Without Love, You’ve Wasted Your Time

“If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1 NIV).


Love is our greatest aim in life because we were put here on earth to learn to love God and others. The Bible makes it clear in the first few verses of 1 Corinthians 13 why love is the most important value.


Without love, all that you say is ineffective. “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1 NIV). Words without love are just noise. People resent and reject unloving words. But they will listen and respond to words spoken in love.


Without love, all that you know is incomplete. “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge . . . but do not have love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2 NIV). The world is exploding with information and knowledge. Yet many of our most basic problems are not being solved, because the world is not looking for more knowledge. The world is looking for love.


Without love, all that you believe is insufficient. “If I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2 NIV). Many people have the misconception that being a Christian is just about believing certain truths and doctrines. But do you love Jesus? Do you realize he loves you? hristianity is about experiencing the love Jesus has for you and learning how to love like him.


Without love, all that you give is insignificant. “If I give all I possess to the poor . . . but do not have love, I gain nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:3 NIV). There are all kinds of motivations for giving, including obligation or prestige or guilt. Just because you give doesn’t mean you’re doing it in love. You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.


Without love, all that you accomplish is inadequate. “If I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever” (1 Corinthians 13:3 TLB). You can have all kinds of great accomplishments. You can even sacrifice your life for the greatest cause in the world—the Kingdom of God—but without love, it’s wasted effort.


You can have the eloquence of an orator, the knowledge of a genius, the faith of a miracle worker, the generosity of a philanthropist, and the dedication of a martyr. But if you don’t love, it doesn’t count.


The good news is that you can love others because God first loved you. Jesus says that as you live within his love, he will help you to love others. When you draw closer to him, your ability to love will increase—he makes it possible for you to live out the calling to love others


By Pas.Rick Warren.

Avoiding a Spiritual Identity Crisis

God “chose us in [Christ] before the foundation of the world” (Eph. 1:4).

A true sense of identity comes from knowing that God Himself personally selected you to be His child.

Many people in our society are on a seemingly endless and often frantic quest for personal identity and self-worth. Identity crises are common at almost every age level. Superficial love and fractured relationships are but symptoms of our failure to resolve the fundamental issues of who we are, why we exist, and where we're going. Sadly, most people will live and die without ever understanding God's purpose for their lives.

That is tragic, yet understandable. God created man to bear His image and enjoy His fellowship forever. But when Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they violated that purpose and plunged the human race into sin. That created within man a spiritual void and an identity crisis of unimaginable proportions.

Throughout the ages ungodly people have tried to fill that void with a myriad of substitutes but ultimately all is lost to death and despair.

Despite that bleak picture, a true sense of identity is available to every Christian. It comes from knowing that God Himself personally selected you to be His child. Before the world began, God set his love upon you and according to His plan Christ died for you (1 Pet. 1:20). That's why you responded in faith to the gospel (2 Thess. 2:13). Also, that's why you can never lose your salvation. The same God who drew you to Himself will hold you there securely (John 10:29).

Don't allow sin, Satan, or circumstances to rob your sense of identity in Christ. Make it the focus of everything you do. Remember who you are: God's child; why you are here: to serve and glorify Him; and where you are going: to spend eternity in His presence.

Suggestions for Prayer

Thank God for choosing you to be His child and for drawing you to Himself in saving faith.
Praise Him for His promise never to let you go.

Source: gty.org

Are You Asking, “Why, Lord, Why?”

Although the fig tree shall not blossom, neither shall fruit be in the vines; the labor of the olive shall fail, and the fields shall yield no meat; the flock shall be cut off from the fold, and there shall be no herd in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation. The Lord God is my strength, and He will make my feet like hinds' feet, and He will make me to walk upon mine high places. Habakkuk 3:17-19

Habakkuk expressed his frustration and dismay at the way things were going in his beloved nation. Truly, it was God’s nation, for He had called the Hebrews to Himself centuries ago.

Yet here is the conclusion Habakkuk comes to: “I will joy in the God of my salvation. God the Lord is my strength.” Here’s where we must arrive: “The Lord is my strength. He will make my feet like hinds’ feet. He will make me to walk upon my high places.”

Habakkuk began by asking, “Why? Why, Lord, why?” God never did answer why. He just said, “I’m going reveal Who: It is I. I am your strength. I will make you like a sure-footed gazelle, and you can live on your high places.”

