1 Corinthians 13:13 NLT
Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
As a Christian, the goal is to come to know Jesus Christ and to know what “true” love is.
“Three things will last forever — faith, hope, and love — and the greatest of these is love.”
He also gave us the definition of “true” love.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NLT
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way.
“Love is patient and kind.”
Sometimes, we find ourselves thinking things should be happening faster than they are happening. We want what we want, and we want it now.
Generally, this will be with things outside of our control. People aren’t doing what we think they should be doing. Things aren’t happening the way we think they should be happening; again, this has to do with what someone else is doing or not doing.
So we insert ourselves, most of the time trying to make our point, pleading our case as to why things should be different, trying to influence or manipulate what the other person should be doing.
In essence, we are putting ourselves into God’s place. We are trying to impart our will in a particular situation. Our way is the best.
When we look at this, I think we would have to conclude that this is not “patient” or “kind.”
“Love is not jealous or boastful or proud or rude.”
That’s a mouthful. How often has someone mentioned to you that something good has happened to them only to think to yourself, “It must be nice, I wish that it was me.” (Jealous)
Or how about something outstanding has happened to you because of your efforts and maybe you told everyone about it, and it would never have happened without your efforts. (Boastful) Or no one else would have been able to do it. (Proud)
Jesus uses the words “meek” and “humble” many times in His preaching. We have to understand if we are to live in God’s blessing because everything comes from God’s sovereign nature, and the blessings that come into our lives come out of our humble obedience to His Word.
“It does not demand its own way.”
Everything outside our thinking and what we do is in God’s hand. If we think what people around us are doing is wrong and need to do something about it, we are crossing the line.
There are two types of people that we deal with in our lives:
1. Other Christians – We are responsible for other believers about keeping them in line with God’s Word. But there is a right way to do this and a wrong way to do this.
The right way is to approach this with a gentle and compassionate spirit. Guiding each other back to the Word of God.
Let’s start here:
James 1:19 NLT
Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.
Sometimes we don’t take enough time to listen; we want to fix the problem and move on. That almost sounds like “demanding my own way.”
When we listen without saying anything, a person who truly wants to change will eventually come to a conclusion necessary, and when they conclude on their own, it’s “theirs” by God’s hand, and they will make a lasting change in their hearts. But if they do it because we are browbeating them with the way we think it should be, they may change to make us happy, but the change will not stick, and with certainty, this will arise again in their lives.
Sometimes we may have to:
Colossians 3:13 NLT
Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others.
God is working on all of us. And for those truly looking to learn and grow closer to Jesus, God will present plenty of trials for us to respond in a Godly way. And this applies to everyone who has accepted Jesus as their Savior.
When we insert ourselves thinking that we need to lead the charge for change in someone else’s life, we will get into trouble.
Hebrews 10:24-25 NLT
Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another, especially now that the day of his return is drawing near.
Our job is to love God and love others.
2. Non-believers – They are God’s hands. Period.
The only thing that we can do here is live out our faith in Jesus in their presence.
When our lives change because we submit and obey God’s Word, this will be a witness to the power of Jesus Christ in the heart of a believer.
We should encourage, we should invite them to church, but above all else, we should be the proof of what we believe.
If our lives are up and down and we react in a manner that does not glorify God to every bad circumstance that we face, people around us who do not believe will not be attracted to that. And our testimony will be for nothing.
2 Corinthians 4:6-7 NLT
For God, who said, “Let there be light in the darkness,” has made this light shine in our hearts so we could know the glory of God that is seen in the face of Jesus Christ. We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
Our lives lived out in faith may be the only time that someone gets a chance to see Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father, please let Your love shine through my life.
I pray that Your Word dwells richly in my life and that You give me the strength and courage to obey Your Word and live my life in a manner that glorifies You in every way.
Dear God, thank You for sending Jesus down to show us how to live a life filled with joy and peace.
I know that there will be struggles, and I know that there will be trials, but I know that this is how You teach us to be more like Jesus.
Give me the strength to live knowing that Your grace is sufficient.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray, Amen!! 🙏❤️
