"Love's Power" (Luke 24: 1-12)

You may have heard by now: Universal Studios is opening a new section of the park called “The Wizarding World of Harry Potter.”

The official opening is April 7, but for over a month now, Universal Studios has been having what they call “technical rehearsals.” Without announcing or publicizing it, the area has frequently been open to the public. Thousands of people – my family included – have already walked down the streets of Hogsmeade village, explored the halls of Hogwarts castle, flown on a Hippogriff, and enjoyed a meal at the Three Broomsticks.

There’s a lot there, but the space is limited, and the books are long, which means there is also a lot that isn’t there. One of the things they don’t have at Universal Studios is Godric’s Hollow. Godric’s Hollow is the little town where Harry Potter was born; the town where his parents lived before they were killed.

In the seventh and final book of the series, Harry Potter finally goes to back Godric’s Hollow. He hadn’t been there since he was a baby. Upon arriving, the first thing he does is visit his parents’ grave. He is surprised to discover this saying etched on their tombstone:

The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

You all, I’m sure, recognize this as being from the Bible. Author J.K. Rowling has said that this is one of the main themes of the entire Harry Potter series.

Yet when Harry Potter sees this quote on his parents’ tombstone, he isn’t quite sure what it means. He knows that he will have to face evil in the form of Lord Voldemort, but he doesn’t yet know that in doing so, he will have to face death.

He also doesn’t yet know that the power of love is as strong as it is, strong enough to overcome death.

There have been hints along the way: the fact that he himself is alive is due to the power of his mother’s love. When he was just a baby, his mother sacrificed herself for him, and that act gave Harry a power that protected him.

In the fictional world of Harry Potter, with all its spells, potions, and wandwaving, the power of love proves to be the most powerful magic of all.

Love has power. Even the power to overcome death.

Harry Potter’s mother sacrificed herself to protect Harry, so that he could live. Without giving too much away for those who haven’t yet read the stories, that same kind of sacrificial love plays a key role at the end of the series… and again, love proves its power.

This is the power of Jesus’s love. The entire gospel of Luke is a prelude to the passion. For much of the book, Jesus is literally on the way to Jerusalem, where he will meet the forces of evil, the most powerful forces in the ancient world.

And the only weapon he carries with him is love.

Needless to say, love is no match for the might of Rome, and Jesus is arrested and executed.

And yet…

Love is not conquered.

Love’s power is not diminished.

I do wonder what Jesus’s emotions were as he made his way into Jerusalem. He knew of love’s power, but still… What kind of mixture of fear, love, and determination did he have?

Perhaps the only thing that kept Jesus from turning back was his prayer: “Not my will, but your will be done.”

And perhaps his understanding of love’s power to save, to conquer evil, kept Jesus’s face set on Jerusalem, even knowing that what awaited him there was crucifixion.

Do Christians today understand love’s power? Do we truly understand that it is the greatest power of all, the one power that can destroy death itself?

We know the verses: “God is love” … “If I do not have love, I am nothing” … and so on. But do we even come close to fully grasping how powerful love is?

Harry Potter didn’t understand what the saying on the tombstone meant. He didn’t realize just how powerful love is.

Neither did Anselm, an archbishop who lived 1000 years after the time of Christ.

Anselm didn’t understand. He thought the story about the crucifixion and resurrection was about anger and vengeance rather than love. Anselm thought that God was an angry God who was intent on punishing sin, and that only an acceptable substitute could keep humanity from the punishment that awaited. So, Anselm came up with the idea that Jesus had to die in place of all those who have sinned, that only by having a substitute take the place of those who are guilty could God’s anger be appeased.

Needless to say, Anselm’s ideas have persisted. Some of us are so used to thinking of the gospel story this way that it’s hard to imagine it any other way.

But it’s not about God’s anger. It’s not about avoiding punishment. It’s about love.

Let’s go back to Harry Potter for a moment. When his mother died to protect him, was it because of Harry’s sins? Was she taking the punishment that he deserved?

That doesn’t even make sense.

It misses the whole point.