If you’re saved, if you know the Lord, it doesn’t matter if gasoline goes to $5 a gallon or if Wall Street hits bottom. If you know the Lord Jesus Christ, it doesn’t matter if they take away your fine house. The Bible says: “You can rejoice in the Lord your God!” Remember God’s greatness. Rejoice in God’s goodness. Rely on God’s grace.   (LWF)

Notes from Psalm 125

This short psalm may be summed up in those words of the prophet (Isaiah 3:10,11),
"Say you to the righteous, It shall be well with him. Woe to the wicked, it shall be will with him." Thus are life and death, the blessing and the curse, set before us often in the psalms, as well as in the law and the prophets.

I. It is certainly well with the people of God for,
             1. They have the promises of a good God that they shall be fixed (Psalm 125:1),
                  and safe (Psalm 125:2),
                  and not always under the hatches, Psalm 125:3.
             2. They have the prayers of a good man, which shall be heard for them, Psalm 125:4.

II. It is certainly ill with the wicked, and particularly with the apostates, Psalm 125:5.

Some of the Jewish rabbies are of opinion that it has reference to the days of the Messiah however, we that are members of the gospel-church may certainly, in singing this psalm, take comfort of these promises, and the more so if we stand in awe of the threatening.
(MHC)

Notes from Psalm 124

David penned this psalm (we suppose) upon occasion of some great deliverance which God wrought for him and his people from some very threatening danger, which was likely to have involved them all in ruin, whether by foreign invasion, or intestine insurrection, is not certain whatever it was he seems to have been himself much affected, and very desirous to affect others, with the goodness of God, in making a way for them to escape. To him he is careful to give all the glory, and takes none to himself as conquerors usually do.

 I. He here magnifies the greatness of the danger they were in, and of the ruin they were at the brink of, Psalm 124:1-5.
 II. He gives God the glory of their escape, compared with ver. 1,2.
III. He takes encouragement thence to trust in God, Psalm 124:8.

 In singing this psalm, besides the application of it to any particular deliverance wrought for us and our people, in our days and the days of our fathers, we may have in our thoughts the great work of our redemption by Jesus Christ, by which we were rescued from the powers of darkness.

Notes from Psalm 123

This psalm was penned at a time then the church of God was brought low and trampled upon; some think it was when the Jews were captives in Babylon, though that was not the only time that they were insulted over by the proud. The psalmist begins as if he spoke for himself only (v. 1), but presently speaks in the name of the church. Here is,

I. Their expectation of mercy from God (v. 1, 2).
II. Their plea for mercy with God, (v. 3, 4).

In singing it we must have our eye up to God's favour with a holy concern, and then an eye down to men's reproach with a holy contempt.

(MHC)

Six Ways to Work on Your Integrity

Integrity demands that every area of your life be treated with the same intensity. You have the same commitment to excellence in your marriage as you do in your career. You have the same commitment to excellence in ministry as you do in your parenting.

Let me give you six ways you can work this week to become a person of integrity. You become a person of integrity by:

1. Keeping your promises.

People of integrity keep their word. If they say they’ll do it, they do it. If they say they’ll be there, they show up. The Bible says in Proverbs 25:14, “People who promise things that they never give are like clouds and wind that bring no rain” (GNT).

2. Paying your bills.

You may not think this is a big deal, but it’s a big deal to God. Do you spend more money than you make? That is a lack of integrity. Do you get yourself in debt for things that you can’t pay off? That is a lack of integrity. Psalm 37:21 says, “The wicked borrow and never pay back” (GNT).




3. Refusing to gossip.

God is looking for men and women of integrity who know how to keep a secret and not pass it around on social media. Don’t talk about people behind their back. Don’t even listen to that stuff because a “gossip can’t be trusted with a secret, but someone of integrity won’t violate a confidence” (Proverbs 11:13 The Message).

4. Faithfully tithing.

Wherever you put your money first is what’s most important to you. Malachi 3:8, 10 says, “Is it right for a person to cheat God? Of course not, yet you are cheating me. ‘How?’ you ask. In the matter of tithes and offerings . . . Bring the full amount of your tithes to the Temple . . . Put me to the test and you will see that I will open the windows of heaven and pour out on you in abundance all kinds of good things” (GNT).

5. Doing your best at work.

The Bible says in Colossians 3:23, “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people” (NLT). If you’re a believer, your real boss is God, and whether or not anybody else sees your work, God does.

6. Being real with others.

A person of integrity doesn’t act one way in church and another way at work and another way on the golf course. “We refuse to wear masks and play games. We don’t maneuver and manipulate behind the scenes. And we don’t twist God’s Word to suit ourselves. Rather, we keep everything we do and say out in the open” (2 Corinthians 4:2 The Message).


-By Pastor Rick Warren