LOVE NEVER FAILS...

Most of us have read or heard what is considered the "love chapter" in the Bible. 1 Corinthians 13 provides incredible insight into the nature of love. The other day I began to meditate on the verses that follow this incredible dissertation. "Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be restrained; where there is knowledge, it will be dismissed. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when the perfect comes, the partial passes away." (8-10)

What is it about love that we cannot seem to grasp? Is it too simple? Do we think that loving someone means that we never deal with the issues? Are we afraid that we will be letting people off the hook? Or is it that we just don't get it? In 1 Peter we read that love covers a multitude of sins. Which is why the Apostle encouraged the early church to love each other deeply. Reading what Peter had to say about the topic and understanding what Paul had already written to the church at Corinth, I'm amazed that we still miss out on the most crucial element of our shared life together.

LOVE NEVER FAILS. Think about it for just a moment. Prophecies will one day cease. Tongues will be restrained. The gift of knowledge will be dismissed. When? When that which is perfect has come. Until then...KEEP LOVING. Don't allow the gifts of the Holy Spirit to become a pecking order among you. These gifts were never meant to become a status symbol among the believers. They were meant for edification. Designed for the building up of the body of Christ. Given to us to ensure that we could all come to the unity of the faith. These gifts along with the Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers were designed to bring us all to maturity. To a place where the sons of God would rise up and take their place. Being united to one another. Growing the Kingdom of God in the Earth.

What's amazing about our emphasis upon gifts rather than love is that we have neglected what Paul said about these things. That the gifts were all done in part. We prophecy in part. We know in part. In other words, with all the revelation we receive in ourselves, we only have a part of what the Father wants us to have. The whole comes as we join together in love.

You see...LOVE bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love will not fail us. I believe the reason that we only prophecy in part is because the Lord designed us to be in relationship. That the only way we can get the full revelation among us is to have every part come together to form a whole. In this way, when the body of Christ comes together, we will see the Head (Jesus) fully revealed. In the meantime, love is the thing that fills the gaps. Love covers all the issues. And love will bring us together in true unity.

Remember last week when we talked about all of the "-ologies" of the faith? All in part. All up to interpretation. All with varying degrees of perception. And while we may not agree on the summation of these things, can we not agree to love one another? Can we not all appreciate the faith that we have in Jesus? Is it necessary for us to separate and divide because of our differences? Or can love cover our shortcomings and misunderstandings?

This is what I want to see played out among us. This is the unity (I believe) that we were meant to walk in. That our love for the Lord and for one another would carry us. That we would learn what it means to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. That our love for one another would be the defining characteristic of who were are in Christ. I am convinced that this is what the Lord meant for us. Not that we would be categorized by our schisms, but seen for our love.

I realize that this is not easy for some people. They are convinced that it is their way or the highway. That many of the things they believe are essentials that cannot be reconciled. However, I'm starting to see some cracks in this resolve. Over the past few weeks I have been meeting with several other pastors. All a part of a chaplain orientation. The man leading this group is from a particular denomination. He asked the question: "What is it that unites us? Is it not the belief that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ?" A simple statement but one that resonated with the heart of every person in the room. I remember one pastor being amazed and humbled at the simplicity of it all. He didn't know anything about this man's particular denomination. All he knew was what he had heard. Never investigating the facts for himself. Which brings me to a point: How often have we judged and criticized others without investigating the truth for ourselves?

Love covers this. Along with a multitude of other things.
Love fills the gaps. Doing all that it can do the handle our misunderstandings, shortcomings, and parts.
Love binds us together. Fulfilling what belief systems cannot do on their own.
I'm believing there will come a time when we will learn to set aside our differences. Where our practices will not be nearly as important as the person sitting across from us. That we will learn to see Jesus in one another and truly love without prejudice or hypocrisy. Why do I believe that? What proof do I have that this will actually work? I have the testimony of the Scriptures and the ongoing witness of the Holy Spirit. LOVE NEVER FAILS! It will not fail us in this endeavor.