1 cor 13 is known as the love chapter. Lets try and go through the aspects of charity,(love.
In vs 4 Paul says "Charity suffereth long and is kind." I also think of the Lord saying to forgive seven times seventy.
Some questions for all of us. Do I suffer long? Do I really suffer long with family? Do I suffer long with fellow believers who I may not be in agreement on every single issue? Do I suffer long with the unbeliver who ridicules the faith?
As one who has failed and fallen short on long suffering I see the need for myself and many others to get even more humble and really practice long suffering and being kind, yes what does this mean as well, being kind?. I hope some will add observations and answers on long suffering and kindness. Then when that is exhausted I will start a new thread on the next aspect of charity. Lord bless us that we might bless you and others even more! :-)
LOVE fullfills the Law
Thanks for this post brother. It really did hit home. It seems like the Lord has his finger on certain things in my life, and longsuffering is one of them.
Mike
Matthew Henry on it:
I. It is long suffering—makrothymei. It can endure evil, injury, and provocation, without being filled with resentment, indignation, or revenge. [b]It makes the mind firm, gives it power over the angry passions, and furnishes it with a persevering patience, that shall rather wait and wish for the reformation of a brother than fly out in resentment of his conduct. It will put up with many slights and neglects from the person it loves, and wait long to see the kindly effects of such patience on him.
II. It is kind—chresteuetai. It is benign, bountiful; it is courteous and obliging. The law of kindness is in her lips; her heart is large, and her hand open. She is ready to show favours and to do good. [b]She seeks to be useful; and not only seizes on opportunities of doing good, but searches for them.
Thanks for starting this thread, brother. It's already been convicting and edifying to me. I went to see what Matthew Henry had to say on the passage and wow! He has some good insight into those two characteristics.
Wow is right! I love the depth. I have his commentary as well so I will look that up and highlight it for meditation. " The heart is large".....I like that. Thank you and God bless you.
While we acknowledge the need for exercising of all the gifts in the body Paul tells us of the more excellent way. The best way!
Continuing to show all the aspects of charity,(love).
Suffereth long and is kind, vaunteth not itself,is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Charity never faileth.
All other gifts etc will fail at some point. We as individuals in the body will fail at points in our lives. Paul declares that we can never go wrong by always pursuing this more excellent way, CHARITY! As revival and sound doctrine are sought, the begining, middle and continuing of the new life is charity, charity, charity.
In hindsight of my walk in Christ I have always leaned more toward all the other aspects of Christianity but not put the more excellent way first. All my pursuits to please the lord should flow from a true sincere charity first. However I have often tacked it on at the end or ignored it all together.
Charity rejoiceth in the truth. Yes all the truths and doctrine of Christ and the apostles. Charity must always be the starting and living force of the pursuit of revival and truth.
Now because we are weak we easily forget, thats why we should remind one another in humility the more excellent way?
Please add as any see's fit. God bless!
Romans 13:8-10 Owe no man anything, but to love one another:for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shall not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet;and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.
Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
Faith, hope and love, but the greatest of these is love.
I see in my walk that I have often not lived by love first. Love which is truly of God is the great power in our lives that will effect this world for Him!
Today I was reading in Matthew 24, specifically vs 10-12;
"And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. And many false prophets shall rise and deceive many. And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall grow cold.
What tempts our love to grow cold? Increase of iniquity. Whether it's our own iniquity or all the iniquity we see around us we can grow cold in heart towards the longsuffering, empathetic love of God that endures to the end in LOVE!
My limited understanding of revival and the need for it is is that it's primarly a waxing cold of the warm, loving hearts of christians.
Christians grow cold toward God and cold toward their neighbor. SOOOOoOoo....... When Jesus calls to the saints in Revelation to return to their "first love" This is a major truth to be preached in the group of truths that are usually preached to promote a true lasting revival.
Thoughts??
Continuing thoughts on Gods love in us fullfilling the law. I found this quote in my Bible program.
"Could we with ink the oceans fill and were the skies of parchment made and every stalk on earth quill and every man a scribe by trade, to write the love of God above would drain the oceans dry, nor could that scroll contain the whole though stretched from sky to sky."
--Scribbled on an asylum wall
The Love of God
Frederick M. Lehman, author and composer, wrote a pamphlet, in 1948, entitled History of the Song, The Love of God. It tells about the origin of this beloved hymn—
While at camp-meeting in a mid-western state, some fifty years ago in our early ministry, an evangelist climaxed his message by quoting the last stanza of this song. The profound depths of the line moved us to preserve the words for future generations.
Not until we had come to California did this urge find fulfillment, and that at a time when circumstances forced us to hard manual labor.
One day, during short intervals of inattention to our work, we picked up a scrap of paper and, seated upon an empty lemon box pushed against the wall, with a stub pencil, added the (first) two stanzas and chorus of the song.
