Love Is Everything: The ‘L’ and ‘O’ of Love (Part II)

Sermon Title: Love is Everything – “L is for the Way You Look at Me”

Good News Statement: God’s love is everything and God’s love is for us

Summary: Love is more than something we define, more than something we say, more than something we feel: love is what lives within us and changes us every day.

Preached: Sunday, February 8^th, 2026 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 Today’s scripture reading comes from the Gospel of Matthew. In this account, we find Jesus looking at Peter as Peter attempts to walk on water. Jesus looks upon Peter with love while Peter takes his eyes off of the one who loves him. Our reading comes from the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter Fourteen, Verses Twenty-Two thru Thirty-Three. May the hearing and reading of this scripture add understanding to your life.

Jesus Walks on the Water

²² Immediately he made the disciples get into a boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. ²³ And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, ²⁴ but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. ²⁵ And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. ²⁶ But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. ²⁷ But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”

²⁸ Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” ²⁹ He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. ³⁰ But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” ³¹ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” ³² When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³ And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

 

This is the Word of God for the People of God; And all God’s people said, “Thanks be to God.”

 

 

Introduction:            

If you have ever been to a wedding, you probably have heard some of these songs: “Can’t Help Falling in Love” by Elvis Presley, “Here Comes the Sun” by The Beatles, “Love is All You Need” also by the Beatles, “Earth Angel” by the Penguins, “Sugar, Sugar” by the Archies, “Sweat Pea” by Tommy Roe, “At Last” by Etta James, “Cinderella” by Steven Curtis Chapman, and “Canon in D” by Johann Pachelbel. For those of the younger generations, some of your wedding songs consist of “All of Me” by John Legend, “Perfect” by Ed Sheeran, “Better Together” by Us The Duo, “Marry Me” by Jason Derulo, “Count on Me” by Bruno Mars, “Joy of My Life” by Chris Stapleton, “The Rest of Our Life” by Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, “When I Say I Do” by Matthew West, “You Are the Reason” by Calum Scott, “From the Ground Up” by Dan and Shay, and possibly “You Make My Dreams (Come True)” by Hall and Oates. And for this current generation, I bet the song that you will hear at their wedding will be “Lover” by Taylor Swift.

I’m sure many of us have heard at least a few of these songs. But the more I ponder this list, the more I think about a certain song that was played at Emily and I’s wedding, at my brother’s wedding, at my sister’s wedding, at my parent’s wedding, and possibly at your wedding. This song was featured in the 1998 movie The Parent Trap as the viewers witnessed the wedding of Nick and Liz. Four years prior to The Parent Trap, two children named Waldo and Darla captured the hearts of the viewers as they sang this song during a talent show in the 1994 movie The Little Rascals. To be honest with you, the song that I am talking about was released 30 years before the releasing of The Little Rascals, and it was sung, not by children, but by an individual named Nat King Cole. The song I am talking about is “L.O.V.E.”

Recite it with me, if you know it: “L is for the way you look at me; O is for the only one I see; V is very, very extraordinary; E is even more than anyone that you adore…” How many of you have heard this song? How many of you have heard it played during the reception of a wedding? How many of you included this song on your wedding playlist? It is evident that this 1964 song has left quite an impression since we are still hearing and singing it 62 years later. But why? Why has this song lasted for more than half-a-century? What makes this song a song of weddings of the past, present, and future across multiple generations? What does this song teach us about love?

For the next few weeks, we are going to use the song “L.O.V.E.” by Nat King Cole to help us understand the love that Christ gives us, and how we need this love in our life. Hopefully, by the end of this sermon series, we will be able to write our own definition (and maybe song) to the love that is in our heart, in our life, and in those that love us back. If you had to spell love, what words would you use to spell something that changes your life every day?

 

Body:

Love. It’s a word that has captured the curiosity of people for thousands of years. What is love? Is love an emotion? Is love an action? Is love something we only feel inside of us? Is love an expression of our past, present, or future? How does one love someone else? How does one love themselves? How do we know that love is real? Where does love come from? Who said “I love you” first? Is love important? I bet if I asked each of you to define the word ‘love,’ many of you would have a different definition. Why? Because love is sometimes hard to describe and even articulate.

