Remembering Love

Remembrance Day.

When I clocked that I'd put myself in for preaching today,

I realized that that was a bad idea

because it's such a difficult day.

As Clive mentioned at the start,

it's so difficult.

When you're someone like me,

I've had stuff happen in life which has been difficult.

I've had difficulty with kids.

I've had difficulty with family.

I've got estranged brothers.

We all have stuff that affects our life.

One of my responses is to be positive

and to try and be a bit fun

and take life in all its fullness.

Sometimes people think that I'm carefree.

I'm not.

I care enough to push past that.

When I'm speaking to you today,

it's positive stuff.

It's challenging stuff

that I've been thinking through all week.

Please don't think I'm trying to cheapen

or belittle what today is about

because I'm fully aware that for some of us,

you're remembering people who were actually in the war.

Maybe it's World War II.

Maybe it's one of the less known ones.

My wife's great-granddad was in the Forgotten Army

and she's got these amazing letters from Burma.

If you don't know what that is.

They're just out and nobody really knows about them

unless you knew people who were in it.

Maybe for you today is a really potent reminder

of people you know who have died

or have been messed up by war.

Maybe it's loved ones

or loved ones' loved ones that have been lost.

Maybe you're remembering actually the hurt

and the pain caused by loss, caused by war.

Maybe you are remembering with pride

the bravery of those people

who put their lives on the line.

In the pursuit of peace.

Or maybe your remembering is not so positive.

Maybe you really struggle with war.

Maybe even though you know how fundamentally unavoidable it was,

which is the truth,

maybe you still wrestle with,

really, is that what we're about?

And our passage today is,

I want us to kind of think of John's writings

a little bit differently today.

Not as just literature or theological discourse,

you know, well-written stuff

by clever people sat in front of a desk

wanting to put a point across.

But as the memories of a man who knew Jesus.

The memories of a man who wanted to pass on

what he saw in Jesus

and what Jesus said.

memories deep-rooted that when he thinks back

cause his heart

heart to beat faster,

cause his hands to grip in frustration

because of what Jesus had to do.

His friend had to do

for the world.

And when he wrote those words,

the Spirit inspired them.

Through those words,

we know the word

of the God

who loves his people.

The God who would attribute

the name love

to himself.

And I want you to think about

our passage,

those words,

those commands.

I wonder if they could be checked

on the screen.

The context of this passage

of chapter 14 is,

just scroll through it slowly

and then people can just pick up lines.

John is remembering

the Passover meal.

This was the final discourse,

the final words of Jesus

to the disciples

when he sat with them

and he washed their feet.

This is the time

when Jesus washed their feet.

When they shared bread and wine

and Jesus revealed

that this is how they were

to remember him

from evermore.

That in the bread and the wine

they would remember his body

and his blood broken for them

and for the sins of the world.

John recalls in his discourse,

he recalls Judas leaving,

going off to betray him

and Peter's promise

of unshakable loyalty.

I will die with you, Jesus.

And Jesus having to say to him

and all the disciples,

no you won't.

Not yet anyway.

You're going to run away.

You're going to flee.

The very person who wrote this

ran off naked.

What a hard time for Jesus

to know the cost

of what he's got to do

and the people around him

not even realising

what that meant.

And John's remembering

these words.

Jesus was saying it

before he was just about

to go and die

for all the people

in that room.

For all people.

For all time.

And John at that time

had no idea

what that meant.

And of course we

and John

when he wrote this

knew the outcome.

He knew that Jesus

would not stay dead.

That in his death

death which still

clings to us

will take a fundamental hit

and will never fully recover.

Though Jesus' death

and resurrection

was horrible

it began the countdown

of the end of death.

And when death's weapons

sickness, poverty,

injustice and war

will finally be no more.

And yet we like

those disciples

though we know

that's the outcome

that we're waiting for

we're still stuck

in the story.

Still seeing the power

of death

clinging on.

Still feeling the pain

that it causes.

And yes

some of that pain

we're remembering today.

That death

and one of its weapons

war still claims

a heavy toll

less we forget.

Because those

who forget history

are doomed

to repeat it.

When I was preparing

this passage

I really wanted

to ground it

in a story

and I asked my parents

for some clarity

on stories

about my grandparents

who fought

in the war

and they only

remember the funny

stories

which was a bit

of a shame.

And I was

I felt

no today wasn't

the day for the

funny stories.

You can watch

Dad's Army

and basically

they were all

stories like that.

But there was

an amazing guy

called Harry Billinge

I don't know

if anyone's

heard the name

but he's one

of the few

survivors of

Normandy

that's still alive

and he was

on the BBC

and he was

asked

the presenter

was basically

talking to him

and saying

you're a hero

and he said

I'm the hero.

