1 Corinthians 13:4-7
1 Corinthians 13:13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
We have spent a few days looking at God’s list about love as given to Paul. Today we finish up the list and see how it went from positive aspects of love to negative anti-love attitudes and today we are back in the positive realm.
“Love always protects.” Isn’t that a great thought? We all like the feeling of being safe, but how often do we make it a point to make others feel safe? Maybe we have times when we have to protect someone from themselves and the terrible choices they make. Protection is a form of tough love sometimes. We don’t want our friend to think we don’t like them, but sometimes we need to stand up to them for their own good. But love always protects. Always.
“Love always trusts.” If you have ever had someone betray you, then you know how hard this one can be. Maybe we have a spouse who has betrayed us with an affair. It is hard to trust them again. Maybe our child has lied to us, it is hard to trust them the next time. Or maybe a friend has gossiped about us. Trust doesn’t come easy but if we have ever had any of those, or many other possible situations then trust comes even more difficult. So how does one love enough to trust?
“Love always hopes.” What does it mean to hope through love? It is always hoping for the best for the ones we love. It is always hoping that they will be growing spiritually and be in good health. Love always hopes that the relationship will be healthy.
“Love always perseveres.” There is something wonderful about a love that doesn’t give up. It could be a parent loving their wayward child so much that they want them to come home even when they have caused much grief in the family. Or maybe it is the spouse who was cheated on that hopes and prays that their love will be renewed and restored. Maybe it is the abandoned child still expecting their parent to come back. The point is that love doesn’t give up. It keeps hoping, keeps choosing to trust and always protects. To live this kind of love is to live a life of worship to the Almighty!
Making It Personal
Do you struggle with any of these? Why do you think it is so difficult for you? What are ways you have seen God show you love in these areas?
Making It Personal
How would you define love? What way has God protected you? Do you love your mom and dad in the way of trusting them?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for showing us love in so many amazing ways. Please teach us how to live these out in our lives too so that we can worship You and bring You glory. In Jesus’ name, amen.
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