Let Love Be Genuine - Romans 12

Let Love Be Genuine

Tony E Dillon-Hansen

Last updated: 9/3/17 8:18 AM

A sermon based upon Jeremiah 15:15-21 and Psalm 26:1-8 • Romans 12:9-21 • Matthew 16:21-28

Will you pray with me?  Let God guide our senses, our hearts and our ears to receive the lesson given to us.  May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our Rock, Our Redeemer.  Amen.

Our scripture starts with a beautiful line that I would like for us to focus our attention today, ”Let love be genuine.”

I think the key word in this line, however, is “genuine” -- as in authentic and real.

Most good people have an idea of what is and what is not “love.” One religious leader (Pope Francis) recently equated love with tenderness, respect and devotion.

These are the “what’, and definitions and standards can be nice. Yet, standards need the “how.” Let me give a you a couple examples of what I am saying here.

As a chef, a recipe tells you what the ingredients and the oven temperature are needed to make the dish, but what makes the dish sparkle is the “how” (as in how it is prepared, how the dish is presented, and ultimately, how the dish tastes.)  The good cook and chef will pay more attention to how something is made.

As a martial arts instructor, I am less interested in that you have done something but more how you executed the technique.

Pet owners might understand a bit of the next one.

Whenever we leave the house and no matter how short of time we have been gone, when we come home, we have a welcoming committee waiting for us.  I don’t even have to open the door, and there is a wagging tail spectacle attached to 100 pounds of pure enthusiasm and bouncing coonhound.  No matter how our day has been, Reno unapologetically shows us and lets us know that he is excited to see us.

Romans may not have been written with dogs in mind, but Reno provides near perfect illustration of genuine, heart-full expression.

I am sure you have experiences in your life when you have felt genuine expression of love. The question is how do you share your genuine love.

How do you let people know they are loved? How do you receive being loved? How do you let love be you?  The “what” of words about love without action is just cynical words.

In fact, words without action or heart-full love is dipping emotions into a sauce of evil and expecting good things to happen.  That is how we get cynicism, injustice, and racism because we have left out the real heart-full love when interacting with our brothers and sisters.

An example of that happens in plain sight.  I have observed many friends and families spending time “together” while busying themselves with their phones, tablets or televisions (all while not having any conversations.) What is genuine here? Where is the tenderness when we are busying ourselves with screens of virtual worlds while ignoring those sitting right next to us.

Is that the kind of love we need? Remember “want” is different than “need”.

If our version of love is unkind remarks or prayers without heart, we might be missing something in our own lives.

Genuine love is revealing your heart and compassion. Thus, nasty remarks and heart-less prayers may reveal that we are missing love in our lives.

To further this, we have to be willing to share genuine love to receive genuine love, and thus, love is trusting. Trusting that love works is the way Jesus teaches us. Jesus did not say pray for just your friends. We should pray for those we disagree or from whom we have felt hurt (and not just the pretentious “Please-make-them-better” prayer.)

What can you do to improve your genuine love?  Think of the times where you have showed not-so-genuine love –when you have left love aside and lashed out instead.

When someone wrongs you and if your first inclination is fire bitterness or swallow the offense, what have you solved? Instead, more anger and tension is the result.

If we hold harsh judgments inside our hearts and keep finding faults against our brothers and sisters, we may never heal open wounds or find forgiveness. That festers and takes us away from what brings us to God – to loving.

When we hold people, especially our enemies, in our hearts, it becomes difficult to hate them.  

Perhaps, we could use hapkido techniques. The best defense to a punch or grabbing is to not be there. Instead, get out of the way and let it go. Don't be the aggression. Thus, instead of holding onto aggression or anger, we could simply let go of the negative forces and meet people with genuine peace and good heart.

Why? When we meet wrongs with love and compassion, we begin the process of achieving peace and community.  How do you meet injustice?

Maybe, it is deeper yet.

When you are so focused upon what you don’t get and what you think you deserve, you might simply forget to love you --the self. You are not letting yourself accept and love the self – the beautifully messy you.

If we are empty inside, or have pain, we do not need to hold on to that, but we can let go. Then, you might be able to let love fill your heart -- the self.

When there is love inside, we might be like Reno. You might be more willing to let others know how great they are, and suddenly, no matter our differences or our rough spots, we (you and I) become Us.

You know that love is sincere. Love is not money or material. Love is not a number. You are not just numbers or statistics. You are love.

Love is action and work. Our Christian faith tells us that God revealed us love by giving us Jesus. Through Jesus, we were taught how to be love genuinely.

When you are authentic love, you do that which God has asked of us.

Each of us are beautifully messy souls with dysfunctions, creativity and love working. You can share your love with a touch, a hug, our ears, and just being. When you are authentic in your love to the self, to our brother and to our sister, you just might reveal the gifts we share. Then, the gates of heaven await you.

