“Love bears up under anything and everything that comes.”
1 Corinthians 13:7a (AMPC)
Our pastors have been sharing about the power of “This Gospel.” It is the power to change a heart and transform the world around us. It is the very power of God that will heal and restore our nations. I know we all agree with that, but then what is happening in world around us? Why is strife, division, divorce, and hatred still happening in our churches today? Could it be that “This Gospel” is not understood or that there is a different definition of what it means? You see, 1 Corinthians 13 is “This Gospel” or if I can say it in a slightly different way, it’s “This Love.”
The Passion Translation calls God’s love, “a safe place of shelter.” God’s love covers all things, like a roof covers a house. God’s love will bear up with our shortcomings and that of others. And like a roof protects and shields, that is what God’s love does for us; it will protect us from the negativity in the world. As we come to God, who is love (1 John 4:7), we find a safe place that offers shelter and does not look to expose or put us down. He speaks truth to us in a way that protects us from guilt, condemnation, and fear. This is why he tells us…
“Come to me (this love), all you who are weary and burdened, and I (this love) will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me (this love), for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-29).
It is when we have a clear understanding of who God is that we can then be who God has called us to be. It is, “This Love” that God wants the world to see and as you and I receive, “This Love”, we can then display it to the world around us. Freely we have received and freely we will give.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
As a Christian for many years, I thought I understood what true love was all about. I assumed that because I was married for many years, surely, I must know what true love is. It wasn’t until one day, after being married for seven years, frustrated with my husband because I felt he didn’t know how to love me, that the Lord arrested my heart and proceeded to tell me that I didn’t love my husband. As you can imagine, I was shocked because in my evaluation of our relationship, I was doing everything right. I soon realized that my definition of love was based upon how I was raised and what I observed in my parents.
I had my own definition of love, but God took me to 1 Corinthians 13 and revealed to me what “This Love” really was. As I read through each part of this scripture, I realized how far off I was in my understanding of who God was. He showed me that He first loved me, and it was with “this love” that He wanted me to love my husband with. I then began to align my heart to live “This Love” out. My husband and I went from facing divorce after seven years of marriage, to having just celebrated our 34th wedding anniversary. We know it is only because of aligning our lives to “This Love” that God healed our lives and restored our marriage.
Today, I want to encourage you and ask that you look at 1 Corinthians 14:1a (ampc) for it says, “Eagerly pursue and seek to acquire ‘This Love’”, which is referring to 1 Corinthians 13:4-8. It is only “This Love” that will change our live and the world around us. (Deneen Quartero)
TODAY’S DECLARATION
“Lord, today, I will eagerly pursue and seek to acquire ‘This Love.’”
TODAY’S BIBLE READING
- Old Testament: 1 Chronicles 1-2; Psalms 123-124
- New Testament: Luke 7:11-17; Colossians 1:1-14
