Love Is Everything: “V is for very, very Extraordinary (Part III)

Sermon Title: Love is Everything – “V is for very, very extraordinary”

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 15^th, 2026 at Dogwood Prairie UMC & Seed Chapel UMC

Pastor Daniel G. Skelton, M.Div.

 

Scripture (NRSV): 1 Samuel 1:2-20 Today’s scripture reading comes from the Old Testament, from the writings of Samuel who tells of a man who loved his wife, even though she was unable to bear him a child. Our reading comes from First Samuel, Chapter One, Verses Two-Twenty. May the hearing and reading of this scripture add understanding to your life.

² He had two wives; the name of one was Hannah, and the name of the other Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah had no children.

³ Now this man used to go up year by year from his town to worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts at Shiloh, where the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were priests of the Lord. ⁴ On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters, ⁵ but to Hannah he gave a double portion^[a] because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. ⁶ Her rival used to provoke her severely, to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. ⁷ So it went on year by year; as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. ⁸ Her husband Elkanah said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?”

⁹ After they had eaten and drunk at Shiloh, Hannah rose and presented herself before the Lord.^[b] Now Eli the priest was sitting on the seat beside the doorpost of the temple of the Lord. ¹⁰ She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly. ¹¹ She made this vow: “O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants,^[c] and no razor shall touch his head.”

¹² As she continued praying before the Lord, Eli observed her mouth. ¹³ Hannah was praying silently; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard; therefore Eli thought she was drunk. ¹⁴ So Eli said to her, “How long will you make a drunken spectacle of yourself? Put away your wine.” ¹⁵ 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. ¹⁶ Do not regard your servant as a worthless woman, for I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation all this time.” ¹⁷ Then Eli answered, “Go in peace; the God of Israel grant the petition you have made to him.” ¹⁸ And she said, “Let your servant find favor in your sight.” Then the woman went her way and ate and drank with her husband,^[d] and her countenance was sad no longer.^[e]

¹⁹ They rose early in the morning and worshiped before the Lord; then they went back to their house at Ramah. Elkanah knew his wife Hannah, and the Lord remembered her. ²⁰ In due time Hannah conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, “I have asked him of the Lord.”

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 third letter found in the word love. “V is for very, very extraordinary.”

 

Movement One: A Recap of Where we have been…

Two weeks, 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).[4] For Paul, love is everything. As a matter of fact, love 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). And this love, what Paul describes, was present during creation and is present today.

Last week, we looked at the first two letters of the word love as inspired by the words sung by Nat King Cole in 1964: “L is for the way you look at me; O is for the only one I see.” In the very beginning, at the genesis of life, whatever God created, He not only said “it was very good” (Genesis 1:31), but He saw everything that He created. God saw everything that He created.

Last week, we asked the question, “What does it mean that God saw everything?” God saw Adam and Eve, God saw the stars, God saw the land and the water, God saw the night and day, God saw the vegetation, and God saw the animals of the land and the creatures of the water and the birds in the sky. God saw everything that He created. 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. This means, that when God looks at you, He sees something, someone that is not just good but is loved. To be loved means to be seen by God.

Then we explored the words “O is for the only one I see.” To this we reflected on Matthew 14:22-33 which tells of the story of Jesus calming the storm and inviting Peter to get out of the boat and walk on water. 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 could no longer see the light above the surface. 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.

God looks at us with love in His heart and He invites us to offer the same thing to Him and to those in our life. We will sink in life: we will doubt, we will fear, we will lose hope, we will have a lack of faith and trust, and we will get distracted. But in those moments, we must not turn our eyes away from the person or persons that we love but toward thembecause they will be the ones to reach down and pull us out of the water. “O is for the only one I see”: so, who in your life do you look at with love in your heart?

Today, we explore the third letter of love: the letter “v”. According to Nat King Cole, “V is very, every extraordinary.” How has the love of Christ done extraordinary things in your life?

 

Movement Two: Extraordinary, what does that mean?

Have you ever witnessed something that you would describe as extraordinary? Have you ever been a part of something that others described as extraordinary? Have you ever just said, “Now that… that was extraordinary”? I’m sure thinking about your life today, that you can say yes to all of these questions. You have witnessed, you have been a part of, and you have even used the word extraordinary to describe something or someone. But, have you ever really taken the time to look up the definition of “extraordinary”?

According to the Merriam-Webster online dictionary, extraordinary is defined as the following: “going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary; of or relating to a proceeding or action not normally required by law; exceptional to a very marked extent; and employed for or sent on a special function or service.”[5] Now the last definition related to being employed for or sent on a specific function is not one that we typically think about when we hear the word extraordinary, but encountering something or someone going beyond what is usual, regular, or customary is a definition that we can relate to. Let’s break this word down even further.

