22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.
Galatians 5:22-23 (ESV)
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 8 Love never ends.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (ESV)
If I belong to Christ…….If the Holy Spirit dwells in me……If I am walking with Him……It should show. There should be fruit. This fruit should grow from the Holy Spirit that is in me. Love should flow from my life. What it means to love is a controversial topic in todays culture, but there are some things the Bible make clear. First, my first love is to and for God (Luke 10:27). This comes about because He first loved me (1 John 4:19). He laid down His life for me. It is His love for me and my subsequent love for Him that is the source of my love for others. Jesus told his disciples that His followers would be known by love. (John 13:34-35). He defines the greatest expression of love. It is to lay down your life for another (John 15:13). This is what He did for us. He commands us to love one another (John 15:9-11).
So we see why we love, but what does love look like? 1 Corinthians 13 is a well known Bible verse. It is read at many, many weddings. However, it was written to the church. It is the way people are to behavior toward on another, not just how romantic relationships function. We are to be patient, kind, and selfless with all others, not just our spouse.
Loving well is difficult. It is more than being nice and having a good attitude and view of oneself. I should be patient and kind. I should not envy or boast. I should not be rude. I should not be exerting my will or trying to get my own way. I should not have a grumpy, irritable, resentful attitude. But, also, I should not reward, approve of, or delight in sin or falsehood. The world has its own definition of love. To the world, love is approval. To put others ahead of yourself is to make sure they don’t feel bad. They cannot be told that something they do or think is wrong. It is to indulge their self-centered view of the world. But, the love of Christ is different. He did not physically enter our world and give up His life so that our sin would not matter. He came and gave up His life to pay the penalty for our sin. He sent the Holy Spirit to transform us. Our transformation is a result of His love, and it is the only means we have to love others. We are to love as He loved. To do so requires me to daily humble myself before Him and yield to the power of the Holy Spirt.
Lord,
Fill me with Your Spirit. Holy Spirit be unleashed in me. Mold me and make me. Bear fruit in me. Let Your love flow through and out me into others. Make me patient, kind, and selfless.
Amen