"And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him." 1 John 4:16
God’s love is a humble, self-emptying love. This divine kenosis was seen on the cross and can be seen in the very world that we inhabit. God has given humankind life through evolution and purpose and love through life.
“Love by its very nature can not compel, and so any God whose very essence is love should not be expected to overwhelm the world either with a coercively directive power or an annihilating presence. Indeed, an infinite love must in some ways absent or restrain itself, precisely in order to give the world the space in which to become something distinct from the creative love that constitutes it as other. We should anticipate, therefore, that any universe rooted in an unbounded love would have some features that appear to us an random and undirected�? (God After Darwin, John Haught p.112)
It is the nature of love to give more love and not overwhelm those with whom you share your love. “If you love someone, set them free." True love requires freedom; and sometimes that very freedom can lead to pain. Many times those whom one loves will follow wayward paths. Love would require us to nudge our loved ones in the proper direction but not force that direction upon them. Forcing our will upon those we love rarely leads to positive results and undermines the very loving relationship that is shared.
God allowed and continues to allow humanity to make our own decisions. By allowing this, things can go wrong. But it also allows us to transform the challenges we face into creative, purposeful experiences. Purpose is a gift and not one to be taken lightly. Many times as we use this gift of purpose to transform our challenges and circumstances beauty will emerge. The beauty that we have created is real; but so is the ugliness that was transformed.
The gift of purpose requires a gift of freedom and the purpose of freedom is to create the same for others. It is through this freedom that we find our salvation. Jesus thirsted on the cross and he thirsted for souls. He counted all the wayward sheep and all the prodigal sons and none were lost. The call of a Christian is to live for the glory of God. A Christian’s life should not be determined driven quest about preaching the word and keeping track of how many souls you have saved. It is living our life the best way we can and doing what we do well and doing it for the glory of God. In the word of Richard John Neuhaus: “Souls are saved by saved souls who live out their salvation by thinking and living differently, with a martyr’s resolve, in a world marked by falsehood, baseness, injustice, impurity, ugliness and mediocrity."
The very salvation Neuhaus speaks of requires freedom. It is freely given and freely accepted. Pure unadulterated acceptance requires reciprocating the love that was given. A self-emptying love was offered and that love requires that we empty ourselves of our vices such as selfishness, greed, pride, and lust and live for the love of God. Jesus emptied himself in his life and death as did Mary who became the first disciple by forsaking her needs and lived only in the glory of God’s grace.
“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!" (Phillipians 2:5-9)
Jesus said that the “greatest love is shown when man is willing to lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13) Salvation consists of this kind of greater love and it can only be given and accepted freely. It is not required that humans lay down their lives to achieve this love. Only the acceptance of the realization that once we experience such a love we would be compelled to value our loved ones and love more than our own life.
God’s love for humanity as shown through the life and death of Jesus Christ is a mysterious and incalculable love that meets the world on our terms. It is a humble love that meets us in the randomness of our everyday life. It is a love that made itself defenseless even unto the death of a crucified man. The very randomness and struggle of the evolution of life that created humankind can be seen in the life and death of God incarnate. These parallels are consistent with a universe and life that has as its origin an infinitely compassionate Love.
God’s love is a humble, self-emptying love. This divine kenosis was seen on the cross and can be seen in the very world that we inhabit. God has given humankind life through evolution and purpose and love through life.
“Love by its very nature can not compel, and so any God whose very essence is love should not be expected to overwhelm the world either with a coercively directive power or an annihilating presence. Indeed, an infinite love must in some ways absent or restrain itself, precisely in order to give the world the space in which to become something distinct from the creative love that constitutes it as other. We should anticipate, therefore, that any universe rooted in an unbounded love would have some features that appear to us an random and undirected�? (God After Darwin, John Haught p.112)
It is the nature of love to give more love and not overwhelm those with whom you share your love. “If you love someone, set them free." True love requires freedom; and sometimes that very freedom can lead to pain. Many times those whom one loves will follow wayward paths. Love would require us to nudge our loved ones in the proper direction but not force that direction upon them. Forcing our will upon those we love rarely leads to positive results and undermines the very loving relationship that is shared.
God allowed and continues to allow humanity to make our own decisions. By allowing this, things can go wrong. But it also allows us to transform the challenges we face into creative, purposeful experiences. Purpose is a gift and not one to be taken lightly. Many times as we use this gift of purpose to transform our challenges and circumstances beauty will emerge. The beauty that we have created is real; but so is the ugliness that was transformed.
The gift of purpose requires a gift of freedom and the purpose of freedom is to create the same for others. It is through this freedom that we find our salvation. Jesus thirsted on the cross and he thirsted for souls. He counted all the wayward sheep and all the prodigal sons and none were lost. The call of a Christian is to live for the glory of God. A Christian’s life should not be determined driven quest about preaching the word and keeping track of how many souls you have saved. It is living our life the best way we can and doing what we do well and doing it for the glory of God. In the word of Richard John Neuhaus: “Souls are saved by saved souls who live out their salvation by thinking and living differently, with a martyr’s resolve, in a world marked by falsehood, baseness, injustice, impurity, ugliness and mediocrity."
The very salvation Neuhaus speaks of requires freedom. It is freely given and freely accepted. Pure unadulterated acceptance requires reciprocating the love that was given. A self-emptying love was offered and that love requires that we empty ourselves of our vices such as selfishness, greed, pride, and lust and live for the love of God. Jesus emptied himself in his life and death as did Mary who became the first disciple by forsaking her needs and lived only in the glory of God’s grace.
“Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!" (Phillipians 2:5-9)
Jesus said that the “greatest love is shown when man is willing to lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13) Salvation consists of this kind of greater love and it can only be given and accepted freely. It is not required that humans lay down their lives to achieve this love. Only the acceptance of the realization that once we experience such a love we would be compelled to value our loved ones and love more than our own life.
God’s love for humanity as shown through the life and death of Jesus Christ is a mysterious and incalculable love that meets the world on our terms. It is a humble love that meets us in the randomness of our everyday life. It is a love that made itself defenseless even unto the death of a crucified man. The very randomness and struggle of the evolution of life that created humankind can be seen in the life and death of God incarnate. These parallels are consistent with a universe and life that has as its origin an infinitely compassionate Love.
