Love One Another

1 John 3:18 (Common English Translation)"Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and truths."

This passage is probably written in the late 1st century by the same John who wrote the Gospel of John. But it could also have been written in the late 21st century by Archbishop Desmond Tutu, an African Episcopalian leader and visionary. The life of Desmond Tutu reveals how God's word is alive and powerful in our time.

Desmond Tutu lived in South Africa in the late 20th century when 'apartheid', the separation of whites and blacks, severely limited the rights of South African blacks. Working with Nelson Mandela, who had been imprisoned 27 years for his opposition to apartheid, Tutu opposed hatred and embraced love. After Mandela was released from prison and became President of South Africa, he appointed Tutu to oversee the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a body that helped South Africa heal from the crimes of apartheid through confession by those who committed the crimes, forgiveness by those who suffered, and restitution to those who had been abused.

Both Mandela and Tutu embraced the African concept of ubuntu (ooh-boon-too). In Tutu's words, "It refers to gentleness, to compassion, to hospitality, to openness to others, to vulnerability, to be available to others and to know that you are bound up with them in the bundle of life."

In his book, God Has a Dream: A Vision of Hope for our Time, Desmond Tutu states, "We tend to think love is a feeling, but it is not. Love is an action; love is something we do for others." He further says, "For he who would love God must love his brother also. And so the divine judgment about our fitness for heaven will be based not on whether we went to church, whether we prayed or did other equally important religious things. No, Jesus says it will be based on whether we fed the hungry, clothed the naked. We do this not because of our politics, but because of our religion. Blessed be God our God for being such a God."

Throughout his lifetime, Desmond Tutu received over 100 honorary degrees. In 1984 he received the Nobel Peace Prize . He was often compared to Martin Luther King, and Jesse Jackson referred to him as the "Martin Luther King of Africa." But he remained a humble man.

Tutu believed that "The evil that we do to one another is much easier to see than the everyday acts of goodness and generosity that we do for one another in the sweep of human history. But ultimately this tally of history does not tell us whether God has a plan or a dream. It simply tells us to what extent we have chosen to heed God's call, to become partners with God in realizing His dream."

Prayer

Dear Lord, give us the courage and faith to live into your dream for the world even if we cannot see its fruition in our time. Help us to love not with words or speech but with actions and truths. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen.

This podcast was written by Laura Derr and read by Judy Wilson.

Grace for All is a daily devotional podcast produced by the members of the congregation of First United Methodist Church in Maryville, Tennessee. With these devotionals, we want to remind listeners on a daily basis of the love and grace that God extends to all human beings, no matter their location, status, or condition in life.

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First United Methodist Church is a lively, spirit-filled congregation whose goal is to spread the message of love and grace into our community and throughout the world. We are located on the web at https://1stchurch.org/.