Remember, it is not what we do, but how.

How is your welcome greeting?

How do you work love?

How can you share your love?

How can you remind your neighbor that they are loved?

How can you teach love to your family?

How can you let love be genuinely you?

Thanks Be to God!

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Why Do You Doubt? - Matthew 14

Why Do You Doubt?

Tony E Dillon Hansen

Last updated: 8/13/17 9:15 AM

A Sermon based upon Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28 and Psalm 105: 1-6, 16-22, 45b • Romans 10:5-15 • Matthew 14:22-33

Will you pray with me?  Let God guide our senses, our hearts and our ears to receive the lesson given to us.  May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable in your sight O Lord, our Rock, Our Redeemer.

I

In the years leading to 2000,

there were many claims of impending doom and rapture.

When the turn of the millennium came,

many churches held special prayer sessions

around the “hour” of foretold demise.

(Given Earth’s rotation, I wonder which hour that was supposed to happen.)

We are told stories of crowded prayer vigils in preparation

for the minute the clock strikes twelve.

Tickets were even sold for seating in vestibules and choir lofts

because “even during the rapture there is preferred seating.”

Then, nothing happened

except time moved to the next day, year and more.

Did you have doubt?

Someone claims to have “found faith.”

(we hear this especially around scandals)

Maybe, they were using good rhetoric.

Maybe, a moment of despair revealed something to them. 

Would you have doubt?

Were you that person?

Have you doubted yourself?

Why do you doubt?

What did you learn from your doubts?

When science (and most everyone else agree)

that climate change is happening,

you can doubt these assertions.

You are welcome to challenge science

with your theories for public consideration.

At the same time,

the prudent thing might be to consider

--how are you going to adapt.

You can challenge the news reports

about the recent Virginia protests-turned-violent.

What is clear is that racism is unfortunately alive.

How do we deal with these powerful forces?

As a taekwondo instructor,

we teach how to break boards.

This is not just to make fire kindling

but to show progress of techniques.

Invariably, students will look at the first boards

with considerable doubt

about their ability to break it.

Yet somehow, they muster courage to try

(some with great success and astonishment.)

 I consider these lessons about methods

for myself, as the “master”, about overcoming doubt.

These are truly moments

where the students teach me

some unique ways to overcome doubt, fear and challenges.

Our lesson today brings us to the Sea of Galilee.

A storm has stranded our disciples in fear,

and Jesus does miraculous things here to calm our disciples.

Now, if you were Peter,

would you tried to walk with Jesus on the water?

Would you have even got out of the boat?

Yet, in the calm of Jesus and panic of Peter,

we are asked a simple question:

why do you doubt?

Jesus’s question extends to

why people doubt Church, God, Jesus or religion all together.

Incidentally, I have been writing a piece about this subject

and how the Church has played a role.

Doubt includes uncertainty, skepticism or loss of trust.

This disbelief and doubt may be due to inexperience

or due to a difficult experience.

I challenge, however,

to see that doubt is not necessarily a bad thing and is intertwined with faith.

II

For our purposes,

let us consider what has turned people away from Church. 

Perhaps, there is a simple matter of convenience with the Church,

but people lost the necessity of church.

We know that faith is personal and close to our hearts.

How one person constructs their faith

will be different than others.

Thus, faith is uniquely personal.

Faith helps us to be curious of the mysteries around us.

Similarly, there are personal motives that drive doubt.

Healthy doubt also spawns curiosity and learning

because it challenges us to question:

to keep thinking.

Thus, there is a question of how the Church,

as a representative of Christ and God in our lives,

play into faith and doubt.

For some people,

something in their life with Church,

caused them to question

the congregation, traditions or messages delivered.

For some, there were real, unsettling experiences of being

abused or torn down by the Church (or by the people therein.)

That is because

when you are told that you are too young (or too old) to understand;

when religious leaders attack your personal dignity;

when elders tell you that your family is not valid;

or when you are accused (made guilty) for things you never did;

you might develop questions.

You might doubt, or more.

I have witnessed the pain of such indignation

and what this can do to people.

While religion has encouraged some family relationships,

quite simply, instead of being the beacon of Christ’s Truth:

(e.g. with tenets of

welcoming, compassion, justice, peace, forgiveness and hope)

religion has been responsible for breaking families and tormenting people

in favor of behaviors that soiled Christ’s message and exiled people.

Truly, Church that says only certain people can participate

is forgetting that community has many parts

and is not really sharing Christ’s teaching.

Where the Church was to be the embodiment of Christ’s Truth,

pain inflicted upon people tells a different story.

When Church leaders and elders

crush your human dignity,

that will impact feelings about God and Church.

The virtues of the institution come into question.

