DEFINING LOVE

(Written on April 15, 2010)

Introduction
Last week we read between the lines of 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 and looked at some related passages. We concluded that God does not merely look at what a person does, but also what's in their heart. Paul has introduced love in these first three verses as "the most excellent way," and now, in the next four verses (1 Corinthians 13:4-7), he seeks to define love. This is the portion of Scripture that we will examine today:

1 Corinthians 13:4-7: (4) Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. (5) It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. (6) Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (7) It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

This is a beautiful passage. It is especially beautiful when we realize that it describes God's perfect love for us. But when we look at ourselves in this part of the mirror of God's Word (James 1:23-24), we probably won't like what we see. In today's study, we will look at how God fits this description of love. Then, next week, we will have a look at ourselves in light of Paul's definition of love.

God's Perfect Love - a love of choice

John 15:13: “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” We need look no farther than the cross to see how great God's love for us is. And if the cross does not impress you (or if you have become overly familiarized with it to the point that it has lost its meaning) then perhaps you should read an account (1, 2, 3, 4) of what Jesus suffered for you and me. There are few ways of dying that are worse than what Jesus suffered, especially when we consider that He carried the weight of the whole world's sins.

ccc As human beings, we can endure quite a lot... indeed, sometimes we have no choice. Although we may think we want to know what's going to happen in our lives in the future, there is a great blessing in not knowing. But the difference here is that Jesus knew what He was about to suffer, and still He chose to go through with it (John 12:27-28).

ccc To illustrate this further, let me quote from “The Perfect Penitent,” a chapter from C.S. Lewis' book, Mere Christianity: “But supposing God became a man—suppose our human nature which can suffer and die was amalgamated with God's nature in one person—then that person could help us. He could surrender His will, and suffer and die, because He was man; and He could do it perfectly because He was God. You and I can go through this process only if God does it in us; but God can do it only if He becomes man. Our attempts at this dying will succeed only if we men share in God's dying, just as our thinking can succeed only because it is a drop out of the ocean of His intelligence: but we cannot share God's dying unless God dies; and He cannot die except by being a man. That is the sense in which He pays our debt, and suffers for us what He Himself need not suffer at all.”

God's Perfect Love - loving His enemies

In Matthew 5:43-45, Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, 'Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I tell you: Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.”

ccc I presume that I am not the only one who has a hard time with some of Jesus' teachings. These words of Jesus are no different. If you're like me, you might initially hear these words and be inspired by them--imagining how noble it would be to live them out... And yet, when someone wrongs me, my first instinct is to point out their fault and indignantly fume over what they've done rather than to love them and pray for them. So, when it comes to living these words out, we tend to look at this command of Jesus' and, like some of His earlier disciples, say, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it ” (John 6:60)?

ccc But before you read these words of Jesus' and conclude that they are too harsh, consider this: We are all enemies of God. Without God's amazing, outrageous love, we would be doomed to destruction because of our sin and rebellion against Him. This is the essence of Romans 5:7-8, which says, “Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Do you understand the significance of this passage? Jesus (God incarnate) came down to earth and gave His life for us, His enemies, so that we might have peace with God: “For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in Him [Jesus], and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through His blood, shed on the cross. Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. But now He has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation” (Colossians 1:19-22)... Do you still think Jesus' words are too harsh? If He had not loved His enemies, we would still be dead in our sins!

God's Perfect Love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Therefore, when we read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, we can understand that this is a description of God's love for us—a love revealed most clearly through the life and death of Jesus Christ, who did not envy the worldly possessions and prestige of others, but sought the approval of God the Father... He was not rude or easily angered, but rather was patient and kind, even to the people who persecuted and insulted Him as He suffered on the cross (1 Peter 2:22-24, Isaiah 53:7). Jesus' response to His enemies was this: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). And although He himself was God, He did not take pride in His glory (John 17:5), boast about it, or even consider Himself equal to God the Father, but rather humbled himself to the point of death (Philippians 2:6-8)—the ultimate in self-sacrifice.

ccc Indeed, “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16). But God is also holy and just. He couldn't forsake His perfect love just as He couldn't forsake His perfect justice—this is who He is, and God doesn't change (Malachi 3:6). Therefore, let me finish with a passage of Scripture that illustrates how perfect love (grace) and perfect justice are reconciled: Romans 3:21-26: “But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.” This week, I hope you'll join with me in meditating on God's perfect love for humanity.