Loving each other is not just a part of the Greatest Commandment. It’s the Greatest Invitation. The Greatest Promise. 

Did you know that some scholars of the Ten Commandments believe the verbs are not really best translated “Thou Shalt Not”… but instead “You will not”?  That is, God is laying out a vision of the people God’s calling into being, and describing who they will be and how they (we) could be different from the dangerous neighbors or oppressive powers of the past. A different people, a transforming covenant.  

In Christ we reclaim this vision of his ancestors and the way he’s fulfilled it. Our sermon series this month unpacks threads of John’s letter intent on reminding us of God’s gifts of confession, truth and light. When we walk in love, intent on trusting Christ’s love and getting this love thing down better, we know God. We’re drawn closer. It’s not a “should.”  It’s a promise.

In a world of empty and broken promises, this one is solid like a rock. What do you need to learn or to share about this in these weeks? As Kate sang last week “let our hearts be open…”

In Christ’s Peace,
Pastor Jacki