I love how Dennis Nealon begins his article on “The Science of Love” published on the webpage for Harvard Medical School. He stated, “Love has been the source of ceaseless fascination since antiquity. Artists have tried to capture its beauty and darkness in books, paintings, and songs. Behavioral scientists have explored love as a social ritual, psychologists have studied its pathological manifestations, and evolutionary biologists have sought to define it as a drive linked to the very survival of our species.”[1] Nealon then states, “…love appear[s] to be essential to our overall well-being and, indeed, survival…”[2] In an article published in Psychology Today, Lybi Ma shares that love is considered to be one of our “most basic and fundamental needs.”[3] If you are having a troubling time defining what ‘love’ is, you aren’t alone. Artists struggle to capture its core and scientists, psychologists, biologists, and hundreds of others have struggled since the genesis of time to describe and define love. However, what they have concluded is that love is essential to our overall well-being and survival: it’s a basic and fundamental need. Therefore, as The Beatles famously sang, “Love is all you need.”

To be honest, we know we need love. We know, although mysterious, that love is something we can’t live without. We understand that even though we can’t define love that doesn’t mean we can’t show or offer love. We know we need love. But we also want to know what love is. Today, we focus on the first two letters of the word ‘love’: ‘L’ and ‘O’. ‘L’ is for the way the Lord looks at you and ‘O’ is for the only one you see.

 

Movement One: Paul’s definition of Love…

Last week, we began a new sermon series focused on love; specifically, on love found within scripture. Paul, in his letter or epistle to the Corinthians, notes, “Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable; it keeps no record of wrongs; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends…” (1 Corinthians 13:4-8). Paul, prior to these words, states that “If I speak in the tongues of humans and of angels but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and if I have all faith so as to remove mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions and if I hand over my body so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:1-3). The Message Bible notes, “So, no matter what I say, what I believe, and what I do, I’m bankrupt without love.” For Paul, love is everything. And we see how true this is when we take time to examine how scripture describes and defines and articulates love.

Depending on the translation of the Bible you read from, the word love appears in scripture 731 times.[4] Love appears at least once in sixty of the sixty-six books of the Protestant Bible: it does not appear in 2 Kings, Obadiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Haggai, or in the book of Acts. From this love, we are called to “love our masters,” to “love our neighbors,” to “love our enemies,” to “love ourselves,” to “love the Lord our God with all our heart, mind, body, and soul,” and to remember that the Lord’s love is steadfast and “endures forever.”

Not only does love in the Bible tell us what to do, but it also gives us different ways on how to love. In the New Testament, which was originally translated into Greek, there are four different words to define love. First, is stroge. Storge is defined as “familial affection.” This type of love and affection exists between family members, friends, or companions as seen in the Commandment to “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you” (Exodus 20:12).[5] Second is phileo. Phileo is defined as “friendship.” The city of Philadelphia was actually named with this kind of love in mind: Philadelphia means “The City of Brotherly or Friendship love.” Phileo most often describes a relationship between people focused on a common bond of shared beliefs, values, or interests, which the Apostle Paul describes to the people in Ephesus: they “[are to be] kind to one another, tenderhearted [toward one another], and forgive one another” (Ephesians 4:32).[6] And the author of Hebrews notes, “Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters.” Third is eros. Eros is defined as “passion.” This kind of passionate love is meant to describe a healthy, sensual love between those that are married. Song of Solomon states, “I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine…” (Song of Solomon 6:3).[7] Lastly is agape, the very love that Paul writes about. Agape is defined as “charity or unconditional.” Agape love is probably the most talked about of the four kinds of love. It is the highest, most complete form of affection. Jesus gave us many lessons about and examples of agape—a strong, selfless, and sacrificial love—during his earthly ministry. And now, we are called to live out that kind of love in our life today.

