Sheryl Brady - Love Begins With Looking

Take your Bibles, if you will, and go to Luke chapter 10. Let’s remember these families in El Paso, Texas; Dayton, Ohio; and Allen, Texas, as Allen, Texas is affected. Luke chapter 10, and let’s begin reading. Today I’m reading from the New Living Translation, so if you want to follow along with me on the screen, chapter 10—Luke chapter 10. I’ll have it up there. Here we go. The Bible says, «One day, an expert in religious law stood up to test Jesus by asking Him this question: ‘Teacher, what should I do to inherit eternal life? ’ Jesus replied, ‘What does the law of Moses say? How do you read it? ’ The man answered, ‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind, and love your neighbor as yourself.’» Let’s say it again: «And love your neighbor as yourself.» I want you to say it again and say it like you’re speaking it into our community: «And love your neighbor as yourself.» I’m going to return to that passage in just a few moments.

But what I kept hearing yesterday after the tragedy was the people who were on the news saying, «If you see something, say something.» That seems to be a phrase we often hear in hindsight, and then we move on and don’t think about it again until another tragedy occurs. But I want to build on that for the next few moments, and I really want to talk from the subject: Love Begins with Looking.

Spirit of God, I thank You for this moment, and we thank You for Your Word. You know what we need. Pour in the oil and wine in our country, in our church, in our communities, in our neighborhoods, in our cities, and in our families. Let Your Word heal us today; let Your Word awaken us; may it change us, and we’ll give You the glory. In Jesus’ name, somebody holler, «Amen!» On your way down, just look at someone. Really look them in the eyes and tell them, «Love begins with looking.»

Our world seems to be becoming more and more fractured, divided, broken, and shattered with each passing day. How are we, as believers—this is what I was asking myself—how are we, as believers and how are we, as the body of Christ, supposed to respond to the senseless suffering that we all saw plastered across our TV screens yesterday? How are we supposed to stand in our fractured culture, in our fractured society, and in our fractured communities and still be agents of love, unity, harmony, peace, and healing? Because if the world has ever needed those things, it needs them right now.

The Bible says this, and you might want to write this scripture reference down for later, but in 1 Peter 2:16–17 it says, «Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as an excuse to do evil. Rather, be servants of God. Exercise your freedom by serving God and not by breaking the rules. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as an excuse to do evil; rather, use it to be a servant of God, not breaking the rules.»

This is what I love: it goes on and says, «Here’s what you do.» Peter gives us four things, and he says to us: «Treat everyone you meet with dignity, love your spiritual family, revere God, and respect the government.» This is the Word of God; this is what the Bible says.

In that time, Nero was murdering Christians and cutting off their heads, yet he still tells us to respect the government. Thank God we’re not quite to that extreme, but the Word tells us those four things: treat everyone you meet with dignity, love your spiritual family, be grateful for your church family, revere God, and respect the government. Growing up in America, I believe those were some of the core values instilled in me as a child, and I am grateful for each and every one of them. Those four things given to us by Peter are worth passing on to our children and our children’s children.

It would be good to do a Bible study with your family this week. Just gather around the table and glean from those four things. Talk to them, ask your family what those four things look like in our lives today, in our society. What does it look like to treat all people with dignity? What does it look like to love your church? What does it look like to revere God? What does it look like to respect the government?

Gather them around the table and talk about those four things, because the truth of the matter is, we cannot walk out in shoe leather what we don’t talk about at the table. You can never expect your children to do it if you do not discuss it with them. Walking out what we hear in the Word on Sunday and whenever we sit down to pick up the Bible is exactly what it’s all about. The gospel only becomes relevant when we live it out as the people of God. They may never pick up the Bible, but they may read the Word every day if they see you and you.