“I AM LOVE”

April 28, 2024
St. Andrew Church
Rev. Anne McAnelly
Fifth Sunday of Easter

First Lesson:                                              John 15:1-8

“I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. ² He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. ³ You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. ⁴ Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. ⁵ I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. ⁶ Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. ⁷ If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. ⁸ My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples.

Second Lesson:                                         1 John 4:7-21

Beloved, let us love one another, because love is from God; everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. ⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love. ⁹ God’s love was revealed among us in this way: God sent his only Son into the world so that we might live through him. ¹⁰ In this is love, not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the atoning sacrifice for our sins. ¹¹ Beloved, since God loved us so much, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God lives in us, and his love is perfected in us. ¹³ By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And we have seen and do testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ God abides in those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, and they abide in God. ¹⁶ So we have known and believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them. ¹⁷ Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness on the day of judgment, because as he is, so are we in this world. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear; for fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not reached perfection in love. ¹⁹ We love because he first loved us. ²⁰ Those who say, “I love God,” and hate their brothers or sisters, are liars; for those who do not love a brother or sister whom they have seen, cannot love God whom they have not seen. ²¹ The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.

This week I heard a story from someone who felt terrible about how she had treated a family member. It was not intentional, and she only realized the harm after the fact. She immediately apologized to the person, truly wanting to make it right. What struck her was the grace the family member showed to her. This person graciously received her apology which helped with her regret. It gave her a new understanding of the song Amazing Grace. But then she said something I will never forget, “Love is all there is.” Love IS all there is. A profound statement learned from a painful experience, a pruning if you will.

Jesus made seven “I Am” statements in John’s gospel. I am the bread of life (6:35), I am the light of the world (8:12, 9:5) and I am the good shepherd (10:11,14). Each of these is a practical image to help the disciples understand who Jesus is. Today we heard “I am the true vine” (1,5), the last of these statements. Then Jesus connects his role as the vine to God the Father being the vinegrower, the one who prunes the vine of their unfruitful branches. Remember, Jesus said, “I am the vine and you are the branches (meaning us)… apart from me you can do nothing.” Something we often hear as we take communion. I love this “I Am” statement because we are included in it. We are the branches connected to Jesus. We are the branches that get pruned by God. We are the branches that grow out in the world. Yet if I were to write only one “I Am” statement for Jesus it would be “I AM LOVE.” Of course, his seven statements are perfect, with “I am the way, the truth and the life” and “I am the resurrection.” But when it is all said and done, (given that God’s name is I AM) I want Jesus to say, “I AM LOVE!” Our second reading does something similar, just with God.

READ 1 John4:7-19

Pam Arnsberger gave me a couple cuttings from the wisteria plants on either side of the cross. I love those plants; they always remind me of Easter. I was so excited to bring them home and water them and prune them all in the hopes of getting them to root. I cut off more, so that the energy would go to the roots instead of the leaves. I believe I have one that has taken root. It gets morning sun, I keep it moist, and I gave it a little fertilizer. There is something creative, healing, about tending to a small cutting, working on helping it root and grow. I keep that in mind when I think of God as the vinegrower pruning us back. It is done out of love and care for the plant. It is to help the plant, or us, grow stronger, healthier. Especially true when we think of God as love.

Both passages point to the mutuality of this love and its abiding nature. You might think, we talked about love last week too, when considering laying down one’s life. It feels a bit like deja vu. That is true because John wants us to know God’s love for us. John 3:16 declares, “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” God is love. God’s love was revealed in God sending his Son into the world so that we might live through him. So that Jesus is the atoning sacrifice for our sins. This is the way we know God’s love. And once we know God’s love, we are to love one another.

We want to love, to be a loving person, but sometimes fear or anger get the best of us. Don’t worry. God’s love is perfect, and our love is perfected because we trust in God’s love. “We love because (God) first loved us” (1 John 4:19). It is not “we ought to love because (God) first loved us” as if God’s love were the ground for a new imperative. It is ”we CAN love because (God) first loved us.” God’s love is the ground for a new possibility” (Working Preacher, David Bartlett). God’s love is the very reason we are able to love, anyone or anything.

We love because God loves us is the foundation of mutuality. The best earthly expression I know of this is a really good marriage. The give and take, the love through all circumstances, how what happens to one, affects the other. There is a mutuality to the love expressed in a marriage. There is also a mutuality within the vine and the branches. When Jesus says, “I am the vine and you are the branches… part from me you can do nothing” I hear we are dependent upon Jesus. Yes, we are. But what I had not seen is that Jesus is also dependent on us. Mutuality. What good is a vine without branches and fruit? That is why God sometimes prunes.us, helps us to love and forgive those around us. There is a mutual need between Jesus and his disciples. One commentator writes, “without the disciples, the fulfillment of John 3:16 cannot come to bear and Jesus’ commission to the disciples, “As the Father has sent me so I send you” (20:21), (doesn’t work). How can God love the world without them? Without us?” (Working Preacher, Karoline Lewis). I AM the vine, you are the branches is not a command or judgment, but an invitation, summons, and promise. We are the hands and feet of Christ. We are the ones to love the world.

God is love and God’s love is mutual and abiding. Abiding means, accepting, remaining, enduring, permanent. God’s love abides, resides in us and we reside in God’s love. Believe and abide can also share in this meaning. Learning that a similar word is used in another place in John helped me to understand abiding better. Jesus while comforting his disciples before his death says, “Believe in God and believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms, many dwelling places,” many places to abide. When we abide in God we live with God, we dwell with God and we know God’s love. We then can live out these words, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love” (9).

One Sunday morning, Mickey ran down to the front of the Sanctuary just before the start of the morning worship service and with great excitement, she said: “Miss Rosemary Brown, can I sing a song this morning?” Not wanting to say “no”? or to be a stumbling-block to this vivacious little girl, Rosemary said: 11Of course you can.” Then, Rosemary announced to the congregation that four-year-old Mickey would sing the call to worship to start the service.

Rosemary Brown picked up Mickey and stood Mickey on the front pew. She turned her around to face the now expectant and smiling group of people in church that day? And Mickey sang: “Jesus wuvs me dis I know for da Bible tells me so. Yes, Jesus wuvs me.” And then, Mickey threw her hands straight up in the air (like she had just scored a touchdown) and with a triumphant voice she said: “And, dat’s dat!” And then Mickey sat down.

Mickey was right on target, wasn’t she? What more do we need to know? Jesus loves us and that’s that. When we are scared or confused or lonely. When we have to make a hard decision or face a tough challenge. When we feel rejected or cast aside by someone. When we lose a loved one or face our own death? What more do we need to know? Jesus loves us and that’s that! (Sermons.com, James W. Moore)

Jesus is many things to us, good shepherd, light of the world, and true vine. God is love. But when we abide in God and live in the mutuality of that divine love then we can know Jesus as the way we know God’s love, as the source of our connection to God and whose real name is I Am Love. Amen.