
together, then we have the fullness of the body of Christ. We when we combine
all of our gifts and graces together, the church has everything it needs to
fully pursue its mission, to make disciples of Jesus Christ, and to transform
Sidney and the world. We have a multitude of gifts and grace, we call upon the
power of the Holy Spirit, and we pursue the mission of the church with passion and
love.
As I have been saying the past two
Sundays of this sermon series, the city of Corinth, where the Corinthians live,
is a city in the modern-day country of Greece. Since the Apostle Paul planted a
Christian Church in Corinth, Greece, the Book of 1 and 2 Corinthians are
letters that the Apostle Paul wrote the church in Corinth, or as the call
themselves, once again, the Corinthians. The Apostle Paul wrote 1 Corinthians
to instruct, to encourage, and to teach the Corinthians.
This morning in our third part of this
sermon series, we have a great reading from 1 Corinthians 13 about love. In
fact, the Apostle Paul once again says in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3:
13 If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing (1 Cor. 13:1-3, NRSV).
Powerful words indeed. If we accumulate, if we stockpile,
and if we take and take, but do not have love, what have we really
accomplished? In the gospel of Mark 8:36 Jesus says:
36 For what will it profit them to gain the whole world and forfeit their life (Mk. 8:36, NRSV).
If we have everything materially that the world says we
should have, but we have no peace and no love, then what do we really have?
In thinking about God being love, and love conquering all,
I thought of the year 2000 movie with Jim Carrey called “Dr. Seuss' How the
Grinch Stole Christmas”. This was of course a more modernized version of
the original 1966 cartoon movie “Dr. Seuss' How the
Grinch Stole Christmas”.
In
this updated “Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas”
movie in 2000, actor Jim Carrey plays the Grinch. He separates himself from
society, and in this case the town called “Whoville.” The Grinch is angry and
unhappy with Whoville. He determines to end there great little Christmas
celebration, as he himself feels unloved and excluded. The Grinch is not filled
with love.
As
a result, the Grinch, and his little dog with one antler steals all the Christmas
gifts, food, decorations, and etc. from all of Whoville. In the original movie
and in this updated year 2000 movie however, a little girl from Whoville named
Cindy Lou Who shows the Grinch love. When the rest of the community seems
afraid of him and wants nothing to do with him, this little girl Cindy Lou Who
reached out to the Grinch.
After
the Grinch then stole all of Whoville’s Christmas gifts, Christmas dinner, and
all their decorations, the Grinch then overhears the people of Whoville
singing. It is in this moment that the Grinch realizes that there is more to
Christmas than gifts and stuff. Along with the love from Cindy Lou Who, the
Grinch’s heart grows three times bigger. The Grinch was changed by love, and at
the end of the movie the Grinch is happy and part of Whoville once again. The Grinch’s
joy comes not from anger, rejection, or accumulation possessions and wealth,
but his joy comes from the giving and the receiving of love.
I tell you this story, once again, as
the character of the Grinch in this movie was changed by love. Nothing is more
powerful than love, and God at his core is love. God is the source of all light,
life, and love. Whatever we accomplish and whatever we achieve, if we do not
have love, then what have we really accomplished? If you have achieved wonderful
things here on earth, if you have accumulated possessions and wealth, but still
feel a hole inside of you, then the answer is God’s love through Jesus Christ.
If you amassed much here on earth, but still do not feel happy or fulfilled,
then then answer is the love of God through Jesus Christ. For the Apostle Paul
says once again this morning, if he does not have love, he is nothing. Without
love, what are we? We can be people that live, accumulate, but without love,
what do we really have?
I
really like how our Psalm 71 reading ends once again at the end of 71:6 saying:
My praise is continually
of you (Ps.
71:6c, NRSV).
To
know God, to praise God, is to have love. Friends, without love we have nothing.
The Apostle Paul then elaborates on what love is starting in 1 Corinthians
13:4. This is often read at weddings, and once again starting 13:4 says:
4 Love is patient; love is kind; love is
not envious or boastful or arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is
not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices
in the truth. 7 It
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things (1 Cor. 13:4-7, NRSV).
This
is probably read at weddings because it is just a beautiful explanation of
love. Imagine if we all loved each other like this. For without love, we are
nothing.
Our
1 Corinthians 13:1-13 reading for this morning then concludes picking up at
13:8 saying:
8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies,
they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it
will come to an end. 9 For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in
part; 10 but
when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. 11 When I was a
child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child;
when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. 12 For now we see in
a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part;
then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. 13 And now faith,
hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love (1 Cor. 13:8-13, NRSV).
We
all need faith, we all need hope, and will all need love. The Apostle Paul says
that while we need all three of these things, the greatest of these is love. By
the end of the movie “Dr. Seuss' How the
Grinch Stole Christmas,” even though the Grinch has amassed an incredible number
of possessions from the people of Whoville, they sill sang. For there faith,
hope, and love was larger than just material things. This realization caused
the Grinch’s heart to grow three sizes larger, and he realized that the
greatest of these is love.
So,
I ask you, I ask myself, is the love of God central in your life, in my life? If
it is not, then what is central in your life, in my life? We have a lot of
people in this world eagerly chasing after that pot of gold at the end of the
rainbow. If they actually got to that pot of gold though, then what would
happen? Would it be enough gold? Or would they then seek after the next and the
next pot of gold? They might wonder why they still do not feel whole, fulfilled,
or totally happy. For “Without Love I Am Nothing”?
In
our Gospel of Luke 4:21-30 reading for this morning, as I discussed last week,
Jesus has just read from the scroll of the Prophet Isaiah, in Jewish Synagogue
in his hometown of Nazareth. Jesus has declared that he is the Messiah, the
savior. Jesus then said no prophet is welcome in his hometown, as he was
speaking in his hometown of Nazareth. Jesus then talks about scripture and
characters in scripture like Elijah and Elisha. After this, everyone is enraged
at Jesus’ proclamation that he is the messiah or the savior. The people chase
him out of the town of Nazareth. The people further, tried to chase Jesus up a
cliff to through him off, but he managed to escape. Clearly love was not the
reaction towards Jesus in Synagogue in Nazareth.
Without
love then friends, we are nothing. For example, if in 2022 this church has multiple
professions of faith, if we have many new members, if we have new ministries, if
we have even more vitality, if we have increased giving, and if this church is
doing remarkable things in the community and in the world that would be great.
If all of this happens though, and we do not have love, then all we have done
is labor and labor. All we have done is work and create but was God at the center
of it?
If
you like this church, if you enjoy being here, then I hope at the core of whatever
reasons you give for this, that the core is love. I like being at Sidney UMC
because I feel loved, and because I can love others. Jesus came to love us, to
die for us, and teach us to live in faith, hope, and love. The greatest of
these though, is love. You see friends, “Without Love I Am Nothing.” Amen
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