He said

the hero's died.

He said

I'm one of the

lucky ones.

And in this

conversation

he said

and the lady

said to

said to Harry

he said

what do you

want to pass

on to young

people

to the next

generation?

I was so

so pleased

with his answer

he said

love each

other

there's a lot

of hate

in the world

and a lot

of greed

love is the

strongest

thing on

earth.

Harry

experienced

something

that most

of us

have never

and hopefully

will never

have to

experience

and yet

knowing the

darkness

seeing death

so close

holding friends

dead in his

arms

is able to

speak of

love as the

right response.

love.

And John

when he wrote

down these

memories and

would have

remembered

seeing Jesus

on the

cross

he was

there

he was

there at

the cross

knowing

darkness

and death

so close

and yet

too he

writes

of this

challenge

to love

because as

Harry knows

and as

John knew

that's the

way to a

better world.

And John

writes

Jesus said

if you

love me

keep my

commandments

keep my

commands

well what are

those commands?

We know it

it's love

Matthew puts

it like this

love the

Lord your

God with

all your

heart

with all

your soul

and with

all your

mind.

And the

second is

like it

love your

neighbour as

yourself.

Early on

in this

chapter 13

Jesus tells

that he

loves us

that God

first loved

us

and then in

chapter 13

towards the

end he

reminds the

disciples that

they are to

love one

another

because the

world will

know

that they're

his

disciples

by the

way they

do that.

Love defines

us.

First thing

to remember

love defines

the people

of God.

That's our

role.

That's our

identity.

Love.

And in our

passage in

verse 15

verse 21

verse 23

verse 24

you get the

point?

Jesus put

some grit

on that

commandment.

It's not

just love

God and

love God

love God

and love

each other

is to love

the other.

Yes we are

loved and

yes we must

love each

other but if

you love him

you will obey

the commandments.

If you love

him,

commandment

one,

commandment

two,

love your

neighbor as

yourself.

Sometimes the

simplest truth

is the

hardest one

to follow.

If we are

serious about

Jesus,

we need to

be serious

about love.

We know

full well what

happens when we

don't love our

neighbor,

when we don't

love the

other.

We remember

it today

and people

are remembering

it from that

day,

throughout our

history,

again and

again,

when we

desensitize

ourselves from

the other,

when we see

them as the

enemy,

when we see

them as the

person who

is not good

enough,

who deserves

our fight,

we forget

that that is

the reason it

keeps happening.

Once war

happens,

C.S.

Lewis wrote

an amazing

book called

Mere

Christianity

and I'm

sure a lot

of people

here have

read it.

It's a

really powerful

book because

it was written

just after the

Second World

War and it

was written to

a nation of

soldiers,

survivors and

people that

were asking

the question,

what just

happened?

And there

were people as

soldiers who

were carrying

the fact that

they'd killed,

that they'd seen

people killed and

that they were

not sure what

it was all

about.

And C.S.

Lewis was

amazing.

He wrote so

well and so

gently and

said actually

we're not here

to tell you

that you were

wrong for

going to war,

we're not here

essentially to

make you feel

bad for what

happened.

There was no

choice.

The opportunity

to prevent the

war was

passed.

And you

should be

proud that

you chose

to fight,

that you

chose to

be there for

your nation,

for people,

for freedom.

I find that

so potent.

When I'm

talking I'm

not here

saying yeah

well it

shouldn't have

happened really

or we should

feel really

bad that we

went to war.

The war

happened and

there was no

way to

stop it.

Once the

motions were

done we

missed the

point.

Our predecessors,

our politicians,

all those people

that could have

maybe prevented

it, that's

not our

reality.

We live with

the fact that

war happens and

that it

happened.

So we're not

here talking

about criticising

the war and

saying oh we

should feel

really like bad

about it.

No.

We should feel

sad and miss

people and

love those who

hurt and

survived and

remember those

who loved and

lost.

But there is a

challenge to us

in that

commandment to

love the

other, to

love our

neighbour.

God doesn't

tell us to

do it because

we need it.

God tells us

to do it

because without

it we've got

no chance.

It's not even a

necessity, it's a

no chance.

Without love

we've got no

chance.

Like Harry

said, love is

the most powerful

thing on earth.

love is our

ultimate weapon.

Not lovey

dovey love.

Not a

cuddle.

Not a

Valentine's

card.

Not a bit of

carnal desire.

Agape love.

Unconditional

love.

I love that

western philosophers

like Jacques

Derrida call

impossible.

Impossible.

Impossible.

And yet that

is the

command that

we are to

do it.

