“Love is kind and patient,
never jealous, boastful, proud, or rude.
Love isn’t selfish or quick tempered.
It doesn’t keep a record of wrongs that others do. Love rejoices in the truth, but not in
evil. Love is always supportive, loyal,
hopeful, and trusting.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
The Corinthian believers had become
pretty arrogant in their spirituality and felt they could do any and all things
without repercussions. Paul quickly
lets them know in both 6:12 and 10:23 that not all things are helpful and/or
constructive for them. The above verses
were no doubt to remind them what true love was all about.
The spirit of love is to embody the
believer. True, sincere love should
produce the above qualities. Simply put,
love is kind, patient, humble, selfless, truthful, encouraging and
edifying. It is forgetful regarding the
faults & failings of others, yet never forgets to stand up for what’s
right.
The total picture offered in the
verses above suggests a description of Christ Himself. It is a picture of how He treats us. Jesus is the physical embodiment of
love. Everything He said and did on this
earth over 2000 years ago was based on His love for His creation. Everything that God has done since the dawn
of time has been motivated by love. As
believers we are supposed to strive to be more like Christ each day. That would mean we are to love others and
ourselves as Christ loves us.
The world has fallen into the trap
of self-centeredness and self-absorption.
The façade that people put up in order to be a part of a certain group
of people is mind boggling and many times distasteful. Folks are afraid to be real. Love for anyone but themselves is not an
option they care to entertain. It is up
to us as believers in Christ to show them what true love is. Sadly, too many of us give Christians a bad
name and drive unbelievers away from God by judging those that are
significantly different than us. We
preach at them instead of speaking to them without
words. We’ve forgotten what we were like
prior to our own conversion. Show
the world Christ. Show them what real love
is. Christ gave us an example to follow,
let our lives be the example to a lost and dying world. We must put our differences aside within the
body and allow the Holy Spirit of God within us to make the alterations necessary
to be what God knows we can be. That is
the only way we will ever make a real and lasting difference in our world. Until Christ returns, walk with the King and
be a blessing!
Translation:
Contemporary English Version (CEV)
Resource:
The Reformation Study Bible.