And if you know how the story of Harry Potter ends… I made a promise that I wouldn’t give anything away in case we have some kids who haven’t yet read all the way to the end… but if you have, you know that the story of Harry Potter is about love. It’s not about taking the punishment that someone else deserves, to appease the anger of a higher power.

In the same way, Jesus died to protect and to save us; but it wasn’t by taking our place, taking the punishment we deserve.

Jesus died, willingly, to demonstrate the power of God’s love, not the power of God’s anger.

It is the power of God’s love that destroys death.

And so, Easter is nothing less than a celebration of the power of love.

AND, what follows is a call for each one of us to share in that love, to harness that power ourselves, to live in that love following the example set by Jesus. That is our calling: to grow in the power of love day by day, to love more fully, more deeply; to harness the incredible power of love.

Scripture does not say that Jesus died in our place. That makes it sound like we get off scot free, and can go skipping down the road singing to ourselves, “I’m alive, I’m alive, la la la…”

What scripture says is that we are called to share in Christ’s death, so that we may also share in the power of Christ’s resurrection.

In other words, we are called to demonstrate sacrificial love in our own lives.

This doesn’t necessarily mean we all have to die a violent death to protect those we love. The Bible calls upon us to offer ourselves as a “living sacrifice.”

This is what Paul says in the 12^th chapter of Romans.

And what does it mean to be a living sacrifice?

This is how you do it, according to Paul:

“Let your love be genuine. Love each other like family. Show honor to others. Live with hope, don’t give up when you’re in trouble, and pray.

“Contribute to the needs of God’s people. Welcome strangers. Bless people who harass you; bless them and don’t curse them. Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying. Consider everyone as equal; don’t think you’re better than anyone else. In fact, associate with people who have no status.

“Don’t be mean to those who are mean to you. Don’t seek revenge. If your enemy is hungry or thirsty, give him something to eat or drink. Don’t counter evil with evil; counter evil with good.”

This is how we harness the power of love. The power of Easter. The power of God’s Spirit at work in us.

The resurrection shows us the power of love. That love is stronger than the power of the state and its tools of torture and execution. That love, even in just one man, is stronger than a thousand voices shouting against him. That love endures today, inspiring billions of people around the globe, to put aside their self-interest and contribute to the needs of others, sending aid in times of disaster, supporting the work of the church and other non-profit organizations, working to improve the community that exists even beyond their own doorsteps.

Everywhere you look, you see people demonstrating love, bringing new life to people. You see them feeding the hungry, picking up trash in parks and beaches, looking after their neighbors, volunteering in their own community, showing kindness to strangers that surprises again and again.

You see people sacrificing their own wealth and their own time to make the world a better place. You see people going out of their way to lend a helping hand, to spend a day planting trees, checking in on neighbors. You see people writing checks so that children – not their own – can go to camp, or school, or receive school supplies or bicycles.

You see people who respond to evil in the world with kindness, people who embrace those who have been oppressed or discriminated against. There is a lot of animosity going around these days toward people of different religions or nationalities or races, but there is also a lot of kindness. You see that, if you know where to look.

You see Christians standing in a circle around a mosque, forming a wall of protection when outside forces threaten to disrupt the Islamic time of prayer; and, you see Muslims doing the same thing for Christians when their own worship is threatened.

You see people who are straight standing up for those who are gay. You see people who are white standing up for those who are black. You see people marching peacefully on behalf of those whose rights are threatened.

You see people harnessing the incredible power of love.

You see people who move to a smaller house so that they have more money to give to church or charity – living simply, for their own good and the good of their neighbor. You see people who accept a lower-paying job so they have more time to spend with their family or help out their community. You see people living for extended periods of time in far off lands, sacrificing time at home simply so that the whole world may know the power of love and hope. Our congregation supports missionaries like these through our denomination.

In so many ways, you see people making themselves into living sacrifices, harnessing the incredible power of God’s love, conquering death in so many ways, bringing new life and new hope to millions. It is a life that endures, now and forever, the life of the ages, the life eternal. It is the kingdom of God, the beloved community, the world as it is when we pray: “Not my will, but your will be done.”

All this, by the power of love.

Praise be to God for the power of love, shown to us so clearly in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

Praise be to God for the power of love, which is lived out day after day through the life of the church, the living, breathing body of Christ.