1 Corinthians 13

1 Corinthians 13:13 “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”

For those of you who don’t know I recently flew out to Germany to study for around 5 months or so. I always thought that it was going to be easy, I have taken German since 7th grade, have been here once before, haven’t ever been home sick. It was going to be great, I was going to fly over, get my luggage hop on a train and then to a hotel to stay when I woke up the next morning and got the keys to my apartment. . . And yet it wasn’t that easy. The whole chain of events up to this day were just terrible, the weekend was rough, thinking about it amongst MANY other things, the drive home was long, packing was alright, but stressful (hoping I didn’t leave anything), and once I got here I got my hotel, and woke up the next morning to find out that I couldn’t go to get my apartment keys because they were closed already. So now I have to wait yet another day. But that wasn’t the half of it. I struggled to sleep on the plane because when I said goodbye to my dad there was something in his voice that made me want to cry, I didn’t at that time but once at the hotel, realizing I couldn’t just pick up a phone and call ANY time, I didn’t know what to do. That night was so stressful, because sure everyone was speaking German, but it was like a foreign language to me, I couldn’t keep up, and I was just lost and alone. So I prayed. I prayed that God would show me direction, and keep me safe, and allow me to keep in contact with those I loved from back home (family and friends) and just that his will be done while I am here. And I prayed that the huge hole that had just formed in my heart would fill up.

So tonight when I got back to my hotel realizing I couldn’t do anything, because the TV didn’t work and I had already gotten lost in the city, I chose to open my Bible. Not to make the story part any longer, but I had a rough weekend and because of that I was looking for something comforting. I looked in my concordance and wound up here, Corinthians 13. The chapter was about love (something I didn’t want to think about at all because of all that has happened recently), and yet God seemed to place me there anyway. So I began reading. “Love is patient. Love is kind. It does not envy. It does not boast . . . It is not self seeking.” (v. 4).

Love is kind. This is something that I am still dealing with. Love being kind, sure God is great to me and he blesses me in so many different ways, but how is love kind. Losing a loved one isn’t kind. Loving someone who doesn’t love you back isn’t kind. And then it hit me. It wasn’t about loving earthly possessions and people; it was about loving and trusting in the Lord your God. Sure he wants us to love one another and find the person of our dreams to continue his kingdom with. It isn’t his love that changes it’s the earthly things that change, divorce, death, separation, loss, etc. Romans 12:9 says “Love must be sincere.” Too often than not, God’s love for us is sincere but ours towards our neighbors and even towards him isn’t. That is where we have to trust in his direction. He has told us that he loves us, and with that love we should have enough trust in him that he will show us the right direction, no matter how difficult or rocky it may be.
Wow! I never thought of it like that. Love being patient, well I guess that makes sense. I was watching a movie on the plane, called the Game Plan, and it made me remember this. The main character said this, “The only thing that you can do is tell her you love her and that nothing will change that. Then you wait. . .” Then you wait. How often do we do that? But are we really patient, or do we want an answer right away? Too often than not I find myself wanting to know an answer immediately, and if I don’t get the answer I want or cant find it, I get into this “I don’t care” or “it doesn’t matter” or even better, “that’s fine” type of mood. And that is not what this verse is talking about. Because of God’s love for us, and we have love in him we need to be patient. God is love. So I thought of it this way. God told us at birth that he loves us. Then he waits. He waits for us to get baptized and as we grow up to grow in the faith with him, and he continues to sit there and wait. . .until we tell him that we love him back. For many of us, the first time this happens is at baptism, but not for everyone. Some don’t realize until they are a teenager, or until they get married, and unfortunately, God shows so many people how much they love them and some never realize it. Do you have the faith to tell God that you love him? How often do you tell him? How often do you thank him for blessing you in so many different ways? How do you show your love for him? Not only is he patient for us to tell him that we love him back, but he is patiently waiting for us to show one another. The greatest commandment is love your neighbor as yourself. That is the basis for the entire world. Love God; love your neighbor, so on and so on. And a lot of times we have to be patient. I hear so many people tell their parents that they love them and they tell their family and some tell their friends as well that they love them. I was different, I always knew that my parents loved me and that I loved them, and I thought that that was enough. But this weekend, someone said something to me that made me realize that that wasn’t enough. So for the first time in a long, long time, probably years to be honest, I told my parents that I love them, and that I will miss them. So when is the last time you told God thank you for loving you so much and blessing you and then telling him that you love him to? Do your parents know that you love them? Is there someone out there that you know that you love but can’t tell them? Or is there someone who said it to you, but u didn’t know what to say? Think how patiently the Lord waited for you to tell him you love him, and then think about all these other people that you can tell how u feel for them. One difference though, God is always there, and people are only there for so long. The other, God always knows what to say. We, as humans, don’t so when someone tells you something, take it to heart, don’t respond to quickly, don’t forget what they said, but rather take it to God, and let him help you.

