Love's leading - 7

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Love* leads & I would follow  as a living sacrifice,

but also as one buried and entombed,

until I'm resurrected - and this life’s to dramatize

the bigger story outside of this womb.

Each day take up my cross, buried then raised, 

and when I’m walking round about the world,

I dramatize up close (his name be praised)

the new creation’s energies unfurled.

For I am in this Christ and too his life,

his spirit, goals and impetus as well,

have breathed and entered (as husband does wife),

a branch that’s in its tree will start to smell

quite like a “cedar”, or a “gum”, or “pine”, 

or “camphor”, or a “dead-meat” I suppose.

for sap and cells are energized divine-

ly by the tree itself as it just grows.

And all the branch does is keep in the tree, 

or vine that is its kind and essence true,

depend, remain, stay, live  “yourself in me”

is what he said*, repeated then by Jude*.

And let his words live deep inside me too, 

and let them wash me clean as he gives them 

their meaning, through his life and proverbs - new

new parables, and metaphors that hem

and give a stronger edge that won't wear through,

the clothing that we wear within his world.

We’ll “put it on” like new clothes, when we do,

reminding us of our new job uncurled.. 

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e* - the biblical concept of love often involves “tender devotion to”, but also another edge. HESED is the English transliteration of the Hebrew word חֶ֙סֶד֙ , used in the Hebrew Bible to communicate something like "covenantal love", steadfast love, family love, loving kindness, love that is based on your own word. It has been said (repeatedly) that the Love of YHWH  is a core attribute of God (Ex 33:19-34:11) & endures forevermore (Psalm 118; Ps136 etc). This leads me to speak of God as both creator, but as love itself too. So creative love might be an apt family name for God. Indeed when this concept of Love is translated into Greek in the New Testament it is expressed as ἀγάπῃ (transliterated in English as agapé) and that is then the word used in the Greek New Testament to express this kind of attitude, impetus, spirit, mindset of God himself, and therefore of his true children. It is the single verb in both the greatest command & the second command - just like it), as well as the initial impetus for all true actions, and the first fruit mentioned of the very spirit of God being displayed in a human life, and the top of the ladder of things to work with God on fruiting in human life. It turns out (as Eirene Gruber used to say) that the greatest sin is to miss the greatest command ( Matt 22:35-40; 24:12; Luke 6:31-36; John 3:16-21; 5:19-42; 13:1-17, 33-35; 14:1-7; John 14:15-31; 15:9-17; Rom 8:38-39; Eph 3:14-19, 5:1-2; Col 3:10-17; 1Cor 12:31-13:13; 1Pet 4:8; 2 Pet 1:1-9; 1John 4:7-19; 2John 1:1-7 ).

d* - John 15

e* - Jude 1:20-25

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