Love is practical

A simple trip to the grocery store will remind you that the next holiday we celebrate will be Valentine’s Day. It is a fun day to celebrate. It is also a day which prods any preacher to note that when Jesus taught his disciples that the heart of his message to them is that we are to love God and love our neighbor, he was not referring to romantic love (Eros in the Greek New Testament), nor to the love of family and friends (Philia), but to the practical love (Agape) of looking out for the well-being of the people we share this planet with.

In Matthew 25:31-46 Jesus makes it very, very clear that the most important things Christians do for their neighbors are very concrete and practical: feeding the hungry, providing drink to the thirsty, welcoming the stranger, clothing the naked, caring for the sick and visiting those in prison. Jesus’ picture of the day of judgment focuses on these issues. The Judge (Jesus) does not ask what you believe. Nor does he focus on your experience of the Holy Spirit. I think that both of these are important matters, but here Jesus indicates that what he cares most about is that we help our neighbor in very specific and practical ways. He boldly asserts that when we help someone in need, we are helping him.

We are not called to fall in love with our neighbor. But Jesus clearly wants us to show respect for every human being. Think of how he made a Samaritan the model of faithful behavior. No good Jew could lift up a Samaritan as good. They were heretics to be avoided. Jesus’ disciples were surprised that he would even talk with a Samaritan woman.