The Power of Agape – Pastor Jade Yi

Luke 24:1-12. Psalm 118:1-2, 14-24

Easter Triduum: Wandering with Peter by Grace through faith 

復活節三重奏: 藉著信心，恩典與彼得同行

Easter Sunday  復活節主日 |  3.31.2024  |  10 AM

From the last supper, on the cross, and to the empty tomb.  Jesus Christ lives!

與門徒的最後一餐，在十字架，空墳，耶穌基督復活了!

After the last Supper, Jesus kneels to wash his disciples’ feet. We see Peter’s change from initial reluctance to wholehearted submission. God’s grace reshapes Peter’s faith. However, has Peter known that he will deny Jesus three times in public as Jesus has predicted which may have brought guilt and shame on him. What follows is a different kind of silent night, Jesus is crucified and dies. That might be the reason he gets up and runs speedily to the tomb when he hears his resurrection news from the women. Like Peter, can we run toward hope even after the biggest failure, even after the worst case scenario has happened? Will we keep going? Will we keep looking for God in our midst?

和門徒享用最後一餐後，耶穌跪下為門徒洗腳。 我們看到彼得從最初的不情願到全心全意的順服。 神的恩典重新塑造了彼得的信心。 然而，彼得是否知道他會像耶穌所預言的那樣，在公開場合三次否認耶穌，這件事也許帶給他羞饋。 接下來他經歷了一個不一樣的寂靜之夜，耶穌被釘在十字架上死了。 這可能也就是為什麼當他從婦女們那裡聽到祂復活的好消息時，他立刻站起來並迅速跑向墳墓的原因。 在經歷極大的失敗之後，即使是在最壞的情況下發生，我們能否像彼得一樣，走向盼望？ 我們會繼續走下去嗎？ 我們會繼續在我們當中尋找神的臨在嗎？

The Peace and grace from God to you.

Introduction

What power can bring hope, joy, and peace that no one can take away and can last forever and ever?  This power can make people feel impenetrable and secure, congregate diverse people, fuse them into one, and have a positive impact on their lives together and beyond. This power is the most desired and needed in the world. What is that power?

在這世界上，有什麼力量，能夠帶來盼望、喜樂與平安，而且無人能奪走這力量，直到永遠?  這力量能夠使人感到堅不可摧、有安全感，而且能讓不同樣的人聚集在一起，融為一體，對他們的共同生活和以後的生活都有正面的影響，甚至是這個世界上最渴望和最需要的力量？  那是個什麼樣的力量呢？

That power is Agape, the highest form of love. This biblical word represents God’s immeasurable and incomparable love for humankind, and in return, Jesus’ disciples are expected to love God and God’s people. God is certainly the author of Agape which is recorded all over in the Bible and deeply rooted in our Christian theology. 

那力量就是《Agape》的愛，它是愛的最高境界。 在聖經裡，這個字是用來代表，神對人類無可估量和無與倫比的愛。作為回報，耶穌的門徒也被期許，要愛神和神的子民。 神無疑是《Agape》的原作者，《Agape》在《聖經》中都有記載著，並且也深深的，紮根在我們基督教的神學論裡。

So, who are the people hungry for the power of Agape? The list I came up with is based on the Beatitudes that Jesus preaches. These are the people hungry for the power of agape: 1.) those who are poor in spirit from experiencing void or lost; 2.) those who are meek, experiencing manipulation or discrimination; 3.) those who mourn from abandonment or betrayal; 4.) those who are merciful from experiencing humiliation or disrespect; 5) those who are pure in heart from experiencing unbearable conflicts that turn people against each other; 6) those who are hungry and thirsty for righteousness from being persecuted and wounded.  

那麼，渴望《Agape》力量的人，是那些人呢？根據耶穌所宣講的八福，我列出以下這些渴望《Agape》力量的人：1.) 那些因為感到空虛或失落而虛心的人； 2.) 那些因為遭受操縱或歧視，而表現出性格溫順的人； 3.) 那些因為被遺棄或背叛，而哀悼的人； 4.) 那些因遭受到羞辱或不被尊重，而表現出仁慈的人； 5）那些因為經歷過難以忍受的，人與人之間的衝突，而內心純潔的人； 6）那些因為受到迫害和傷害而飢渴慕義的人。

God’s Story

Today, in the Easter Triduum liturgy, we see the power of Agape played out in the following three events. 

