1 Corinthians 13:3-8a
3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails...
With Valentine's Day approaching within the next 4 hours, I can't help but look at these verses in 1 Corinthians, from three different viewpoints.
The first viewpoint is as a husband. Each of the characteristics of love listed above should be my everyday goals to reach. I should strive to be patient with my wife. I should show her kindness. I shouldn't envy or boast in my pride. I should be considerate to her feelings and needs and not be rude or short tempered. I shouldn't be selfish by all means, but in everything, putting her before me. I should seek and long for truth in our marriage. It is my responsibility to protect her life and our house.
The second viewpoint is as a person. I can see a need for application of these characteristics in my everyday life as a person. Whether I am in school teaching my students and interacting with other teachers, or I am out running errands, many of these areas need to be strengthened within my life. When working with teenagers, patience can be a hard thing to find and practice. When students are being rude to me, it is hard, almost impossible to not be somewhat rude or angry back at them. I feel like I am constantly being drenched in evilness when I am at work. I hear words I don't want to hear, I see things I don't want to see, and I receive poor attitudes from students who believe they have all of the answers. Even though I work in a negative environment, it is my responsibility to bring these characteristics of love into my classroom, or the restaurant that I am eating at.
The last viewpoint is as Christian. Christ has called us to love one another, but we are to also love Christ. It is a no-brainer that Jesus loves and cares for me. If you think this is false, Romans 5:8 can help you understand it more clearly. When I pray I often times am impatient. My actions sometimes are unkind and go against God's word, resulting in breaking God's heart. I envy those who have more than me at times, when I am too blind to see that God has blessed me with more than enough. When I boast, it is about myself and what I have done, even though everything I have (whether it be talents or possessions) comes from above. When I do something great or significant, I am prideful and I seek gratification from others, although God is responsible for giving me the capability to even breathe. If someone hurts me or crosses me, I don't think twice about returning the gesture back at them, but Christ gave up His life to save me from all the sins that I hide within. When things don't go right, I get mad at the instructions of the bookshelf I am putting together, all the while, God is understanding and patient in my mess-ups and failures. While I hold grudges against someone for some petty mistake, God lovingly wipes my trespasses and slate clean, no matter how many times I screw up. I can sit back and watch a violent movie with cursing, lust, aggressive behavior, destructions, and explosions, but God fixes His mind on things not of the world, but of heaven and of truth. If someone were attacking a stranger on the street, I would probably not intervene, but instead I would probably walk the opposite direction and turn a blind eye to it. God, however, would step in between the attacker and the victim, allowing the victim to escape unscathed. I break trust when I don't follow through with friends or family, but God trusts His people to carry out His will, even though He knows I am fully capable of dropping the ball. If I experience a bad day, I hang my head and complain about it. God always hopes and see's that there is opportunity for me to improve and get better. Christ suffered and persevered an agonizing death and brutal beatings to save me from spending my eternity in hell without the love of God.
Love never fails.
God never fails...
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