Verse of the day: 1 Corinthians 13:1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal.
As human beings, in general, God has endowed us with many talents & abilities. As His children He has given us gifts to use within the church body to bless, edify, and encourage each other. However, if we read verses 1 through 3, God is very clear that even if we have all kinds of talents, abilities, or gifts, if we do not have love, we are nothing, and are of no profit to God. He then goes on to explain that love is kind, not envious, does not boast, is not arrogant, not selfish, not easily angered, patient, does not rejoice over someone else's misfortune, and endures much (just to name a few). To explain each in detail would take much more time, and space, in writing this. However, the bottom line is that love is the foundation for our service to the Lord. Love (true love) toward one another is what sets us apart from others. Jesus told us that our love for each other is what will show the world that we belong to Him. He demonstrated, for us, what that love looks like. It was not just a bunch of empty words, but action that proved His love. He gave His life to show us His love, for He is Love. To love is to do for others, when given the opportunity, and not simply saying that we will pray for someone; especially when we have the means to help. To love is to be willing to sacrifice for another, and put their needs before our own (knowing, and trusting, that God will take care of whatever our need is). For example, there are moments when God may bless us with some material thing or extra money right before someone else's need arises. At that moment we must decide if we will give that money to meet that need (realizing that this situation may have been the reason for the blessing) or we could ignore the situation, and keep the money for ourselves. By refusing to show love, in this case, would ultimately rob ourselves, and the other person, of God's true blessing. Why? Because God may have wanted to use us to answer that person's prayers, and bring Him glory. We may also have forfeited a future reward when we stand before Him some day soon. True love causes us to stop, and think, before we react toward another person, and how we treat others, in any given situation, even when we are offended. We must be careful that a lack of true love does not drive others away from drawing near to Jesus. Sadly, too many people have been pushed away from accepting Jesus because of a lack of love on the part of God's children. Let us love, as we have been love, for God's glory. Let us not limit our love only to those who love us, as we have been commanded to even love our enemies. Romans 5:8 tells us that "God demonstrates His love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." That is true love.
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