Our Purpose Is Love

We live in a time of great division in the world, and too often we find this polarization mirrored in the church. People sitting in the same pew, working in the same office, and living on the same street find themselves at odds with one another politically and theologically on a variety of issues. Conflict seems to reign supreme. As Christians, we know we are supposed to love one another, but even that mandate has come to mean different things to different people. What does it mean to love God and neighbor today—in both the world and the church—and can this be the answer to the conflict that divides and polarizes us?

In Our Purpose Is Love, author David Field answers this question with a compelling “Yes!” as he challenges us to recognize and reclaim love as the center of our identity and purpose as the church. Field presents a Wesleyan vision of the church as the embodiment of God’s love in the world and explores the implications of this vision for our life together. In this vision, the church is where we become creatures of love, learning to love God and neighbor ever more completely and authentically through the means of God’s grace. As a result, we bear witness to the world by reflecting God’s love more and more perfectly in the way we treat others and order our common life. With a special focus on the importance of unity for the church’s witness, Field invites us to consider the ways in which embodying God’s love can and should influence how we live as individuals and as communities of faith, calling us to reclaim and recommit to love as the center of who we are.

What happened? How is it so many people today think God’s primary role is as the author of our happiness? People have the vague concept that to reflect divine love means to “be nice” to others, but only as long as they don’t disagree with our political, social, or theological viewpoints, both inside and outside the walls of our churches. We seem to have lost the capacity…as Christians…to treat our neighbors in a way that mirrors the compassionate, grace-giving heart of God. Our Purpose Is Love—an 8-week, small-group study with a special focus on the importance of unity for the Church’s witness—examines John Wesley’s understanding of God’s love and challenges us to exemplify that love in our churches and in our world. It is only when we begin to process the true idea of God’s love, as revealed through the Bible, that we can affirm that “love is the very image of God; it is the brightness of his glory.” A Leader Guide helps to facilitate deep conversations about what it means to be a church community.

From the Faultlines collection, resources intended to inform conversations around human sexuality and the church.