“Extraordinary” originated from the early 15^th-century Latin term extraordinarius, meaning “out of the common order” or “outside of what is ordinary.” It combines extra (“outside or beyond”) and ordinem (“order or rank”). By the late 15^th-century, the term shifted from simply meaning “unusual” to also implying “remarkable” or “wonderful.” This shift as lasted until now. When we use the term extraordinary to describe something or someone, more often than not, we are thinking about how remarkable or wonderful or even how out of the ordinary that moment was. For example, over the past 100 years, we have witnessed remarkable, wonderful, outside of what is ordinary, extraordinary moments. The first human in space, Yuri Gagarin, happened in 1961 that was extraordinary. Then in 1969, we experienced the first moon landing and heard these words from Neil Armstrong, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind,” that was extraordinary. The discovery of antibiotics such as penicillin in 1928 and the first heart transplant in 1967 were extraordinary. The creation of the first programmable computer in 1936, the invention of the World Wide Web in 1989, and the continual rise of mobile technology are extraordinary moments. How about the first cloned mammal, Dolly the sheep, in 1996, that is extraordinary. How about the realization that we have transitioned from one millennium to another millennium, even though it was predicted that the world would end in the year 2000, that’s extraordinary. How about tractors and vehicles that that can now drive themselves, that’s extraordinary. How about the Cubs winning the World Series for the second time in 2016 after a hundred-and-eight year wait that was not only extraordinary but a miracle.

Church, extraordinary moments happen around the world every day. However, extraordinary moments don’t have to be world changing. As a matter of fact, extraordinary moments can simply happen inside of you, in your own life. Hearing a baby cry for the first time, seeing a child take their steps, and say their first words are extraordinary moments. Passing a test, graduating, getting a new job, driving on your own, taking a trip, and spending time with family and friends are extraordinary moments. Getting the chance to stare into the eyes of the one you love, making a promise, taking a vow, to spend the rest of your life together is an extraordinary moment. For some of us, getting out of bed without groaning or moaning or being in pain is an extraordinary moment. Receiving the chance to laugh and smile after a busy and tough day is an extraordinary moment.  Life is filled with extraordinary moments. But why? What does God want us to witness in those extraordinary, remarkable, and wonderful moments? Scripture may have an answer…

 

Movement Three: The Extraordinary moments in scripture…

In scripture, at least in the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, the word extraordinary only appears three times. In Daniel 2:31, when Daniel is interpreting a dream to King Nebuchadnezzar, we read these words, “You were looking, O king, and there appeared a great statue. That statue was huge, its brilliance extraordinary; it was standing before you, and its appearance was frightening.” In Acts 19:11, through Luke’s account of Paul’s mission to grow the church, we are told that “God did extraordinary miracles through Paul…” Then when writing to the people of Corinth, Paul notes, as he explains the power of God, “But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us” (2 Corinthians 4:7). King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream was extraordinary because it was something out of the ordinary. God was performing miracles through Paul so that the people could witness the extraordinary works of faith and trust in Christ—something they had never seen before. And the people, struggling to maintain their faith in Corinth, were reminded of how extraordinary—how wonderful and how marvelous—the power of God really is in their life.

During the time of Jesus’ ministry, we don’t hear of people describing what they see and hear as something extraordinary. Rather they use a different word that indicates that something out of the ordinary has happened, has caught their attention. This word is “amazed.” The word amazed appears forty times in the New Testament: eight times in Mathew, seven times in mark, twelve times in Luke, ten times in Acts, and three times in the Book of Revelation. When Jesus calmed the storm, Matthew indicates that the people were amazed, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him?” (Matthew 8:27. In Mathew 9:33, the people are left amazed seeing how Jesus cast out a demon of a mute man who then spoke as the crowds were saying, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel.” After healing the man on the mat, the man stood up and immediately took the mat and went out before all of them, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” (Mark 2:12). Prior to his crucifixion in the Gospel of Mark, when Pontius Pilate is questioning Jesus, we are told that Jesus’ silence left Pilate amazed (Mark 15:5). After Jesus is born, and the shepherds make their way to Bethlehem to reveal what the angels have told them—upon which Mary treasured in her heart—all “who heard their news were amazed” (Luke 2:18). Upon being presented in the temple in the Gospel of Luke by Simeon, we are told “And the child’s father and mother were amazed at what was being said about him” (Luke 2:33). Luke indicates in the Book of Acts, as the church was forming and growing, “Now when [the people] saw the boldness of Peter and John and realized that they were uneducated  and ordinary men, they were amazed and recognized them as companions of Jesus” (Acts 4:13). Lastly, Matthew 15:31 asserts, “so that the crowd was amazed when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing. And they praised the God of Israel.”

