THE PRIMACY OF LOVE

“And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” – 1 Corinthians 13: 13

Welcome to OCTOBER – our Month of the FULLNESS of LOVE, PEACE and PROSPERITY. This resonates with our September meditations on the Fullness of God’s House. Psalm 122, focuses on the blessings and value of God’s House: “I was glad when they said to me, “Let us go into the house of the Lord” (v.1). In verse 7, David proclaimed these blessings: “PEACE be within your walls, PROSPERITY within your palaces” (Psa.122:7). God’s divine power “has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises” (2Pet.1:3-4a). Among the things “that pertain to life and godliness” and the “exceedingly great and precious promises,” Love, Peace, and Prosperity are indispensable to life on this side of eternity.

LOVE must however buttress Peace and Prosperity, because nothing in this world – including Peace and Prosperity – is meaningful without Love. That’s why we must acknowledge the PRIMACY of LOVE: “And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1Cor.13:13). Love is the divine force underlying all legitimate spirituality. Love is the foundation and framework for the life in Christ. We need to meditate extensively on the theme of Love as a prelude to Peace and Prosperity. Love manifests in various contexts of relationships: between God and His people; in Marriage, Family and Home; in the Church, among brethren; and among friends and acquaintances. There is no better place to begin than in the Bible’s Classic Chapter on Love – 1 Corinthians 13! Here is the Summary of the Love Charter:

Eminence of Love (vv-1-3): Love is preeminent to all the spiritual gifts. It must be the foundation and motivation for all gifts, whether the gifts of tongues, prophecy, knowledge, faith or giving. These gifts cannot accomplish their purpose without the supremacy of love.

Explanation of Love (vv.4-8): these verses describe the attributes of love is – what love is and isn’t. Love is patient, kind, and honest; it bears up under all problems, trusts, hopes, understands the fault of others, and never fails (perseveres). On the other hand, love is not envious, proud, boastful, inappropriate or rude, selfish, short-tempered, evil or accepting of sin.

Endurance of Love (vv.8-13): While some of the spiritual gifts will be cut off or pass away, love will remain; there is always a need for love. Love is permanent. Actually, three virtues will continue and endure: faith, hope and love. Of the three, Paul affirms that love is superior. Even the enduring, permanent qualities of faith and hope will be of little value without love.

True Love is nothing less than God Himself: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for GOD is LOVE” (1 Jh.4:7-8). Those who live in love, live in God! Therefore, love must never be lacking in the believer or in the community of believers. That would be a misnomer. If love is lacking, then it is safe to assume that God is lacking! This was the context in the Corinthian community. There was a faction within the church community which was emphasizing the experience and expression of the more charismatic, ecstatic spiritual gifts. Some were elevating these spiritual phenomena as being higher forms of spirituality. Paul then intervened with the truth: without love, the most dramatic of spiritual gifts are of no use (v.2). A faith that moves mountains is useless in the absence of love, because even faith works through love (Gal.5:6).

Love is the legitimacy of the gospel – what makes the Gospel truth practical and real. Love is where “the rubber meets the road”! Love validates the mission of the Church. Love is our message to the world – the force for good in the world. And Love is the distinguishing quality of believers: “By this all will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another” (Jh.13:35).