As we seek to embrace the love found in scripture, it’s important to remind ourselves of what love does in our life. Love, as expressed last week, is essential, effective, and eternal which is why it never fails nor ends. Love is essential because we need love in our life in order to live the life that God has gifted us. Love is effective because it changes us in powerful and meaningful ways. Love is also eternal suggesting that no matter what happens in our life nothing can separate us from the love of Jesus Christ (Romans 8:38-39) who is the “same yesterday, and today, and for ever” (Hebrews 13:8). But the question I need us to answer is “How do we live out this kind of love in our life?” Answer: it begins be realizing that is comes from the one who looks at you and is for the only one you see.

 

Movement Two: “L is for the way you look at me…”

In 1964, Nat King Cole released a song titled “L.OV.E.” which appeared in the 1998 movie The Parent Trap during wedding of Nick and Liz; and four years prior to The Parent Trap, two children named Waldo and Darla captured the hearts of viewers as they sang this song during a talent show in the 1994 movie The Little Rascals. The chorus of this song goes like this: “L is for the way you look at me; O is for the only one I see; V is very, very extraordinary; E is even more than anyone that you adore…” It is evident that this 1964 song has left quite an impression since we are still hearing and singing it 62 years later. And today, I would like to use Nat King Cole’s understanding of what the letters ‘L’ and ‘O’ mean to help us understand the love found in scripture.

First, “L is for the way you look at me.” I want to take you back to the very beginning when God created the heavens and the earth: the genesis of love so to speak. In the opening chapter of Genesis, we read these words: “Then God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good, and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day…. And God said, ‘Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from the waters.’ God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day…. And God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’…  The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the third day…. And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the dome of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years, and let them be lights in the dome of the sky to give light upon the earth.’ And God saw that it was good. And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day…. And God said, ‘Let the waters bring forth swarms of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the dome of the sky.’… And God saw that it was good…. And there was evening and there was morning, the fifth day…. And God said, ‘Let the earth bring forth living creatures of every kind: cattle and creeping things and wild animals of the earth of every kind.’… And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ‘Let us make humans in our image, according to our likeness, and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’… And God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day” (Genesis 1: 3-5, 6, 8-9, 12-15, 18-19, 20-21, 23-25, & 31).

We have heard these words before. We have studied these words before. We have explored these words before. But, when was the last time you heard, studied, and explored these words with God’s love in mind? Aside from day two of creation, the author of Genesis, probably Moses, indicates that “And God saw that it was good.” God saw His creation. What does it mean that God saw his creation? The Hebrew word translated as “good” in the English is tov. The term rendered “very good” is hennah tov, which could be translated as “certainly good” or “surely good.” It is noteworthy that the word good is never actually defined in the Bible—the concept is simply assumed, which could be the reasoning behind Jesus’ comment to the rich man that “No one is good but God alone” (Mark 10:18) because God alone is the only one who truly understands what is good. Nevertheless, it does seem, though, that the kind of good referenced in Genesis 1 is a good in the qualitative sense of functionality. Because of the success in design and execution of all that was created, it could be that God was calling things good because they were effective for fulfilling the function for which He designed them. If so, this would reflect a kind of instrumental good: a good that has a purpose, a function, and is aligned with divine intent, and indicates parts of this world that are beautiful, harmonious, and have met God’s standards.

Additionally, it is also worth noting that in each of these instances it is said that God “saw” that it was good. That God was observing that these things were good implies that He had a design and purpose in mind and that the created products met His approval—He judged them to be effective for serving His purpose. God saw… God saw what He created. For a moment, just let that sink in: God saw. God saw Adam and Eve, God saw the stars, God saw the land and water, God saw the night and day, God saw the vegetation, and God saw the animals of the land and the sea creatures of the water. God saw everything that He created: what we can see and what we can’t see. Not only did God see but He still sees today. Why? Because when God saw what was good, He saw the product of His love. God saw love in action.