Do you still need more proof? David, a shepherd boy took down the giant Goliath with a sling shot and five stones: that’s extraordinary. Moses, who at first doubted himself and questioned God, was able to lead the Israelites through the Red Sea and to the Promised Land, escaping starvation and death: that’s extraordinary. Joshua fought the battle of Jericho and witnessed the walls come tumbling down: that’s extraordinary. Job lived through grief and pain and immense suffering but kept his faith in God: that’s extraordinary. Rahab, a prostitute, hid spies from the enemies, risked her life, and chose to believe in God: that’s extraordinary. The twelve disciples were able to believe in Christ, give up their daily living for three years, and trust in someone they really didn’t know: that’s extraordinary. Zacchaeus, a greedy tax collector, promised to give half of his possessions to the poor: that’s extraordinary. The woman who bled for twelve years reached out to touch Jesus’ cloak: that’s extraordinary. A sinful woman wiped the feet of Jesus with her tears and hair: that’s extraordinary. The centurion soldier at the foot of the cross during Jesus’ crucifixion decided to follow Jesus: that’s extraordinary. The thief on the cross was welcomed into Paradise because he sought forgiveness: that’s extraordinary. And Jesus, being resurrected, rolling the stone away, and walking out the tomb, now that’s extraordinary.

People, before Jesus, during the time of Jesus, and after Jesus, were amazed at what Jesus was doing. Why? Because they were witnessing something that was out of the ordinary, that wasn’t the custom of the day, that was something new. The people were amazed! The people found themselves witnessing something extraordinary! The people were standing in the presence of someone who would change their life. Has God ever done something extraordinary in your life?

Now you may be asking yourself, “What does all this have to do with love?” So let me offer some clarification.

 

Movement Four: An Extraordinary Love…

Let’s turn to our scripture passage for today. In First Samuel chapter one, 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: “O Lord of hosts, if only you will look on the misery of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant but will give to your servant a male child, then I will set him before you as a nazirite until the day of his death. He shall drink neither wine nor intoxicants, and no razor shall touch his head” (1 Samuel 1:11).

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). “She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly” (1 Samuel 1:10).  From Hannah’s mouth to God’s ears, her prayer was answered. In due time Hannah, conceived and bore a son. She named him Samuel, for she said, “I have asked him of the Lord” (1 Samuel 1:20).

I chose this story from scripture, not because Hannah’s prayer was answered, but because of how the story begins. First Samuel 1:4-8 tells us, “On the day when Elkanah sacrificed, he would give portions to his wife Peninnah and to all her sons and daughters, but to Hannah he gave a double portion because he loved her, though the Lord had closed her womb. Her rival used to provoke her severely, to irritate her, because the Lord had closed her womb. So it went on year by year; as often as she went up to the house of the Lord, she used to provoke her. Therefore Hannah wept and would not eat. Her husband Elkanah said to her, ‘Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? Why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?’”

This is an extraordinary moment that reminds us of how extraordinary and remarkable and wonderful and amazing love is. While giving portions from the sacrifice, Elkanah gives a double portion to Hannah because he loved her. Keep in mind that Elkanah had every right to be upset with Hannah, could have divorced Hannah, could have punished Hannah, could have ignored Hannah, and could have treated her less than Peninnah all because she was unable to perform the task of being with child. But instead, we are told that he loves her. He noticed her weeping. He saw that she wasn’t eating. He witnessed her broken and sad heart. And knowing that he couldn’t do much, he decided to stay by her side. Why? Because he loved her.

If you think about it, we never hear this about Adam and Eve, or Abraham and Sara, or about David and Bathsheba, or about Joseph and Mary, or about Zechariah and Elizabeth. We can assume that they had love for one another through their actions, but we never read that they loved each other. In the case of Elkanah and Hannah, there exists more than physical proof of their love; there exists a verbal evidence that love was present. Elkanah, even in Hannah’s weeping, stress, frustration, doubt, and feeling as if she was the problem loved her. He kept no record of wrongs. That’s extraordinary. That’s why love is very, very extraordinary.

When it comes to love, what makes love extraordinary, especially the love that Jesus Christ gives us every day, is that it is still present on our bad days, when tears fall, when struggles persist, when hope seems lost, when pain is too strong to bear, when darkness overcomes the light, when challenges hold us back, when nothing matters, when stress is far more than we can handle. Remember what Paul said in his letter to the Romans, “For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). What makes love extraordinary is that nothing can take away the love that God has given us, that Jesus has gifted us, and that those in our life have shared with us. Love is very, very extraordinary.

