Faith, Hope, Love, These Three, but the Greatest of These is Love.

Recently, there was a horrendous traffic accident in Colorado, USA.  Four semis and 24 cars were involved in a fiery crash that closed the freeway for a day and a half.  People ran to help.  They ran into the smoke to help free people from their cars and get them to safety.  They stopped what they were doing and ran to assist the firefighters get hoses to the scene.  There was no thought of the danger to themselves.

Love in action…these people didn’t know each other.  They didn’t know the victims.  But, they sacrificed anyway.  Do you wonder if they thought that this was love in action?

Christ calls us to love one another.  He asks us to love each other unconditionally and sacrificially just as He loves us.  Martyrs love God enough to stand up for Him when they are persecuted.  A friend once told me she would be blessed to die for the sake of loving God.

 “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”  (NIV) John 15:9-13  Underlining and italics added.

God promises that we will face persecution.  However, it is interesting to note that joy is a result of sacrificial love.  We can begin to experience the joy of sacrificial love when we offer our day and ourselves up to God.  Our challenge is to make this a lifelong habit of loving God and loving others.

As Paul encouraged the Corinthian church
to persevere in loving God, we can be encouraged too.
I Corinthians 12:31:  “And now I will show you the most excellent way…”
I Corinthians 13…then
I Corinthians 13:13  “And now these three remain; faith, hope, and love.
But the greatest of these is love.”

~ Take it to heart ~

May your days begin with this prayer from (NIV) Romans 12:1.
“…in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices,
holy and pleasing to God, this is your spiritual act of worship.”

May you know God’s unconditional love for you.
May you pass that same love along to others.
And, may you experience the joy that comes from sacrificial living.