YOU FIRST, LOVE


Different people gauge spiritual maturity in different ways. There are some who think if a person can play the guitar, has a good voice, and can write good songs, he or she must be very spiritual. There are some who think if a guy can get up in front of a group, tell some good stories, make you laugh, make you cry, and make you think a little, he must be a spiritually mature person. There are those who think if you use a lot of religious clichés, talk a lot about religious things, everyone will get the impression that you must be a very spiritually mature person. Well, it doesn't work that way. Spiritual maturity is not about how much you know, or how much talent you have, or how captivating your personality may be. True spiritual maturity is evidenced not by knowledge or signs and wonders, but by love. That's what Paul says in the love chapter 1 Corinthians 13. That's why, after he talks about spiritual gifts and their place in ministry, he says, "And now I will show you the most excellent way." That way is living a life of love!

God has made one thing crystal clear—if you’re serious about loving him, you better get serious about loving others. “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ but hates a Christian brother or sister, that person is a liar; for if we don't love people we can see, how can we love God, whom we cannot see? And he has given us this command: Those who love God must also love their Christian brothers and sisters” (1 John 4:20-21). It doesn’t get any clearer than this. The extent to which you love others is the extent to which you love God. Loving God means loving others.

Love must be the driving force behind all that you do. Let me encourage you to take a look at all that you do at work, in your family life, and in your service to your church, then ask yourself—is this motivated by love? Or am I just doing this for my pleasure, for my glory, for my comfort, for my ego? Is love the driving force in my life? In my marriage, am I motivated by love, or by getting what I want? In my work, am I motivated by love, or greed? When I serve, do I do it out of love, or do I do it out of pride or obligation? You cannot escape from love’s requirement. It’s a constant, not a variable. It must drive all that you do.

Love says, “I’ll take care of you before I take care of me. I’ll think of you before I think of me. I’ll look out for you before I look out for me—you first.” Jesus said that when you minister love and kindness to others — even the least of all people — you are ministering to him. When you show love to others, you are demonstrating your love for him. Love is the constant of your Christian life. It is your driving force. The more you learn to live in love, the more you are able to live in God. So, beloved, let us love one another.

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