Wesley's Example: Love with Action, not Words
Daily Scripture
1 John 3:14-18
14 We know that we have transferred from death to life, because we love the brothers and sisters. The person who does not love remains in death. 15 Everyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that murderers don’t have eternal life residing in them. 16 This is how we know love: Jesus laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 But if someone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but refuses to help—how can the love of God dwell in a person like that?
18 Little children, let’s not love with words or speech but with action and truth.
Daily Reflection & Prayer
The apostle John said no one filled with God’s love could see a brother or sister in need and not try to help. John Wesley lived this out, setting up what we might call a “food bank”: “At Hannam, four miles from Bristol…. I made a collection in our congregation for the relief of the poor… who, having no work… and no assistance from the parish wherein they lived, were reduced to the last extremity. I made another collection on Thursday and a third on Sunday, by which we were enabled to feed a hundred, sometimes a hundred and fifty, a day, of those whom we found to need it most.” *
- The apostle John used strong words about those who saw their brothers and sisters in need and didn’t care. He said such people hated their brothers and sisters, which made them murderers (verse 15)! Can apathy and inaction have results as murderous as active malice? What ways have you found to help yourself avoid “compassion fatigue” and remain sensitive when God nudges you to help someone in need?
- U2 lead singer Bono refers to problems (like the lack of clean drinking water in many parts of Africa) as “stupid poverty.” We could end those problems with a fraction of the money spent on NFL games or TV awards shows. How can we learn from Wesley, who, instead of saying “Someone ought to help those hungry people,” took simple, direct action and helped? (For ways to help, locally or globally, visit https://resurrection.church/missions/.)
Prayer
Loving Lord, you taught us that “it is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35). Keep growing a heart within me that rejoices in the freedom and satisfaction of your kind of giving. Amen.
GPS Insights
Lydia Kim
Lydia Kim, who serves as a pastor of Connection and Care at Resurrection Leawood, wrote today's Insights. An avid believer that growing in faith pairs well with fellowship and food, she is always ready for recommendations on local restaurants and coffee shops.
I grew up watching the show Captain Planet. It was a show about five kids, each possessing a power of an element–Earth, Wind, Fire, Water, and Heart. Alone, they could do some things, but together, they could call upon a superhero named Captain Planet who would save the day and say, “By your powers combined, I am Captain Planet.”
Today’s passage reminded me of this show because there was a time when I would freeze anytime someone asked me to help. It didn’t happen overnight, but slowly over time, I had developed a habit of being afraid that I’d make a mistake or do more harm than good, which led to feeling overwhelmed, freezing, doing nothing, and then feeling ashamed. Ultimately, this led to disconnection from God and the community.
What got me out of this cycle was learning more about God as love, versus the judgmental God I had known, and therapy. In therapy, I was invited to re-examine certain narratives and unrealistic expectations that I had for myself, which God didn’t have for my life. I didn’t have to be perfect or do anything extravagant; I just needed to show up as myself and do what I could, in the time I had.
God isn’t asking for flawless perfection. God is asking us to take a step forward, just as we are, using the gifts we have to make a difference in the world. There’s no judgment for how big or small our contribution is; we are all called, together, to make the world more like the kingdom of heaven. And just like the Planeteers on Captain Planet, when our powers are combined, we can do great things.
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Scripture quotations are taken from The Common English Bible ©2011. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
References
* From John Wesley’s Journal, January 21, 1740 at https://ccel.org/ccel/wesley/journal.vi.iv.i.html.
