Reference

Romans 5:6-11

First Sunday of Lent falls on Valentines Day. Pretty fitting. Lent is all about the greatest love story known to man! But there's a lot of confusion in our culture just what true love is like. Brene Brown articulates it really well. “It makes total sense to me that Jesus would have to be the Son of God because people would want love to be like unicorns and rainbows so then God sends Jesus and you go O my, love is hard, love is sacrifice, love is eating with the sick, it’s breaking bread with people …love is trouble, love is rebellious. I was listening to this Leonard Cohen song and it goes 'Love is not a victory march, love is a broken Hallelujah'. That makes total sense to me. Love is not like hearts and bows. Love is very controversial really.” We so need to be reminded of what love is really like don’t we? Love requires vulnerability. It costs something of us. One of the most profound thing I’ve heard is Jean Vanier’s description of love in “The Work of the People.” “Loving our enemies, loving those who are hard to love, is crazy. Scripture says He will turn our heart of stone into a heart of flesh. That sounds beautiful. But instead of saying heart of flesh you say a vulnerable heart, it sounds less exciting. And if you want to define vulnerability, as capacity of being hurt; so I’ll change your heart of stone which is protective, to a heart where you will be capable of being hurt, that sounds less exciting. But that’s the reality. Because if we really start being concerned about people, and loving people, it’s inevitable that we will be hurt. So growth then means how to grow through being hurt?”