Recently I studied First Corinthians chapter thirteen (“The Love Chapter”). The Lord reminded me of some very important principles of Christian fellowship as I walked through that passage verse by verse. But the dominant principle proceeding from the text was this: LOL. That’s right! God told me to LOL. That is, LOVE-Out-Loud.
In the church we often take it for granted that we love one another. It’s basically assumed. Assumptions are very dangerous however. When we assume realities rather than express them, those realities can become non-realities over time. What once was true becomes true no longer.
Speaking personally here, the last thing I want to do with my life is to facilitate or participate in a ministry that assumes the existence of love but does not express it. So I’ll pass along a few thoughts from the text that exhorted me toward loving-out-loud:
- Loveless ministry is worthless ministry (vv. 1-3). Unfortunately, lovelessness is a common problem among Christians. Each one of us is susceptible to falling into it. It’s a slippery slope. It looks something like this: We get into the habit of attending church services, serving in ministry, and doing what people ask us to do. Over time, though, our hearts turn cold. Our desires become selfish. Our attitudes become carnal. Yet we continue to do ministry because that’s what is expected of us; that’s what God wants from us; that’s what our duty is. However, we no longer are seeking the highest good of the people we’re serving, we’re simply checking off a ministry to-do list in order to appease our guilty conscience, fulfill a sense of duty to God, and satisfy the expectations of the people around us. When we get to this point, our ministry is worthless! So how can we prevent loveless ministry? Meditate on God’s redeeming love for you (Ephesians 2:4). Meditate on God’s love for others (John 3:16). And walk in the Spirit rather than the flesh (Galatians 5:16-17).
- The nature of love is selfless and generous (vv. 4-7). Love is both negative and positive. By “negative,” I don’t mean sinful or distasteful. I simply mean that love is a commitment to NOT be a certain way, to NOT do certain things, and to NOT have certain attitudes. By “positive” I simply mean that love is a commitment to pursue certain attitudes, actions, and forms of communication. Selfless love looks like this: You are not consumed with jealousy. You don’t brag. You’re notarrogant. You don’t act disgracefully. You don’t strive for personal advantage. You aren’t easily irritated. You don’t meditate on evil. You don’t delight in sin. Generous love looks like this: You are patient. You are helpful. You do enjoy the truth. You are trustworthy. You do have an attitude of trust. You do expect the best. You dopersevere.
- Love is the one ministry that will never fail (vv. 8-13). Love never fades away or comes to an end. It never falls down or is destroyed. It always remains. On the other hand, the gift of prophecy comes to an end, the gift of tongues comes to an end, the gift of knowledge comes to an end. But love always remains. Therefore, when you are making your decisions about what to do with your time, who to call, or who to go visit, think about this principle of love. Love is the one ministry that will never fail.
Love (i.e. seeking the highest good of others) is an eternal Christian principle that all believers should closely monitor within themselves. Let’s don’t assume that we love others. Let’s follow the above principles and LOL!
by Ryan Limbaugh