Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.
(verses 4-8)
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This is one of those powerfully poetic passages in the Scripture which captures our attention and springs off the page, impacting the whole of our culture. It is featured at weddings, adorns greeting cards, and is embraced for its beauty.
But sometimes we let the poetry get in the way of the reality. This is not a statement that belongs to Hallmark. It’s not meant to simply be embroidered in cross-stitch, framed and hung on a wall. It’s actually a very hard-edged description of the gutsiness of love. It’s unrelenting in its challenge.
Just take a closer look at some of the words. “Patient” is more graphically translated as “long-suffering,” implying that over an extended period of time a person bears with the offenses and injuries dished-out by others, holding in check that natural inclination to take revenge. “Not easily angered” falls into the same category, not flying off the handle, but remaining centred in the peace the Lord has given us.
“Envy” is a hot-term, meaning “to burn up,” or “be brought to a boil,” with an intense desire to possess something that is not one’s own. Love turns down the temperature – not always easy. To “boast” is self-focused activity, putting oneself on display. More intensely, “self-seeking” expends concentrated energy on “me,” ignoring those around. Love turns these on their heads, putting the focus on others. It requires ongoing self-denial, which is more than simply poetic.
Keeping an ongoing tally is hard work, but not keeping one is harder yet. When love “keeps no record of wrongs,” it’s a concentrated effort. With a strong arm, love puts aside the human delight in replaying those hurts visited on us by others. Similarly, it doesn’t “delight in evil,” even when well-earned, being visited on another as “just deserts.”
Instead, love exerts energy to protect, seeking the good even of those who don’t deserve it. It trusts, extending that “second chance” (and more) – and when trust is broken and wisdom demands it no longer be extended, love continues yet to entrust the untrustworthy into the hands of the Lord, clinging to hope. Love perseveres, always pressing forward, pressing in. It never gives up, never lets go, never fails.
How can such poetry become reality? Only in Jesus. Indeed, it has often been noted that by substituting Jesus’ name for “love” in this passage, you end up with a powerful description of his Person and character.
May the poetry push us deeper into the reality of our need for Jesus’ character to be birthed in our own lives, more and more.
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Lord Jesus, thank you for this iconic passage. Thank you that you want to work its reality in me. Thank you that your own character captures all of its demands. Thank you that you give me your Sprit to transform me more and more into your own likeness. Thank you.
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Pray:
Review each of love’s attributes. Choose one to pray for yourself all day today. Look for opportunities to live it out.
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Photo by Nick Fewings on Unsplash
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