We are to

love in the

impossible way.

Because

unconditional

love refuses

to let death

have the final

say.

Refuses to

let us build

up factions

and divisions

and reject the

other.

Love stands in

the face of

death and says

you do not

get the

last word.

But it's

impossible for

us.

That's what

history proves.

But John

remembers

something else

that Jesus

said.

Verse 16.

He will

give you

another advocate

to help you

and be with

you forever.

The spirit

of truth.

Impossible

love is

impossible

love.

And God

knows that.

And so the

only way for

impossible love

to be possible

is for God

to do it

through us.

And this is

the thing.

If we are

serious about

Jesus and

we are serious

about choosing

love, Jesus

gives us the

method.

Jesus gives

us himself.

He places

his spirit

within us.

some

translations

in your

Bible, some

of them will

say the

word helper.

It's not a

very helpful

word.

When you

think of a

helper, you

think of

someone, you

know, oh I

can't quite

bend down and

get that, can

you pick that

up for me?

Or can you

help me carry

this thing

in?

Nice, that's

not quite

what that

word's about.

It's about

an advocate.

What's an

advocate do?

They speak

for us.

They speak

through us.

We need the

advocate, we

need the

spirit.

Because loving

our neighbour

quite often

feels impossible.

Let's just

think, we

live in

quite, we're

in Clevedon,

I'm coming

from Bristol,

we're in a

mess right now

generally in

the world, but

we're still in a

very good place

in contrast to

a lot of

other places

in the world.

And I wonder

if you find it

easy to talk to

your neighbour,

neighbour,

literally to talk

to your neighbour.

That feels like

impossibility,

especially for my

generation.

Some of you guys

are probably like,

yeah, we're best

friends with our

neighbours and we

have dinner parties

all the time.

I've been in our

house for two and a

half years and I've

had my first

conversation with

one of my neighbours

and it went,

can you please

stop parking over

my drive?

Your car's going

to get scratched.

That's the reality

of my generation.

It's like almost,

the hardest thing

to do is just to

talk to the other

and there's no

real animosity,

there's no real

enemy there,

it's just,

I'm a product of

the millennial

generation where we

think that the

world revolves

around me and

I'm always fighting

that, you know.

And yeah,

this is the call

to love our

neighbour,

love the other.

Man, if I can't

even talk to my

neighbour,

if I can't even,

yeah, just knock

on the door and

ask for some sugar

because I'm of

pride,

if I can't even

do that,

how am I supposed

to love the one

that really annoys

me?

We need the

advocate because

loving our neighbour

actually sounds like

madness.

It makes no

sense.

We need the

advocate.

Today we

remember that the

true enemy is the

prince of this

world, not my

neighbour, not

the ever.

It's the prince of

this world who

brings division,

hate, hurt and

roams the earth

seeking to destroy

those little moments

of light.

But we know he

cannot distinguish

the light.

Light has come

into the world and

the darkness has

not, will not,

cannot overcome

it.

He will not

win.

But it isn't

easy.

We are living in

the in-between.

Sometimes we think

that light has

gone out.

Sometimes life

feels like that.

Wars remind us

of that.

it feels like the

light has gone

out.

And yet, that

video at the start

was great.

In the darkness

of war, people

choose light.

Wow.

love.

So we have a

choice.

We have a role

to play.

Jesus does not

command us to

love because it's

nice.

For the disciples

loving their

neighbour, loving

their Abba, Abba,

Uber, other, took

them to the cross,

took them to

execution, took

them to exile, took

them to persecution.

And in the face of

those things, they

chose to love.

Only because of the

advocate.

But it is a

command for one

reason alone.

And Harry knew

this.

Love is the most

powerful thing.

Love is the only

way.

Because when we

face our enemies,

when we face the

darkness, if we

love in the face

of hate, it

breaks down walls.

If we love in the

face of hurt, it

softens hardened

hearts.

And right now, I

bet you can think

of places where you

need that.

I bet you can think

of hurt.

You can think of

hardened hearts.

You can think of

hate.

What in you?

You want a

faction?

You want to pick

a side?

You want to be

them and us?

Well, Jesus has

got a challenge for

you.

He's got a

challenge for me.

If you love me,

obey my command.

Love God.

And love your

neighbour.

So today, we

remember those who

have loved and

lost.

We remember those

who have given up

everything for the

possibility of peace.

love.

But what are you going

to do with that

memory?

What did and

does Jesus ask of

us in response to

evil when it

manifests?

In response to

the God whose

weapon was a

cross?

Whose weapon

was and is and

will always be

agape love?

As

disciples,

may we

pursue this

greater love?

Amen.