Summer Fruit Devotion: Love Day 2

What is Love?

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love never ends.
1 Corinthians 13:1-8

We can appear loving and not actually have any love. This is the hypocrisy of Christians that the world loves to hate. Let’s make it a little more personal… If I work all day earning money for my family and have not love… If I do all the laundry and all the dishes and cook all the meals and have not love… If I serve every Sunday at church and have not love… If I memorize every Scripture and have not love… If I sell my house and go to the mission field and have not love… I am nothing.

We could get every action and doctrine right and still fail to show love. The original King James translation of the Greek “agape” was “charity.” Think about that for a minute. We think of “charity” as meaning “help for the less fortunate.” What if that’s what this agape love is really all about? It is active, giving, selfless service to others in the name of Christ. God has so generously lavished his love on us while we were his enemies, we can’t help but show that love. Love must fuel our acts of kindness, our giving of time and money, and our patience as others grow and stumble and make mistakes.

Journal time: look up some quick definitions of what love is, and what love isn’t. (dictionary.com) 

Charity

Patient (bonus lookup: long-suffering)

Kind

Envy

Boast

Arrogant

Rude

Irritable

Resentful

Rejoice

Bear

Believe

Hope

Endure

Pray with me today. Heavenly Father, we get so discouraged when we fail to love the way Paul describes in 1 Corinthians. We are so grateful for your love that has covered all of our sins. Help us to love others in the patient, kind, selfless way that you love us. Forgive our bitterness, impatience, arrogance, and rudeness. Let everything we do for family, friends, church, neighbors, and even strangers be fueled by your agape/charity. In the generous and loving name of Jesus we pray, Amen.