The Word - Feb. 15, 2012 - THE MORE EXCELLENT WAY

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, or boastful, or proud or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. It rejoices whenever the truth wins out. Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures every circumstance. (1 Corinthians 13:4-7).

The very heart of the apostle Paul's first letter to the church at Corinth is chapter 13. It is here in this chapter that the variety of gifts which are described in chapter 12 are saturated with love in order that, in chapter 14, they may function under the control of the Holy Spirit.

If in chapter 12 we have described for us the sphere of ministry, in this 13th chapter, we have described for us the spirit of ministry. By the way, the impurity of the flesh, which is the result of a carnal spirit, brought to our attention in chapters 5 to 7 is not seen in this chapter. Why? Simply because there is no Impurity in Agape Love!

Paul, moved by the Holy Spirit, gives us the most wonderful description of love, insisting that it is the greatest virtue of the character of a believer in Christ. The questions we are faced with are, what kind of love is Paul talking about, and in reality where do we find it?

In today's world the word "love" has been sadly abused. Many think of love as "sexual love alone." A rap star sings, "Let's do what the animals do!". There you cannot discover the first moral boundary. But we are more than animals, and really, what Paul is talking about is a different kind of love than "eros."

Three kinds of love are mentioned in the Bible, 'eros', 'philia' and 'agape'. All three are important in marriage between a man and a woman. But agape is the greatest of all. As we study it's meaning the next few days, may such love mark the lives of all God's dear children! Lord, help us to really understand the real meaning of love!