Since the lines (3rd stanza from the Jewish poem) had been found penciled on the wall of a patient’s room in an insane asylum, the general opinion was that this inmate had written the epic in moments of sanity.
Actually, the key-stanza (third verse) under question as to its authorship was written nearly one thousand years ago by a Jewish songwriter, and put on the score page by F.M. Lehman, a Gentile songwriter, in 1917.
[i]The Love of God
(1) The love of God is greater far Than tongue or pen can ever tell;
It goes beyond the highest star, And reaches to the lowest hell;
The guilty pair, bowed down with care, God gave His Son to win;
His erring child He reconciled, And pardoned from his sin.
CHORUS:
O love of God, how rich and pure!
How measureless and strong!
It shall for evermore endure
The saints' and angels' song.
(2) When years of time shall pass away, And earthly thrones and kingdoms fall,
When men, who here refuse to pray, On rocks and hills and mountains call,
God's love so sure, shall still endure, All measureless and strong;
Redeeming grace to Adam's race-The saints' and angels' song.
(3) Could we with ink the ocean fill, And were the skies of parchment made,
Were every stalk on earth a quill, And every man a scribe by trade,
To write the love of God above Would drain the ocean dry.
Nor could the scroll contain the whole, Though stretched from sky to sky.
Please excuse me for breaking in with a question, but this is exactly what I was looking for; a topic on "Love".
A statement was made to me last night that our only purpose as a Christian and in life is to love. This person used 1 Cor. 13 and 1 John 4:7-8 as their example. I told them I felt there was more to our Christian life then love. Then my mind went blank and I could not explain why I felt that way.
I was just wondering what others thought of the statement about love being all we are about.
Thank you
I was just wondering what others thought of the statement about love being all we are about.
It is something easy to confuse because the question is "what is love?" Christian love is something far more than the carnal love or philosophical love of the world. Here are some verses from John about true love:
[b]John 14
15.
[b]John 15
10.[b]11.[b]12.[b]13.[b]14.
[b]John 3
36.
[b]1 John 2
1.[b]2.[b]3.[b]4.[b]5.[b]6.
[b]1 John 3
17.
[b]1 John 4
20.
[b]1 John 4
10.[b]11.[b]12.[b]13.[b]14.[b]15.[b]16.[b]17.
As well as to note, "those who are forgiven much, love much." The entire Christian life is NOTHING WITHOUT love ([b]1 Corinthians 13:2
Christian love is actually very peculiar in this distinction. Every religion of the world says -- "DO NOT unto others ..."
But Jesus said -- "DO unto others ..."
Our faith is to be rooted and grounded in the Love of God which He has for us in the glorious riches of Christ Jesus. And out of this glorious gospel springs forth rivers of living waters -- streams of love birthed in us by the Love of God shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit.
I believe love IS what we are all about.
The love we are about is diffrent than from the world as boG has pointed out, it is a love that results in obedience and again the obedience is because we LOVE.
This love originates in us by the indwelling Holy Ghost. We must first be born again to truly love as God would have us to love, then we continualy love God and our neighbor resulting in a continual growing in love and Holiness.
Now again many in the church speak of Love Love but it is not the biblical love that we have talked about here. It is usualy a come as you are leave as you were love. But when you truly love someone you want to know them and do things that make them happy soooo we Love God and want to do the things that make God happy. Ultimatley what makes God happy is to be conformed to the image of His Son Jesus Christ. Image being to walk as He walked. Jesus was more holy in His actions than the best Pharisee. Why because He lived love by the outflowing power of the Holy Ghost in Him. Also He was of course God/man.
Paul declares in Romans Ro 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Ro 13:9 For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
and again.... Ga 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
and again... 1Ti 1:5 ¶ Now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart, and of a good conscience, and of faith unfeigned:
on we could go but I will stop for now.
My intent is to say that true christian love will obey and when we sin we are sentitive and repentent. However this obeying is from love not from Old covenent law. Yet in truly loving we fulfill the old covenent.
God bless
jeffkenp, freecd's thread on WHAT THE LAW DEMANDS GRACE SUPPLIES Is also very relevant to what we are discussing here!!! Thanks freeecd!!
Thank You thingsabove and boG. Your words were very insightful.
I see now that it was me that had the wrong idea and I owe that someone an apology.
Thank you once again for taking the time to answer my question.
You will find as you look back on you life that the moments that stand out above everything else are the moments when you have done things in a spirit of love. --Henry Drummond
Instead of allowing yourself to be so unhappy, just let your love grow as God wants it to grow; seek goodness in others, love more persons more; love them more impersonally, more unselfishly, without thought of return. The return, never fear, will take care of itself. -Drummond