今天，在復活節三重奏崇拜的禮儀中，我們看到《Agape》的愛的力量，在以下三個事件中展現出來。

Out of agape, Jesus commands his disciples to practice agape and demonstrates it with a humble and servant heart by washing his disciples’ feet, including Judas, who is going to betray him secretly and lead people to arrest him, and Peter, who is going to deny him three times in public. And Jesus knows it.

出於《Agape》的愛，耶穌命令他的門徒要將《Agape》學以致用，並以謙卑和僕人的心洗門徒的腳為《Agape》的範例，在那些門徒裡，包括那暗地裡，計畫著要出賣耶穌並帶人去逮捕他的猶大，以及那將在公開場合上，三次否定自己認識耶穌的彼得。耶穌其實都知道。

Out of agape, Jesus takes in all the humiliation and unbearable pain in public as the Son of God, the anointed Savior. He carries the cross with the weight of all the sins of the world which have created unbearable pain to ourselves and to others not only in the past and in the present, but also in the future.

出於《Agape》的愛，耶穌，神的兒子、我們的受膏救主，在公開場合，承受了所有的屈辱和難以忍受的痛。祂背負著世上所有罪的十字架，這些罪不僅在過去和現在，而且在未來給我們自己和他人造成的，所有難以忍受的痛苦。 

Out of agape, Jesus gives out his last breath, the Spirit of God, the life-giving breath. For the following three days, Jesus seems to have vanished from the land of living. As we have learned from Ephesians 4:8-9 and in the second article of the Apostles’ Creed that we recite weekly, we know that he visits the land of the dead to gather those lost souls who haven’t heard the Good News of God’s salvation. 

出於《Agape》的愛，耶穌在斷氣前，祂吐出了最後一口氣，那就是上帝的靈，賜生命的氣息。 在接下來的三天裡，耶穌似乎消失在活人的世界裡。 正如我們從以弗所書4:8-9 以及我們每週背誦的《使徒信經》第二條中了解到的那樣，我們知道祂下到了死人的世界，去聚集那些迷失的靈魂，也就是那些尚未聽到上帝救恩的好消息的靈魂。

Challenge: 

Jesus has done his part, so how about you and me? What stops or prevents us from practicing Agape? Where can we practice it? To me, the safe place is home with our family or the church where we belong.

耶穌已經盡了祂的使命了，那麼你和我呢？ 是什麼阻止或阻擾我們練習《Agape》的愛呢？ 我們可以在哪裡練習呢？ 對我來說，安全的地方是與家人一起。或是與我們所屬的教會一起。

I still remember the very first time I was confronted with the word Agape. Before I fully immersed myself into the life of the Christian community, I confess that I idealized every Christian as a saint and I could almost see the halo above their heads, a golden shining circle of light. Isn’t that how the resurrected Jesus is presented in some paintings?  

我仍然記得我第一次面對《Agape》這個詞彙時的情景。 在我還沒有完全進入基督教團體的生活時，我承認我把每個基督徒都理想化了，每一位基督徒在我眼裡都是聖人，我幾乎可以看到他們頭頂上，那個閃閃發亮的光環。 在一些畫作品裡，復活的耶穌，不就是這樣被呈現的嗎？

Then my beautiful illusion about a perfect happy church collapsed when I was the Director of Christian Education at a church where my husband was the pastor. It wasn’t the fault of people at church but myself, my own brokenness, ignorance and naiveness.  

有一次，我對完美幸福教會的美好幻想，破滅了。當時，在我丈夫擔任牧師的教會，我是擔任基督教教育的主任，我心中的美好教會之所以會幻滅，不是教會裡的人的錯，而是自己的錯，自己的無知和天真。

Some of you have heard this story. One summer, I was in charge of a six-week full day vacation Bible School from 8 am to 3 pm. We provided breakfast, a mid-morning snack, and lunch. We arranged all sorts of classes.  It was a big turnout. There were about 40 volunteers and about 80 children from preschool to high school. Towards the end of the program as we all were preparing our final presentation, everyone was getting tired, and I often found myself cleaning up each classroom at the end of day. 