Nat King Cole sang, “L is for the way you look at me.” God not only saw His creation, but He came to love His creation because of what He saw. When God looks at His creation, He probably sees things that He didn’t create, that aren’t so good; but, even in the hate and disunity and war of today, God still sees what is good and what has been created by His love. When He looks at His creation today, He sees you. “L is for the way God looks at you.” He looks at you with love in His heart. Second Chronicles 16:9 states, “For the eyes of the LORD roam throughout the earth, so that He may strongly support those whose heart is completely His.”

A couple of weeks ago, when talking about how who God chooses God uses, some of you found yourself asking, “Why would God choose me? Why would God want to use me to do His work on earth as it is in heaven? Does he not realize what I have done in my past? Does He not remember the lies I’ve told, the pain I’ve caused, the hate I’ve expressed? Does He not recognize the sins and failures and mistakes I’ve committed?” And my response was, “Why wouldn’t God want to choose and use you?” Why wouldn’t God want to choose and use what He has created in His image? Why wouldn’t God want to choose and use what He has “fearfully and wonderfully” made (Psalm 139:13-14)? God doesn’t deny His creation; it’s His creation that denies Him. So, why wouldn’t God want to use you when He created you? Even on your worst day, God is still going to choose you. Even on your worst day, God is stilling looking at you because He loves you.

Just think about your life for a moment. Think about all those times when you felt alone but you weren’t because God saw you. Consider those moments when you fell but God saw you. Ponder those moments when you were too tired but God saw you and promised you rest. How about those moments when tears fell, or when you were at your breaking point, or when life didn’t seem fair but God got you through it: He wiped away your tears, He kept you together, and He opened another door for you. Why? Because God saw you. Scripture reminds us that God handpicked us for His special purpose (1 Peter 2:9 and Jeremiah 1:5). We are deeply loved and are God’s precious children (John 3:16, 1 John 3:1, and 1 Peter 2:9). Through faith in Christ, we have become part of His family, no longer a slave but an heir (Romans 8:15 and Galatians 4:7). We are God’s special treasure, a people belonging to Him (Deuteronomy 7:6 and 1 Peter 2:9). God claims you as one of His own; because He loves you. God saw that it was good. God sees you today, just as you are—bothered, worried, stressed, scared, joyful, happy, blessed—because He loves you. “L is for the way God looks at you.” God looks at you with love in is heart.

Now Church, can you look at someone in your life the same way God looks at you? I bet there is someone in your life, maybe sitting next to you that every time they look into your eyes or look in your general direction, you feel loved—as if everything is good. Love is not just about what we do or how we feel. Love is about how others look at us and see us for who we truly are. You know, there was a moment when Emily and I were standing in front of our family and friends waiting to say “I do” when I realized her staring at me. At that moment, nothing else mattered: time stood still. When someone who loves you looks at you, nothing else matters. You are right where you need to be.

God saw what He created and called it good not because evil was absent, but because He loved what He saw. “L is for the way you look at me” is so true. Love is how others look at us. Love hears us. Love feels us. And love sees us. Before you go to bed this evening, look at the one who looks at you with love in their eyes and in their heart and remind yourself that you are loved, that all is good.

 

Movement Three: “O is for the only one I see…”

Second, Nat King Cole sang, “O is for the only one I see.” Now, it’s our turn to look at the one who loves us. Let’s turn to a familiar passage in scripture, when both Jesus and Peter walk on water. Matthew 14:22-33 asserts, “Immediately [Jesus] made the disciples get into a boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.’ Peter answered him, ‘Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.’ He said, ‘Come.’ So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and, beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ When they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, ‘Truly you are the Son of God.’”

Many of us have heard this particular passage used to talk about doubt, fear, faith, trust, and the calming presence of Christ during our storms, especially when we call out “Lord, save me.” But there is another lesson here that is tied to love. While Peter was walking on the water, the text says he “noticed the wind, became frightened, began to sink, and cried to Jesus to save him.” In this story, Jesus never took his eyes off of Peter. However, that is not the case for Peter. While walking on the water, Peter stopped looking at Jesus: he got distracted and began to sink deeper and deeper and deeper into the water until he saw the hand of Christ rescue him. Peter took his eyes off Jesus. Peter took his eyes off of the one who could save him. Peter took his eyes off of the one who could calm the storm. Ultimately, Peter took his eyes off of the one who loved him. And because of that, he began to sink.

