Out Loud, in front of God and Everybody

“When I got married, I liked my wife, but I didn’t love her,” the lay preacher said during his message Sunday morning. I gasped at his startling admission in public, but he went on with his story. He said he had reached the age of 29 and thought he should get married. He had been seeing someone and they decided to wed, although he knew he only liked her as a friend. After about 5 years, he wanted a divorce. His wife asked him why, and he finally admitted, “I don’t love you.”

Shortly thereafter, the couple attended a church service and gave their hearts to the Lord. One day the pastor of the small church asked all the married couples, of which there were four, to come forward. He asked the husbands to face their wives, look into their eyes, and say “I love you.” The man could not do it. He said all around him he could hear the words, “I love you, Honey,” “I love you, Baby,” and other words of endearment.

Then everything was quiet. They were waiting on him to make his proclamation. He just stood there in the dead silence. Finally, he forced himself to mouth the words, “I love you.” As soon as he said the words, his composure broke; he wept and embraced his wife and knew in that moment that he did love her, and told her so. They have now been married 48 years.

It reminded me of our Sunday School lesson that morning, which had been about the disciple, Peter. After Jesus had been resurrected, he asked Peter, “Do you love me?” Three times Peter asserted that he did. Perhaps after Peter had denied Him three times, Jesus was giving him opportunity to three times restate his devotion. (Twice Peter answered in the form of the word, “phileo,” or affection. Jesus had used the word, "agape", or divine love. Later, after Peter had been filled with the Holy Spirit, he would use the word “agape”, in his writings.)

In our salvation experience, we are told that “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.” Romans 10:9. Our oral confession is a kind of contract that binds us in agreement with Him. There is something about speaking aloud that makes it real to us. Evidently, that is what happened to our Sunday morning speaker so many years ago.