The Easter Love Story

Steve O. Alabi

The best definition for love according to St. John is that God is love.If so, as people created in the likeness of God, we are also people of love. We are created to love and receive love also. Perfect love is of God while pain inflicting love is not of God. The devil is renowned for creating the reverse copy of all that is good made by God.

Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13 – King James Bible “Authorized Version”, Cambridge Edition

This love which God has for mankind is most dramatically exemplified in the mystery of the Incarnation. After the human race had responded to divine gifts with ingratitude, pride and disobedience, it was plunged by its own sin into desolation and misery. True love is characterized by the following:

True love is sacrificial.
It gives up everything for the sake of others. Jesus gave us the perfect example.Out of His great love, God chose to become man. He goes on to suffer the most horrible agonies, culminating in death on a cross, and then rises from the dead after three days in the tomb. All these He does just for our sake, even though there was nothing personally for Him to profit from it. Here then, we see God loving in a manner that is still selfless, but also excruciatingly sacrificial and painful.

True love defends the rights of the afflicted and poor.
If we truly love others, we should be concerned about their welfare and circumstances. How many times have we turned the other way when others are troubled just because we have troubles of our own? This is not a sign of true love. We should stand up for the rights of the afflicted and poor even if we do not know them, or have our own concerns.

We might just be the only ones around to ensure that their rights are not infringed upon. Examples of this second love are the way all parents are supposed to love their children, the way Mother Teresa loved the poor, or the way we are all supposed to love our enemies. It does not refer to concern for our own enjoyment, but rather a willingness to work for someone else’s well-being.

True love leaves wounds for remembrance.
 If we have gone the extra mile to love someone else, the price of love leaves us with the discomfort and pains of the act. However, these are joyful love pains. We remember such good acts with a feeling of satisfaction in our deprivation.Of course, such a selfless attitude always involves sacrifice. If you’ve ever made someone else’s happiness a priority, then you know it’s not easy.

In fact, the proof of charity is measured by sacrifice. If we have a selfless love for God and neighbour, we will be willing to suffer in order to serve them. This is the ultimate test of love.After the resurrection of Christ, he appeared to his disciples several times and they were always asked to look at his wound as evidence.

Do we have any love wounds to show as signs of being Christ’s followers? We received healing by His wounds and stripes which brought us freedom from sin and joy. True love must always bring joy.

The story was told of early on Easter morning in heaven. The devil disguised as Jesus and arrived at the gate with his band of angels and trumpet blasting. Unknown to God’s angels, they thought it was Jesus and also rushed to welcome him at the gate. Satan raise up his hand in jubilation as the angels sang praises of Jesus chanting “I am raised”. All of a sudden, he discovered that the gates have been shut again. “Why have you refused to open the gates so that the king of glory may enter?” In response, God’s angels told him “If you are truly Christ, how come you have no wounds on your body?”

This is the Easter love story.