How often have you taken your eyes off of the one who loves you? What happens? Do you feel like you are sinking? Do you feel like you need to be rescued? Do you feel like the storms of life are battering against your boat? As you think about these questions, I invite you to think about how keeping your eyes on the one you love can change your life and potentially save you so that you don’t end up like Peter and begin sinking in the water. David, a shepherd boy took down the giant Goliath because he kept his eyes on God. Moses was able to lead the Israelites through the Red Sea and to the Promised Land because he kept his eyes on God. Joshua was able to fight the battle of Jericho because he kept his eyes on God. Job lived through grief and pain and immense suffering but was given hope and a new life because he kept his eyes on God. The twelve disciples were able to believe in Christ because they kept their eyes on him. Zacchaeus, the wee little man who climbed up in the sycamore tree who was a greedy tax collector, changed his life because he kept his eyes on Christ. The centurion soldier at the foot of the cross during Jesus’ crucifixion was saved because he kept his eyes on Christ. The thief on the cross was welcomed into Paradise because he kept his eyes on Christ. Do you see the pattern? Those who kept their eyes on Christ, although were far from being perfect, all felt loved because they kept their eyes on Christ. They all felt loved because of the one they saw.

In First Samuel there is a touching story about a woman who wanted to have a child but couldn’t: her name was Hannah which means “favor or grace.” She was married to Elkanah, who had another wife named Peninnah, and she was able to bear children. One day, Hannah took matters into her own hands: she went to the temple and prayed that she would be with child. As she prayed, her mouth was moving but no sound was coming out. As a matter of fact, the priest Eli thought she was drunk and told Hannah to “put away your wine” (1 Samuel 1:14). But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman deeply troubled; I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the Lord. Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation all this time” (1 Samuel 1:15-16). From Hannah’s mouth to God’s ears, her prayer was answered. She gave birth to a child and named him Samuel (1 Samuel 1:19-20).

I share this story because in the midst of frustration and stress, we read these words, “because [Elkanah] loved her” (1 Samuel 1:4). Elkanah loves Hannah. He doesn’t express this same love to Peninnah, who has given him children. It’s not too often that we read in scripture of people openly confessing their love for one another: we see it and hear but we don’t read it. But here, in a story of fear and doubt and extreme sadness, we read how Elkanah saw Hannah with love. He didn’t know how to properly care for Hannah, but he loved her. Elkanah saw Hannah for who she was: someone hurting, someone doubting, someone wanting to give up; but those things didn’t matter. What mattered is that he saw the person that he truly loved: “for the only one I see.”

Church, when we truly see the person or persons that we love, we are providing them with assurance that they are not alone, that we are here for them, that we will do what it takes to make them feel loved. As I say these words, I am reminded of a story that I have shared numerous times that I believe conveys a powerful message about seeing the ones that we love. Author Jared E. Alcantara, in his book The Practices of Christian Preaching, shares: “In 1993, two young men living in Minneapolis got into a gang-related dispute, and one of them shot and killed the other. One was a teenager, and the other was twenty years old. The police informed the youth’s mother, a woman named Mary Johnson that her son, Marlon Byrd, had been shot and killed, and the police identified the killer: a teenage boy named Oshea Israel. The young man stood trial, was convicted of homicide, and was sent to the local penitentiary for the murder.”[8]

“Mary said all the right things after her son died. She explained to people at the trial that she was a Christian; she was a ‘daughter of the church.’ Thus she would find space in her heart to forgive her son’s killer. After all, that is what Christians do, or at least that is what they are supposed to do. But as time passed, Mary found bitterness and resentment eating away at her soul. It felt almost impossible to let go of the anger she felt….[9] So she made a decision that most mothers in her situation would not make. She decided to visit Oshea Israel in prison. She almost did not go through with it, but somehow she found courage and strength to move forward. To her surprise, he expressed openness to the idea. She started their meetings with simple discussions designed to get to know each other.”[10] Mary could have let Oshea sink in the water. Mary could have let the storms of life batter against Oshea’s boat. Mary could have let Oshea continue to drift at sea. But she didn’t. She forgave Oshea; and she not only forgave him, but she changed his life through love. Mary saw Oshea for what Oshea could be: a person of love.