Inevitably, some question the very nature of God and Jesus.

Perhaps, those leaders and elders are ones

that need to consider their own doubts.

There is an obvious,

tangible response to an awful experience,

which few could deny.

The message of hope gets lost.

Perhaps, those leaders were lost.

Hopefully, we continue to have healthy doubt

rather than stop discerning altogether.

The student that attempts the board-break will find success more

than one that never tries or quits.

A student that studies, rather than refuses,

the social issue or science can provide ways to adapt.

We are reminded Christ teaches us to meet the powerful forces of bigotry, shame and violence with love, peace, and hope.

That is part of the board-break lesson because

doubt helps us to question how we approach life

and to ultimately overcome challenges.

We know the Church and community

can do better

than be guided by disturbed hypocritical or indignant vendettas

that twist Christ’s Truth.

We, the Church, can encourage those that proclaim graces

the tenet’s of Christ’s Truth

(salvation, welcoming, forgiveness, hope, compassion, and peace)

should also reveal that by actions,

not just words alone.

While embracing thoughtful questioning of Christ’s Truth,

the Church that nurtures our beautiful, God-given uniqueness,

is when the Church becomes offers a compelling case.

That is how I came to be here today.

We can help the Church to adopt a better job

of demonstrating this Truth in actions and words

because words, as well as deeds, can cut deep.

That is the board-break challenge for the Church.

We can remind the Church that it’s ok to doubt

--just don’t stop evolving.

Thus, there is hope through our doubt.

We can “break” the proverbial “board” that hides Christ’s Truth.

You and I have persevered,

learned to doubt fogs of deceit and empty glitter.

No one can shade that luminous Truth for long.

Our lessons provide a great illustration of how perseverance,

through darkness and doubt,

revealed that luminous Truth waiting.

Joseph’s own family conspired against Joseph,

ultimately for being who he was.  

His brothers were ready to kill him:

then chose to deport and to exile him. 

Joseph had reason to be demoralized and bitter.

Instead, Joseph observed the path beset by viciousness,

but followed the vision that God provided to him.

Even in the darkest of despair,

there we may observe God showing an opportunity:

your true path.

Be assured that God reveals ways through distortions and pain

to show us a way forward, just like with Joseph.

Such may not happen overnight.

Yet, give God a chance like Joseph, and some amazing things can happen.

III

Joseph’s example, of overcoming powerful forces as well as doubt,

to follow God and to forgive

is one case the Church might do well to study.

Just like Joseph,

despite the travesties around him,

and whether you doubt, or question God,

someone is still waiting to be there for you.

Jesus, by example and words,

teaches that forgiveness is from the heart,

and ultimately,

Jesus is willing to pull you out of water

and out of harm

-- even when you still doubt.

You may doubt the claim for impending rapture

because there is someone that is far more reliable.

Through your doubt,

you learn about yourself and your relationships:

with faith, the Truth, God, your neighbors, and life.

Bitterness and jealousy are not needed,

but forgiveness and justice are.

We can be embodiments of Christ’s Truth now

and be the students that teach those teachers.

God made you challenged, goofy, inquisitive and imperfect

because God made you just the way you are:

beautiful and authentic. 

Anyone, or any institution, that denies God working in beautiful you

may reveal the little, actual faith they have. 

The mystery of God is bigger than our imagination,

and way bigger than our fallibility.

From Romans,

“we all fall short” of the perfection of Jesus.

Even then, we are merely an arm’s reach towards perfect guidance.

The Christ ‘s Truth endures.

No distortions or family conspiracies can change the Truth.

Romans states, “for everyone that calls on the Lord will be saved”

 – tickets are not necessary.

Yes, our imperfections and doubt remind us that we are fallible,

and there is one that is above fallibility.

Even with our imperfections,

those gaps remind us that each of us

are beautiful, unique teachers

to help complete those gaps together.

We can use the example of Joseph and the calm of Jesus

to show us the way past our imperfections.

We do not have to be the family that exiled one of our own.

This is because when we separate that which is truly great in us from us,

then our arrogance ought to be humbled towards forgiveness.

Instead, when our brothers, and sisters see

the example of Christ message revealed within us and our Church,

they, who found reason to leave,

may be given a more compelling reason to return

and to reach beyond their doubt.

Yes, the Truth of Christ says:

We, all, are beloved God’s children,

with all our frailties, doubts, and problems,

and we are to be welcomed to the altar of life and embraced.

That is the Truth that Christ teaches us,

and you need no doubt of this.

When we as a church,

a society,

or mere humble servants of God truly welcome and truly forgive,

then we can lessen doubts

and teach the Church the power of hope:

the power of the Truth.

Grace is revealed within every Beloved child of God,

like you.

Yes, You and I can be the students that teach the “masters.”

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Thanks Be to God!