Harvest Festival Sermon, Berlin Oct. 1931
Bonhoeffer uses this phrase for his sermon meditation: “… your love is better than life.”
He wonders if it is really true. Religion is often said to make us happy and contented and maybe religion does that. But for God himself, the living God, it is basically false. God forces us to choose between our lives and loving him, and that is not a state of contentment. We think attending church and putting a few buck in the offering plate is sufficient to demonstrate our love for God. Oh, and we are friendly and peaceful in our attitude toward the lord.
But, that it is not enough. God asks us how much we value his love and our answer is often not as much as our lives. And, that pushes God away. But, God doesn’t go away, thankfully. He pushes and assaults us and leads us to value his love more than out lives.
“'God, your love is better than life.' Amen”
Tuesday; April 29, 2014