The Well
The Well |
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Connecting Hope to the Hurting | |
Thursday
February 14, 2008
If I could speak in any language in heaven or on earth but didn't love
others, I would only be making meaningless noise like a loud gong or a clanging
cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I knew all the mysteries of the
future and knew everything about everything, but didn't love others, what good
would I be? And if I had the gift of faith so that I could speak to a mountain
and make it move, without love I would be no good to anybody. If I gave
everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about
it; but if I didn't love others, I would be of no value whatsoever. Love is
patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does
not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it
has been wronged. It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the
truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and
endures through every circumstance. Love will last forever, but prophecy and
speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will all disappear. Now we
know only a little, and even the gift of prophecy reveals little! But when the
end comes, these special gifts will all disappear.
1 Corinthians
13:1-10
If I had to choose one section of scripture penned by the hand of Paul through the anointing of the Holy Spirit that exemplifies the heart of God I would select this one. I know it had to be hard for Paul to put this letter in the mail because Paul too had problems from time to time with his love walk. However, I also believe He rejoiced as he read what God had written through him.
The footnote in my Bible for these verses makes an excellent point. "Many people define love as an emotion and stop there. But Paul defined love as a commitment to act in a certain way toward others. We may not be able to conjure up the emotions and feelings of love, but we can certainly practice the behaviors he listed in these verses. The apostle knew that when we behave in loving ways, feelings of love soon follow."
As Paul states, all of the gifts of the spirit will end when Jesus comes back for His church (and not a moment sooner), but the one thing that will remain throughout eternity with our Lord is love. Since God is love, we can expect love to rule when we reach Heaven, but God wants love to rule while we are still here. When we get to Heaven there will be no need for speaking in tongues because that gift is used for prayer, prophecy, and spiritual warfare, and there will be no need for those three things there. Yet, they continue to be needed here, but without love these things become null and void.
One of the sayings in Alcoholic Anonymous is fake it until you make it; great point – it is even Biblical. Paul teaches us that we must put on Christ. We have to dress in our spiritual warfare garments. It is all about choices. We choose to love. As I reflect over the past six years, and I guess even further back, I hurt because people who claim to have the love walk down pat gave up on me. But praise God, He has given me a resolve that won't allow me to give up on Him and a new faith that I can't give up on me.
As Paul states, all of the gifts of the spirit will end when Jesus comes back for His church, but the one thing that will remain even throughout eternity with our Lord is love. Since God is love, we can expect love to rule when we reach Heaven. There will be no need for speaking in tongues because that gift is used for prayer, prophecy, and spiritual warfare, and there will be no need for those three things either. All the days of battling and strife will be ended. If we aren't flowing in love we will not be flowing in the gifts God gives us. Oh, we may "conjure" them up, but it will be an act ¾ there will be very little power behind our performance. We are to walk in love first, foremost, and forever. How are you doing?
Father, we thank You for every spiritual gift that You give us, but help us remember that love is the gift that You want us operating in the most. Remind us that it is not Your desire for us to put the gift before the Giver. Lead us into a deeper abiding love for people and help us remember that Satan loves it when we try to operate in the gifts without love because that way we have no true authority. Help us to remember that the first manifestation of the fruit of the Spirit is love ¾ not spiritual gifts.
