Love

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0:00 Okay, we're talking through these four Advent themes, hope, peace, joy, love. This is time we're talking about love. And so I'm in 1 Corinthians chapter 13 starting at verse 4 where it says, love is patient and kind. Love does not envy or boast. It is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable or resentful. It does not rejoice in wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth.

0:33 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things. Love never ends. I'm here with Carol Forrest and Brian Carlson. Maybe you heard of him. I like the way they think about the Scripture. And so I'm wondering what is this like, Paul's like giving this ad hoc description of love for the church in Corinth. What does it make you guys think of? I think it's a good reminder in the season that the true complete package of love came

1:17 in the form of Jesus. And I think that I feel like I could meditate on each of the little sections. Totally. For hours and just say, how does this apply to my life and where can I? How am I empowered to do this for others and not feel shame when I fail because the Lord covers. This is great. The Lord loves me so he can cover those places. But I think even more it's such a good measuring stick of what love really means.

1:57 When I don't know, I can't. Well it's interesting how I agree. Like obviously Jesus is the fullest expression of this and there's so many words here. Patient and kind are the two positive. But then I didn't really think about how much it describes love by what it's not. It's not envy. It's not boastful. It's not arrogant. It's not rude. It does not insist on its own way. It is not irritable. I mean, come on. It loves not apparent. Are you looking at me driving?

2:28 Yeah I think it's just like if I could sit and eat one of those. If I imagine being, I want to picture myself, imagine being wrapped up in that and how comforting that is and that we have this ability to give those things to other people. And it's yeah, it's a soft and lovely and I think it's why the disciples drop their nets and just walk away with a stranger. Yeah, it was customary to be a disciple but like just to just to go, oh, like here, all

3:00 right, see you later old life. And like that's drastic. And I think it's because they encountered that this love. Yeah, it's interesting because we use that word a lot in English. Love, I love you. I love this hamburger. Like, right? So to, it's kind of this scripture is like a check. Like are you loving? Well, most of the time I feel loving.

3:34 I want to be loving. In my heart I feel loving but I don't always express it in the way that this talks about it. Yes. Well, and I agree. I don't either clearly. But like the putting it as an advent theme kind of does go, oh man, God is not ever irritable towards me or resentful. He is not arrogant about how like great he is and what a mess I am.

4:07 So it's an encouraging advent theme and a reminder that's helpful for me in the Christmas season for sure. Yeah. And we can have those things too.