The Sacrifice of Love

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Every time I hear or read something outside of the news that mentions the name of Israel, my ears perk up.

Like in the Gospel of Luke (Chapter 1) where we hear from John the Baptist's father, Zachariah:

"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel; he has come to his people and set them free. He has raised up for us a mighty savior, born of the house of his servant David."

We have God's promise that he will save us from our enemies and all those who hate us. We've been promised God's mercy (love and forgiveness) and that he will never forget the covenant he made with his people.

We count on this. All of it. We believe it. We trust in God. But when people are suffering and evidence of God's presence seems to be lacking, it can be challenging for even the most devout believer.

We must remember that when terrible things take place, such as war, these things are not an act of God. Likewise, we are not God's puppets, so he gives us free will to act--unfortunately, not always as we should, but as we are inclined to.

This is why it is so important that our lives be centered on God. If we align ourselves with the "thought" of Jesus, for instance, we know that peace can only come when "the wolf lies down with the lamb."

Of course, that is never easy, in practice. The sinful inclination in our humanity too often is the driving force by which we act. Rather than going against those tendencies, we lean into them.

Each of us can make a difference in the world around us by growing in our awareness of the way of Jesus and trying our best to follow him--even when every ounce of our being wants revenge or feels we have a right to act out of anger.

It all begins at home. Jesus wasn't kidding when he told us to love our enemies, and he surely knew what that meant as he hung on the cross. The sacrifice of love that we don't often consider is sacrificing hateful words and actions in exchange for radically loving those we deem undeserving.

It may not be the way of the world, but it is the way of God, so the sooner we figure it out, the better.

Janet Cassidy
janetcassidy.com
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