Bible League: Living His Word Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.According to Jesus, love of God and neighbor are the greatest commandments (Matthew 22:36-39). Indeed, He said that "'All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments'" (Matthew 22:40). In other words, every other commandment is in some way a commandment to love. One should not covet, for example, because that would not be an act of love toward one's neighbor. Our verse for today lists four characteristics of Godly love. First, love bears all things. The person who truly loves God and neighbor should not be easily offended or hurt. Love puts up with things. It does not allow perceived slights and offenses, from God or people, to easily get to us and undermine our love. Second, love believes all things. That is, the person of love always thinks the best of God and neighbor. With respect to God, love does not attribute wrong motives and intentions to what God says. With respect to neighbors, love is not overly suspicious of what people say. This does not mean that love is naïve. After all, the Bible also says that we should "test the spirits to see whether they are from God" (I John 4:1). But it does mean that we should not be quick to suspect the worst of our neighbors. Third, love hopes all things. With respect to God, this means that love trusts that God will fulfill His promises and that He will bring His glorious plan of redemption to complete fulfillment. With respect to neighbors, this means that love expects the best of people and believes that they can change for the better with the help of the Lord. Finally, love endures all things. If we are to truly love God and neighbor, then we should not easily give up on love. No matter what happens to us – trials, troubles, tribulations, offenses, hurts, wounds – we should not cease to love. Sometimes God allows things to happen that we may not like or understand and sometimes people do things that wound us or hurt us in some way. The person of love continues to love and endures these things. The two greatest commandments are great because they are central to what human existence is all about. Everything we say and do is governed by them. Today, and every day, therefore, let love reign. Bible in a Year Old Testament ReadingJob 40, 41, 42 Job 40 -- Job Humbles Himself to God NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Job 41 -- God's Power Shown in Creatures NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Job 42 -- Job Confesses; God Makes His Friends Submit; God Blesses Job NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB New Testament Reading Acts 15:22-41 Acts 15 -- The Council at Jerusalem; James' Support; Barnabas and Paul Part Ways; Second Missionary Journey begins NIV NLT ESV NAS GWT KJV ASV ERV DRB Reading Plan Courtesy of Christian Classics Etherial Library. Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion “No one lights a lamp and then covers it with a bowl or hides it under a bed. A lamp is placed on a stand, where its light can be seen by all who enter the house. For all that is secret will eventually be brought into the open, and everything that is concealed will be brought to light and made known to all.” Insight When the light of the truth about Jesus illuminates us, it is our duty to shine that light to help others. Challenge Our witness for Christ should be public, not hidden. We should not keep the benefits for ourselves alone but pass them on to others. In order to be helpful, we need to be well placed. Seek opportunities to be there when unbelievers need help. Morning and Evening by Spurgeon Psalm 103:2 Forget not all His benefits.It is a delightful and profitable occupation to mark the hand of God in the lives of ancient saints, and to observe his goodness in delivering them, his mercy in pardoning them, and his faithfulness in keeping his covenant with them. But would it not be even more interesting and profitable for us to remark the hand of God in our own lives? Ought we not to look upon our own history as being at least as full of God, as full of his goodness and of his truth, as much a proof of his faithfulness and veracity, as the lives of any of the saints who have gone before? We do our Lord an injustice when we suppose that he wrought all his mighty acts, and showed himself strong for those in the early time, but doth not perform wonders or lay bare his arm for the saints who are now upon the earth. Let us review our own lives. Surely in these we may discover some happy incidents, refreshing to ourselves and glorifying to our God. Have you had no deliverances? Have you passed through no rivers, supported by the divine presence? Have you walked through no fires unharmed? Have you had no manifestations? Have you had no choice favors? The God who gave Solomon the desire of his heart, hath he never listened to you and answered your requests? That God of lavish bounty of whom David sang, "Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things," hath he never satiated you with fatness? Have you never been made to lie down in green pastures? Have you never been led by the still waters? Surely the goodness of God has been the same to us as to the saints of old. Let us, then, weave his mercies into a song. Let us take the pure gold of thankfulness, and the jewels of praise and make them into another crown for the head of Jesus. Let our souls give forth music as sweet and as exhilarating as came from David's harp, while we praise the Lord whose mercy endureth forever. Daily Light on the Daily Path Zechariah 3:4 He spoke and said to those who were standing before him, saying, "Remove the filthy garments from him." Again he said to him, "See, I have taken your iniquity away from you and will clothe you with festal robes."Psalm 32:1 A Psalm of David. A Maskil. How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, Whose sin is covered! Isaiah 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. Romans 7:18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. Colossians 3:25 For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality. Colossians 3:9,10 Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, • and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him-- Philippians 3:9 and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith, Luke 15:22 "But the father said to his slaves, 'Quickly bring out the best robe and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand and sandals on his feet; Revelation 19:8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Isaiah 61:10 I will rejoice greatly in the LORD, My soul will exult in my God; For He has clothed me with garments of salvation, He has wrapped me with a robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. New American Standard Bible Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, Calif. All rights reserved. For Permission to Quote Information visit http://www.lockman.org. |
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