If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.
Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.
WHAT Is Love? The Apostle Paul uses the Koine Greek word agape in this passage (the New Testament was written in Greek) which basically is defined by James Strong’s Greek Lexicon as love, affection and brotherly love and Thayer’s Greek Definitions classifies this word as noun. In the classic King James Version published in 1611 the word used here is charity, hence the title 👆🏿
Since we see that love is described here as a noun, it is something that we either have or we don’t. The noun proceeds the verb. I have love and therefore I can give it. My actions of love stem from a well of water springing up from my insides. This love though comes from God Himself and cannot come from within the fallen nature of human beings. Well, partly we might have a little love here and there because we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7; John 4:24) but most times it falls short of what is expected from us by God . The reason that there is so much evil and the world is in tatters is because the love of many has grown cold – Matthew 24:12. If there is something that is needed in this world today it is not peace, prosperity, health, wealth and riches, education, politics and all these things that the world (and regrettably the church too sometimes) tries to offer as the solution to the world’s problems but the only solution is Love. Remember that God IS Love (I John 4:8). True and unconditional love can only come from God the Father alone and He is the only true source of it, all the others are fabrications. Let’s discuss this further.
God gave commandments to Moses first as seen in Exodus 19-20 and also throughout the Torah (Law) – Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The famous 10 commandments were given on Mount Sinai and they have been commonly summarized as this: the first four have to do with God and the last six have to do with fellow man. Basically if we love God and man we have fulfilled the whole law (Romans 13:8-10). Jesus expounded on this further. He was asked by one of the scribes as to what the greatest command was and Jesus quoted to him the “Shema Israel,” i.e. ” Hear O Israel “– Deuteronomy 6:4-5 which states that one should love God with all their heart, mind soul and strength and He also added that one should love his neighbor as himself (Levitivus 19:18). He then added that there is none other commandment greater than these.
The standard has been set as so and Jesus goes to even add that loving Him means that we keep His commandments (John 14:15; I John 2:3; 5:2-3) and that we loving the world means that we hate God and so loving God means hating the things of the world (I John 2:15-17). The apostles John and James both add that we cannot claim to love God when we hate our neighbor and that true love is shown in deed (action) and truth (James 2:14-26; I John 3: 14-18). During the last supper Jesus famously said that His followers would be known by their love for one another (John 13:34-35).
Seeing that the standard has been so high it dawns on us (unfortunately) that we ALL fall short of God’s design and standard of love (Psalm 14:2-3; Isaiah 53:6; Romans 3:9-20, 23). And we are told in James 2:10 that “whosoever shall keep the whole law and yet offend in one point has missed it all.” Therefore we see by our human nature we cannot love as pertains to the example, directions and standard given in the scriptures. Therefore the question arises, how can we achieve this high set standard? How can one truly love both God and man as Jesus did ? – Luke 2:52; II Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15)
Because of the sinful nature of man which we got when Adam and Eve sinned in the garden and was passed down (Psalm 51:4-5) when the law is given it actually triggers the sinful nature in us. Paul states in Romans 7:7 that when the law said to me “you shall not lust” that that is when I wanted to lust. This is because of the sinful nature of man. Therefore the commandment which was ordained to life condemned me to death because it triggers the sinful nature in me and I end up sinning (Romans 7:7-14). So adding a new commandment on love would bring out the same result. It is not telling people to love that will make them love God and people but having their sinful nature changed.
This is where true love begins. When we experience the new birth (John 3:3-8; Romans 10:9-10), after that the sinful nature is crucified with Christ (Romans 6:6; Galatians 2:20) and thus because the spiritual man has become alive through Jesus Christ we are connected to God the Father and we are able to access and gain true love from Him. It flows from His nature into ours! Can you imagine that! In times past we were helpless before the law (Romans 7:15-24) but now we are more than able to do whatsoever the law requires of us because of Christ in us! – Titus 2:11-14; Romans 6:1-4; 7:27-8:8
Thus by learning to live and walk in the Spirit (Psalm 27:4; 91:1; Galatians 5:16-24; John 15:1-8) we are able to (without struggling) love God, fellow man and even our enemies. Just imagine the love that flowed in Christ when He was at the cross and He blessed His enemies who were mocking and laughing at Him and Stephen who also forgave those who stoned him to death one of them who happened to be the Apostle Paul! This was impossible by the flesh but Stephen was able to love these men because he was a man who walked in the Spirit. The secret to loving unconditionally is to walk in the Spirit, to abide continually in the presence of Jesus (John 15:4-5; I John 3:6). This is the love that the world is desperately searching for and can ONLY be found in the Father through Jesus Christ.
Remember that the fruit of the Spirit as mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 are nine the first being Love. This is no coincidence because we are told that the greatest thing is love/charity – I Corinthians 13:13. When we learn to walk with the Holy Spirit Love (being His fruit) will automatically flow from within us and thus we will fulfill the whole law: loving God and loving all men.
Love is defined clearly in I Corinthians 13:4-8. Any other definition of love is not true. That’s simply it. I have experienced this unconditional love from God my Father who loved me unconditionally while I was yet a sinner. I embraced it and I now by His grace I walk in it. You can have this too. Nothing else can satisfy. King David said “Because Your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You.” Wow, His Love is better than life itself!
I John 4:7-21 (NKJV)
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world. There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love. We love Him because He first loved us. If someone says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can[c] he love God whom he has not seen? And this commandment we have from Him: that he who loves God must love his brother also.
If you are not saved, that is, born-again please read this article here and accept Jesus Christ into your life as your personal Saviour and Love. He loves you too much. Please make this decision today, you will never regret it.
Ben-David Ministries 