Love Like Him
From friendships to family, relationships can be tough to navigate sometimes. But if there’s one thing that can set your relationships apart, it’s understanding real love.
In Paul’s first letter to the believers in Corinth, Greece, he explains that even if you have all the faith, all the knowledge, or all the generosity in the world, or if you can speak in tongues, or if you have the gift of prophecy—none of it means anything without love. He continues:
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.”
1 Corinthians 13:4 NIV
Chances are, you want to be a patient person. You intend to be a kind human. You desire to be a content and humble individual. But, sometimes you get in a hurry. Sometimes you get annoyed. Sometimes you can be rude, selfish, jealous, unthoughtful, or arrogant.
Sometimes, it’s hard being human. But God knows that and He wants to help you.
In the same letter, Paul goes on to say that love keeps no record of wrongs and rejoices in the truth. It always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres. Most notably, love never fails.
But why love does seem to fail at times? After all, divorce rates are high, estranged families are commonplace, and the brokenness of this world is evident on just about every news broadcast or social media feed.
And that’s exactly why Jesus came! He offered Himself as the ultimate sacrifice for the redemption of the world. And that’s what real love looks like—to lay down one’s life for one’s friends (John 15:13). He is love, and His love never fails.
So, now that redemption has begun to break through—first, through Jesus and, now, through His Spirit inside of us—we can love others well by looking to Him, leaning on Him, trusting in Him, listening to Him, and following his lead.
God has given you everything you need to love others like He loves you.
Needy by Default
Jesus healed people who were sick and fed people who were hungry. Because of that, great crowds were following Him. But He wanted them to know that who He was was greater than what He had to offer…
“Then Jesus declared, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never go hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.”
John 6:35 NIV
God could have hardwired us to need nothing. But instead, He made us dependent on things like food, water, oxygen, sleep, sunlight—and Him. He designed this world intentionally, with specific needs and certain limitations.
We are needy by default.
Just as food and water are essential for human life, everyday realities point us to spiritual truths…
We need Jesus even more than we need the essentials of life.
We can search for fulfillment in our work and relationships, as well as in money, fame, power, sex, achievement, and adventure. But it all results in emptiness—like chasing after the ...