Up and Out

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. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3 ESV)

If you have ever been to a wedding, you probably heard this verse in1Corinthians read as part of the ceremony. And rightfully so; it is about love. But the centrality of love is found in the ministry of Christ. Christ calls us to love God, as He told the Sadducees, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment.39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40 ESV)

According To Paul

According to Paul, if we exercise all the gifts of the Spirit and don’t have the love of Christ in our hearts, we are empty. Love means everything, and without it, we are nothing.

First, we must consider our vertical relationships, our relationship with the Godhead. When Christ saves us, He replaces our heart of stone with a heart of flesh. We can grasp the love of Christ, who, by his sacrifice, set us free from the bondage of sin and restored our relationship with God, a loving relationship between our Father in heaven and His children. Our relationship with God is our vertical relationship, directly affecting our horizontal relationship with others.

Up and Out

When Christ restores our vertical relationship with God, we can grow in our horizontal relationships with others. We can spread the love and glory of God to others. We reflect that love, the love of Christ, to others. Works without love are simply toil. We gain no pleasure in our works; we spread no love. Our vertical love and horizontal love are inseparable. It is from this love that there is church growth. Others experience the love of Christ through the fruit of our works. How can we love those who are visible to us if we cannot love our Father in heaven with all our heart?

Do you Get This?

Think about the times you have not shown love. If you do not feel guilt or disappointment in your actions, or behavior, there is a problem. If we remember we have nothing without love, we might live and work with a more profound love in our hearts.

Spread the Gospel, Spread the Love.

Peace and Grace