All of our good works and good intentions are not lasting or true, without the motivation of God’s love stimulating our hearts into action. The Bible says that if we speak eloquently but do so without love, our words become just a clanging noise. Furthermore, our wisdom, knowledge, and faith amount to zilch if God’s love is not involved. Even if we give all that we have to the poor, it counts for nothing without love. When we do good works for show or for fear of others’ opinions, it stunts and crushes our real spiritual growth. Even religious service that is rendered without love helps neither the servant nor the served.
Human love is imperfect because we love the lovely, strong, pleasant, and those that make us feel good. We also love those that have similar qualities we like about ourselves. On the contrary, God also loves the unlovely, weak, unpleasant, and disagreeable. His powerful love transcends all human weaknesses, and He gives it unconditionally. This strong, influential, prevailing, and formidable love is available for us to draw from as we stay connected to Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit. God longs for us to experience personally His awesome love. Then, in turn, we will be able to offer this living, pure love so that others can experience and know who He really is!
“If I can speak in the tongues of men and even of angels, but have not love [that reasoning, intentional, spiritual devotion such as is inspired by God’s love for and in us], I am only a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic power [the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose], and understand all the secret truths and mysteries and possess all knowledge, and if I have [sufficient] faith so that I can remove mountains, but have not love [God’s love in me] I am nothing. Even if I dole out all that I have [to the poor in providing] food, and if I surrender my body to be burned in order that I may glory, but have not love [God’s love in me], I gain nothing” (1Corinthians 13: 1-3).