For a moment, I invite you to think about your life, and how love got you through way more than you could imagine. Think about how in struggling times, you were able to still provide for your family. Think about how you were able to put food on the table. Think about how when life was overwhelming you still found a moment to give someone a hug and offer a smile. Think about how you were busy, busy, busy, but still found time to support the interests of your children getting them to and from soccer, basketball, softball, and baseball practices, dance lessons and tumbling lessons, cow and pig shows, 4-H events, to birthday parties, school concerts and performances, and so much more. Think about how you were able to find time to spend a few hours, alone, with the person you love.

In the movie Bruce Almighty, God (played by Morgan Freeman) explains that true miracles are not about supernatural tricks, but rather human actions. These miracles turn into extraordinary moments. God to Bruce defines a miracle as a single mother working two jobs and still taking her son to soccer practice, or a teenager refusing drugs and choosing education. These miracles are extraordinary moments of God’s love at work.

 Life doesn’t always make it easy to love, but it does provide moments in which we do love.

Love is very, very extraordinary because it allows us to do things that we never thought we would be able to do: as Paul said, “It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7). And you know why it seems as if love can do the impossible and so much more? Because the love that you have been given, the reason why it is extraordinary, has come directly from Jesus Christ—the very person who left the people amazed. We are nothing without love, but with love we are more than we can imagine and can do more than we ever thought possible.

Church, the love that you have been given is evident in what you have done together, in the people that walk through the doors of the church, in the events that we host, in the ministries we support, in the projects we undertake, in the hope that this church will be here tomorrow, in the promise that we can face tomorrow together, in the jokes, laughter, and smiles we share with one another, and in the realization that we are in this together. Love is very, very extraordinary because it has guided us to experience life beyond what is usual. And if you think about it, that’s the love the people felt every time that Jesus left them amazed. They were amazed because they saw how powerful love can be when they put it first in their life. It’s no wonder why the two greatest commandments have to deal with love. According to the Beatles, “love is all you need.”

 

Conclusion:

I will end with this. Growing up, I remember singing a hymn composed by Charles Wesley in 1738. The title of the hymn is “And Can It Be, That I Should Gain?” The opening verse goes like this: “And can it be that I should gain, An int’rest in the Savior’s blood? Died He for me, who caused His pain? For me, who Him to death pursued? Amazing love! how can it be That Thou, my God, should die for me?” and the chorus follows, “Amazing love! how can it be, That Thou, my God, should die for me!”[6] Then in 2003, a Christian contemporary group produced a similar song titled “You Are My King (Amazing Love)”: “I’m forgiven because You were forsaken. I’m accepted, You were condemned. I’m alive and well, Your Spirit is within me, Because You died and rose again. Amazing love, how can it be, That You, my King, should die for me? Amazing love, I know it’s true. And it’s my joy to honor You. In all I do, to honor You.”[7] And today, I’ve learned a new hymn that shares these words: “How marvelous! How wonderful! And my song shall ever be: How marvelous! How wonderful! Is my Saviour’s love for me!”[8]

God’s love is not just amazing, or marvelous, or wonderful. God’s love, shone through the life of Jesus Christ, is very, very extraordinary because it does things in your life that guides you beyond what is usual in hopes of doing something new, of finding that special person that changes your life.

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 in the Bible is extraordinary! It saved people; it healed people; it changed people; and it left people feeling amazed. How will you let yourself experience a love that is very, very extraordinary?

Let it be so…

 

Closing Prayer:

Let us pray: Dear God, your love for us is amazing. Your love is marvelous. Your love is wonderful. And the love that you gave to Jesus to share with all of us is extraordinary. Help us this week to let this extraordinary love to live a life beyond what is usual as we spend time with those in our life who we love and who love us. In your loving name we pray, Amen.

 

Benediction:

Church, you have been given a love that is very, very extraordinary. How are you going to let that love change your life, grow our church, and help others feel loved? 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] 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.” 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).^[4] 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).^[4] 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).^[4] 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.

[5] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/extraordinary  Accessed on February 9, 2026.

[6] https://hymnary.org/text/and_can_it_be_that_i_should_gain  Accessed February 10, 2026.

[7] You Are My King (Amazing Love),” Newsboys, produced by Capitol CMG Publishing, 2023.

[8] “My Saviour’s Love” Charles H. Gabriel, The New Church Hymnal,  Newbury Park, California: Lexicon Music, Inc., 1976. Pg. 58.