Thursday, August 20

THURSDAY, AUGUST 20, 2015

Esther 8:1–10:3

1 Corinthians 12:27–13:13

Psalm 37:1–11

Proverbs 21:23,24

 

 

“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.” (1 Corinthians 13:4–8a)

 

Have you ever played the “telephone” game?  In this childhood classic (likely more popular before ubiquitous handheld screens), the initiator whispers a phrase with the second player, such as, “The cow loved frolicking in the green grass.”  The second player relays the message by whisper to the third, and so on.  Finally, the last person repeats what he or she has heard.  In the most stringent version, each player may only speak the phrase once, making it crucial to listen and speak carefully.  In any event, this sample phrase generally comes out as:  “The cow last jumped in the creek.”  Laughter often ensues with our challenges in passing along the “telephone” messages!

 

In many ways, our lives represent a link in the “telephone” chain.  God has called us to reflect His love to others, and we have responsibility to keep this reflection bright and clear.  As Paul notes later in the chapter, we don’t have the luxury of perfectly clear perception of God’s love, explaining that “now we see only a reflection as in a mirror.”  The “mirror” he has in mind likely represent a piece of polished metal, which would not have given as clear a picture as today’s glass mirrors.

 

While we do not see God’s love perfectly clearly, we also struggle with our own blemishes.  Yet, God gives us abundant and sufficient grace to share His love with others.  Our duty comes in committing to the effort of loving others and persevering through the tough days.  Paul noted in 2 Corinthians 5:14 that “Christ’s love compels us” to share the ministry of reconciliation – that is, bringing spiritual healing through sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

In addition to demonstrating God’s love through speaking His Word, we love through action.  Indeed, love always represents an act of the will, a commitment; “love” feelings are terribly fleeting and can’t really motivate us to invest time in building others up.  In 1 John 3:16–18, the beloved Apostle encourages us to follow Christ’s example of self-sacrificing love:  “This is how we know what love is:  Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.  And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters.  If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?  Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”

 

These words are challenging to me.  We are called not just to avoid actively hurting our neighbor, but also to avoid passive indifference.  These verses suggest that we may even have a “searchlight” attitude towards others’ needs; we should be actively looking to stand with others in their times of need.

 

How may you respond to others’ needs in love?  How may you “not delight in evil but rejoice with the truth” today?

 

 

 

On Wednesday night, I witnessed a beautiful expression of the Body of Christ’s responding in love.  We gathered together to discuss several key ministries for the coming year, and one could immediately perceive the presence of the Holy Spirit, bringing unity and love to the entire group.  May the Spirit flow into this Body as streams of living water, strengthening us for God’s good purposes in the coming year.

 

 

Lord God, we pray that Your Holy Spirit would empower us to love deeply and from the heart.  Give us eyes of discernment so that we may know how we may show Your love in action.  Fill us with Your Holy Spirit so that we may display His fruit.  Use us collectively to share a wonderful harmony of love with Stamford, Connecticut, our nation, and the world.  To You be all glory, honor, and praise forever and ever!  In Jesus’s Name, amen.

 

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