Posted by Pastor John Collins:
“Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love
does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not
provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;
bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things,
endures all things.” 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NKJV).
The love that Paul describes here is holy and pure. It is
not the love that so many speak of in this life. Too often people will claim to
be in love, then out of love, then in love with another, there is puppy love,
your first love, your last love, lust described as love and the list just goes
on. You have marriages without commitment and parents without the desire to
parent and you have the greatest love of all: the love of self but you do not
have an abundance of holy and pure love.
Why is it that people do not have the capacity or desire to
embrace a lasting relationship based on love and have a life that is committed
to love? People are not committing their lives completely to God is why. It is
when you truly understand the gospel of Jesus Christ and have committed to
living your life as God has instructed us to live that you begin to know the
love of God.
Having given your life to Christ does not make you exempt
from hurt in this life but it does soothe the wounds that come. We learn from
those things that cause hurt and we grow in our capacity to love. We must first
dedicate ourselves to learning how to love in a pure way and that means that we
must purify our hearts and forgive the old wounds so that we can heal. We need
to be willing to lift others up and not ourselves and be willing to be patient
in our lives. This generation of people carries around self-entitlement like a
badge of honor. It is shameful and we need to get back to humble roots.
Jesus was humble and always had His priorities straight. Let
this generation be willing to learn from Him and be willing to slow down and
learn to desire the grace of God. Let your heart swell with love and pray it lingers
and sheds light on another in the name of Jesus Christ.
“And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the
greatest of these is love.” 1 Corinthians 13:13 (NKJV).