你們有些人聽過我的這個故事。 有一年夏天，我負責一個為期六週的全天聖經學校，從早上 8 點到下午 3 點。 我們提供早餐、上午點心和午餐。 我們安排了各種各樣的課程。 參與率相當的高。 大約有40名志工，和從學前幼兒園的小朋友到高中的孩子們，大約有80名。 當我們快要進入這整個課程的尾聲時，我們每一個人都忙於準備著最後的成果展，大家也已經開始感到疲倦了，在每一天結束時，我經常發現，只有我自己一個人，在收拾每間教室。

One day, my husband asked me how things were going, I asked him back a question without expecting him to answer me, “Why has no one stayed to help clean up?” I was complaining. I wasn’t as kind or merciful as I wanted myself to be. Then my husband asked me, “Do you love them?” At that very moment, I realized that I hadn’t intentionally practiced agape enough. 

有一天，我老公問我，一切都還好嗎？我反問一個問題，我也並不期待他要回答，我說：「怎麼都沒人留下來，一起幫忙收拾呢？」其實，我是在抱怨。 我沒有像我希望的那樣，善良或仁慈。 然後我丈夫又問我：「妳愛他們嗎？」就在那一刻，我意識到，自己沒有足夠地且刻意地，來練習《Agape》。

That’s the same question Jesus asks Peter after his resurrection. Later Peter says in 1 Corinthian 13 that without God’s agape, we are nothing even if we have great talents. He attests that agape is the most important thing compared with faith and hope. He goes further to articulate what agape is like. We know agape has nothing to do with romantic or sensual love. It definitely is not self-righteous love, manic love, or obsessive love. 

這也是耶穌復活後，問彼得的問題。 後來彼得在哥林多前書 13 章說，如果沒有神的愛，即使我們有很大的才能，我們也算不了什麼。 他的證詞是，與信仰和希望相比，《Agape》的愛是最重要的。他也進一步闡明了《Agape》的愛是什麼。 由此，我們知道《Agape》的愛，與浪漫或感性的愛情無關。 《Agape》的愛，也絕對不是，自以為是的愛，狂躁的愛，或是強迫性的愛。

The power of Agape is the most desired and needed power in the world. That power brings hope, joy, and peace that no one can take away and last forever and ever. No one should stay in the land of lost souls.  It is draining, it is heartbreaking, and it is hopeless.  Without God’s agape, God’s Kingdom can’t be manifested. Without God’s agape, Jesus’ disciples, which is the church, can’t be sustained.  

《Agape》的力量，是世界上最渴望、最需要的力量。 這種力量帶來希望、喜樂與平安，無人能奪走，直到永遠。任何人都不應該過著迷失的靈魂的日子。那樣的日子使人筋疲力竭，令人心碎，也是令人絕望的。 沒有上帝《Agape》的愛，上帝的國度便無法彰顯。沒有上帝《Agape》的愛，耶穌的門徒，也就是教會，便無法維持下去。

Good News:

This is the good news. Christ is risen. It’s a done deal between God and God’s people. We are the people of Lent, that makes us the people of Easter. Since we are the people of Easter, we receive the living breath of God, the Holy Spirit, that continues to accompany us.

基督復活了，這是我們今日的福音。這是神和神的子民之間已經達成的應許盟約。 我們是經歷過預苦期的人，這使我們成為復活節的人。 也因為我們是復活節的人，我們便領受了，來自上帝的生命氣息，也就是聖靈，祂繼續伴隨著我們。

Week after week, out of Agape, the Holy Spirit gathers the faithful ones as Jesus’ Church to worship. Out of Agape, the Holy Spirit gives us wisdom to understand the Word of God and the Word of Life. Out of Agape, the Holy Spirit guides our thankful hearts to receive the Holy Communion that unites us to be one, the body of Christ. And out of Agape, the Holy Spirit sends us out into the world where the lost souls await the gospel of Jesus. 

一週又一週的，聖靈出於《Agape》的愛，聚集信實的人來敬拜，那就是耶穌的教會。聖靈出於《Agape》的愛，賜給我們智慧來理解神的話語和生命的話語。 聖靈出於《Agape》的愛，引導我們感恩的心前來領用聖餐，使我們合而為一，成為基督的身體。聖靈出於《Agape》的愛， 將我們從教會差遣到世界裡，因為有許多迷失的靈魂正在等待著耶穌的福音。

Thanks be to God for the resurrection of Jesus Christ, our savior, the anointed one. Amen.

讓我們為我們的救主，來感謝神、我們的受膏者耶穌基督復活了。 阿們。