Love does not envy. Yet again something that is difficult to put a grasp on. Envy, I wanted to get a better grasp of what exactly envy was so I looked up some synonyms. Jealousy, greed, and desire were the first three to come up. So I thought sure I’m jealous of others in relationships when I am not. Sure I’m jealous of someone who is working at a job that they love when mine I am only semi-happy with. Sure I am greedy and want someone to love me. Sure I desire to find and love the girl of my dreams. And yet, it isn’t even close to what the verse is saying. The verse is saying that love does not envy. We have love for God and that is enough. We don’t have to desire what others have, we don’t have to be jealous, we don’t have to be greedy, and all we have to do is love him. “We live by faith not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). God shows us the way, we don’t pick it. As long as we have faith and love in him, we don’t have to look at what others have. We don’t have to see that they are in a relationship that we would like to have. We don’t have to see that they have the job that we want. We don’t have to desire. We have to love and trust in God and he will keep our love from being envious, because HE is all we need.
Love is not self-seeking. This is something that I have learned a lot about recently. We do not choose who we love, or why we love them, or when we will. God does. I had someone admit something to me this weekend that I never thought anyone would ever do, and yet it happened anyway. I didn’t choose when the event occurred or what was said, God did. And it still baffles me. God puts the feeling in us, and then we have to let it out. He placed in us a love at birth that we express to him at some point in time. We know that he loves us, He seeks us. He has found us, now we return the favor by finding him, sharing the affection that he has for us. He puts the idea in our heads to love someone or something, and until we see his idea in our head, we can’t do anything, but once that idea is there, we go out and find it. We often times don’t know what will happen, but God does, and yet again we have to use that love we have to trust in him.

So back to that first verse, verse 13 “three remain, faith hope and love, but the greatest is love.” We have faith and hope and love in God. And it’s true; the greatest of these is love. He loved us so much “that he gave his one and only Son that whosoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” There is no love greater than that. For us on earth with one another the same applies. We can have a faith in one another that we trust in them, or that they give us assurance, reliance or dedication. We can have a hope with one another that we have optimism in them, which we are expectant of them, that we can dream, and plan and chance. And yet, nothing is as important as love. We are all part of God’s kingdom and in that kingdom we are said to love one another. Let me elaborate on that. We are supposed to care for, be fond of, like, have a weakness for, be devoted to, have a passion for, or even to find someone irresistible. There is love on so many different levels, and God simply wants us to love one another on any of the levels. It is the most important, without this love for one another, how can there be trust? How can there be hope? How can someone give us assurance? The simple answer, you cant.

Love surrounds it all. Love is the biggest part of life. I never did want to believe that, but now, sitting in a hotel room thousands of miles away from everyone that I know, I realize it. I always say that I don’t want hugs because I don’t like them, I say I don’t like pictures because I don’t like them. I say that I don’t like to be close to people, well I don’t know why I say that but I do. And I now know that I need all those things. Well the pictures I don’t need, but I need that ability to show affection for someone. I need that closeness to someone. And right now that someone is the Lord. I am trying my best to build a stronger relationship with him. I have never wanted to admit it or realize it, but I seem to be looking for a relationship, and am not sure why. But I realize now, that I just need to sit back and wait. If God does put that love in me for someone I need to tell them and then keep my faith in God hope for the best. I have never more wanted to tell someone that I love them. So I did. And now I’m back to that first part, you know, the one that says love is patient. You simply wait for them to see if God put that same feeling in them. You sit there and realize that “Love never fails” (v.8). God’s love never fails, and as soon as we admit that love to him, our lives can be so much better, because it is the most important aspect.

Galations 5:22 -26 “But the fruit of the Spirit is LOVE, joy peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.”

I never thought I would quote a rap song in a prayer but here is goes, the quoted part is from Chris Brown “With you”- Lord, I thank you for allowing me to come to a consensus that no earthly love is as important as the love that I have with you. “If I got you (Lord) I don’t need money, I don’t need cars, and you are my whole.” Lord I ask that you help me and others to love one another no matter what form of love that may be. I ask that you help me to continually tell you how much I love you and to do the same with my parents and family and friends. And finally Lord if it is your will, I pray that someday when you put that love in me, you put that same love in another person also, so that we may not be seeking it, but realize Lord, that it is from you. We pray in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen

Philippians 2:5-11

This is one of my favorite passages in the entire Bible. I won’t include any one part of it because it flows so beautifully in one piece, but you need to go read it right now.

Seeing as you have now done that, please take some time to reflect upon it. There are so many wonderful truths and insights I always gain from reading this passage of Philippians. First God commands us to have the same attitude as that of Christ Jesus. It immediately explains what it is to be like Jesus. Here is where I draw the first great insight.

The passage tells us to humble ourselves before God and men. Jesus did not consider equality with God something to be grasped (even though he was God himself) but rather made himself nothing (verse 7)! The Supreme Ruler of the Universe made himself a nothing, a humble servant. A servant so obedient and lowly he gave himself up for an innocent death on the cross. This is where I draw my second great insight from this passage.

Christ was obedient to death. Not just an ordinary death, but an innocent death on the cross. What an amazing sacrifice this is to us. For some reason the way the Spirit inspires Paul to phrase that, it always makes me realize a little more the true extent of Christ sacrifice, more so than most other passages of the Bible. He truly gave up everything, and he gave it up for us!

This leads me into the next truth that is revealed to me in this passage, that we too must have this obedience. If our attitude must be the same as Christ, then we must be as obedient as him. This means obedience to God, even to the death, even death on a cross! Sure you’re probably not going to see too many people by the wayside hanging from a cross for Jesus in today’s day and age. What is our cross now though? Jesus tells us in the gospels that anyone who would follow him must “deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Matt. 16:24). What is your cross? Is it where you will have to live? Is it how much money you will make? Is it the job you must do? Is it being too shy?

Finally, the last big insight I gain is how Christ is exalted above all others. That at his name every knee should bow. I always begin to think of the majesty and wonder that is the Kingdom of Heaven. How I long for that day when I shall enter into heaven to dwell there forever and ever. For that day when I will one day feel as if I actually belong as I am surrounded by the millions of saints shouting “HOLY, HOLY, HOLY is the Lord God Almighty!” and know that I am truly home. For that day when love finally prevails and evil is vanquished forever!

Until that day… God Bless.