All around us we see how the love of Christ changes us. All round us we see how the love of God forgives us. All around us we see those in our life whose love makes us feel wanted. “O is for the only one I see”: the one that you see is the one who loves you completely. The love you offer impacts the life of someone in more ways that you can imagine.

 

Conclusion:

When we begin to see those whom we love, the words of Jesus become even more meaningful. Jesus tells us “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:27-39). Prior to these words of love, Jesus tells us in Matthew 5:43-46, “’You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy. But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you that you may be children of your Father in heaven.’”

You know, even though Nat King Cole’s song is secular—not religious—I find that it is still able to teach us a valuable lesson when it comes to love in the Bible. Love is what God sees every time He looks at you. No matter what you have been through, God still loves you. Love in the Bible teaches us to see those who need to be loved, who need to feel like they matter, and who need the simple reminder that they are needed. Church, who is looking us with love in their heart? Church, who are we looking at with love in our heart? And personally, who reminds you every time they look at you that you are loved? And who is the one whom you look at with love in your heart? “L is for the way you look at me. O is for the only one I see.” Let the love of Christ see you so that you can see others with that same love.

Let it be so…

 

Closing Prayer:

Let us pray: Dear God, we thank you for seeing us and for acknowledging the good within us. We ask that as you continue to see us and love us, that you help us to see others with that same love. May the love you give us not only changes but draw us closer to you. In your holy name we pray, Amen.

 

Benediction:

Church, God is the one looking at you with love in His heart. Are you willing to look at others with that same love? This week take a moment to look at the person and persons you love and let them know that you love them. May the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; and May the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace (Numbers 6:24-26). In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit go forth embracing and sharing the love of Christ. And all God’s people said, Amen. Amen. Amen.

 

 

[1] Dennis Nealon, “The Science of Love,” Harvard Medical School, published February 10, 2025. Accessed January 28, 2026. https://hms.harvard.edu/news/science-love

[2] Dennis Nealon, “The Science of Love,” Harvard Medical School, published February 10, 2025. Accessed January 28, 2026. https://hms.harvard.edu/news/science-love Nealon quotes research conducted by Richard S. Schwartz and Jacqueline Olds.

[3] Lybi Ma, “The Need To Love”, Psychology Today. Published January 8, 2014. Assessed on January 28, 2026. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sapient-nature/201401/the-need-love

[4] It appears in the Old Testament 413 times, in the New Testament 228 times, and in the Apocrypha 90 times

[5] The Apostle Paul reminded spouses of God’s order to seek and show this type of love as well: “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh” (Ephesians 5:25).

[6] Romans 12:10 and Hebrews 13:1 demonstrate this kind of love. Romans asserts, “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.”

[7] Scripture clearly tells us that he cares about what we do with our bodies. Believers are cautioned to avoid showing eros love to anyone but our spouse, so that choices we make honor God. First Corinthians 6:18-20 informs us, “Flee from sexual immorality. All other sins a person commits are outside the body, but whoever sins sexually, sins against their own body. Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies.”

[8] Jared E. Alcantara, The Practices of Christian Preaching: Essentials for Effective Proclamation, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2019. pg.146.

[9] Jared E. Alcantara, The Practices of Christian Preaching: Essentials for Effective Proclamation, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2019. pg.146.

[10] Jared E. Alcantara, The Practices of Christian Preaching: Essentials for Effective Proclamation, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Baker Academic, 2019. pg. 146.