SCRIPTURE: 1 John 4:17-21
TEXT: 18aThere is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; THEME: Loving acts cast out fear. INTRODUCTION I know I am nearing the ‘career free’ stage in life, because I am having to retell my ‘cow story’, (for lack of not having a new story to tell). When I attended the University in Hilo, this guy from Holy Cross Church, hired me on Saturdays to come and work on his 40 acres homestead. We cut buffalo grass, hacked away at guava trees, and did other odds and ends for a hearty Breakfast, Forty bucks and a lunch/dinner at the end of the day with; smoke meat, eggs, steak, hamburger, and rice. One day he had me stand on a rise and said, “We are herding the cattle into the pen down there. I am going to chase the cattle in your direction. When they come towards you, wave your arms and yell, and they will run away from you and go down towards the corral.” Then he disappeared, behind a few rolling hills. He was a small Japanese man, but tough as nails. He must have been gone for at least half an hour as I waited on the bluff wondering, “What I have gotten myself into this time?” Then in the distant, beyond my sight I heard “Ho, Whooo, Ho”, and I waited. “Ho, Whooo, Ho” again, then from over the rise I see this cow, coming straight for me, followed by twenty more, and a tail of twenty in tow all coming towards for me, Then the Japanese man, in the distance running after them, yelling and waving his hat at them. The lead cow was what 3-4 hundred pounds to my 130. Yes, I was 130 in college. Yikes! I just googled a cow’s weight is more like 1,200 lbs. running towards me. Was I afraid? You bet! I should have run away, but I trusted in what he told me. I raise my arms to the sky, waved them back and forth and started to yell, “Haaaa, Hooooooo, Ha” The cow heard me and looked up, saw me, then planted its feet, changed direction and turned away down the hill towards the corral. The other cattle followed suit, they were more afraid of me, than I was afraid of them. This is when I realized how powerful fear can be in changing our direction, if we think about it, sometimes our fears are irrational, we need to determine what the truth really is, and then hold on to the direction God wants us to go. SCRIPTURE Fear is one of those things that keeps us on the sidelines, afraid to jump into the game, hesitant to participate in what’s going on. Fear keeps us at bay, withholding our contributions and settling for a perceived safety instead of a changed future. Fear keeps us in healthy boundaries, but can be manipulated to control us, to repress us, to keep us silent. Love helps fear to keep us safe, but also liberate us when fear’s hold on us is too restrictive. Love opens up the fear that keeps us from the life God has for us to enjoy. Love is willing to risk suffering, and endure seasons of pain. Love is unselfish and desires the very best for us, love keeps perspective, and helps us to navigate around fear’s pit falls, in order to accomplish a greater good. This passage has moved many beyond their timidness into the forefront, as champions for what God wants, to speak out to reveal hidden abuse, over their own comfort to combat injustice. Love gives us a confidence, that even death cannot take away, because love resurrects us to life. APPLICATION This is how I usually understood this passage, but what if we took another look at actions initiated by a “perfect love” that casts out fear. We did this at our Zoom Council meeting where we named a fear and then imagined a loving act that would help in that fearful situation. Such as a person who is approaching surgery or a medical procedure. Love will pray for the doctors, the medical staff, the facility, for calmness, for anxieties to be articulated to God, for fears rational as well as irrational prayers. Knowing that there are those who care and are praying to God brings a sense of community, belonging, and relief. The fear of food scarcity and hunger is lovingly addressed by our Food Pantry. There is a stewardship of resources being shared with those who do not have as much. Community is being formed between the regulars of the Food Pantry and the church. In fact, what they do at the Food Pantry is church with; prayer, singing, laughter, sharing and love. COVID-19 has us all afraid. To address this fear, we began by sheltering in, washing hands and wearing a mask. We continue to love by getting vaccinated when it is our turn, having worship on Facebook, spraying down the sanctuary, Zoom Meetings, refraining from singing, creating a contact list of attendees. These have become the new acts of love that allow us to worship together and love each other at the same time we are apart. There is a fear of not having enough money. We are afraid of poverty. Against my better judgment, I answered a “No Caller ID” call. I have been having to answer a few numbers that I don’t recognize for numerous reasons and let my guard down. I didn’t catch their name at first so I asked who was calling. They identified themselves from Publishers Clearing House asking me to enter their sweepstake. I promptly told them I was not interested and asked them to take me off of their call list. If they are reputable, that is all you need to do and they say, “Thank you, and that it will take a few days.” But the response I got was, “Don’t you want to win a lot of money?” I repeated, “Please take me off of your call list.” Then I got a rant of profanity so I hung up. Obviously, this was a scam trying to get personal information by luring me with the promise of money. But this probably was motivated by a fear of not having enough money, and relying on this scam to provide for themselves. Love stands its grounds, love has good manners, love is astute and not easily duped, love has a hope for those who want to take advantage of us, and prays that they will find other means to accomplish what they really need. There is a fear that we have given into, that ‘other’ have come to take what we have. This fear draws hard lines and builds walls to insulate and protect what we have. These ‘others’ come from places of hurt, fear, escape, violence, and sacrifice. Love opens our hearts to hear their stories. Their hopes and dreams are much like our own. We begin to empathize with their journey of hope. To see our resources as something to be shared rather than protected. To enrich our lives with learning, sharing, in order to build a rich and diverse community. Love sacrifices our illusions of racial prejudice for the dream of the family of God being made up of all nations as the People of God. The fear for shelter is exacerbated by our expensive housing market making it difficult for those who have been raised here, to raise their family where they grew up. In the neighborhoods that are familiar, close to work, school, and medical care. Love has compelled us to care for our neighbor and to pursue the building of affordable rental units on our Mission Ground. The perfect love that casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. We love because God first loved us…. Those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also. 1 John 4:18b-19,21b CONCLUSION Fear can charge us like 1,200-pound cow, if we forget about God’s perfect love for us. So, wave our arms and yell, putting our confidence in God’s love for us, that does not seek to punish or to hurt us. We take the love of God, and live it, by being loving to our neighbor. We address the fears of our neighbors with acts of love that; pray, share, feed, care, practices manners and makes God visible in a world by what we do. A world that needs to be loved, with actions that enable them to let go of their fears, and schemes for escape, to instead live-in relationship with God.
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