If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.  And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains but do not have love, I am nothing.  And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I deliver my body to be burned but do not have love, it profits me nothing.  (Emphasis mine)

–I Corinthians 13:1-3–

Now I don’t know about you but to:

Speak with the tongues of men and angels

Have the gift of prophecy

Know all mysteries and all knowledge

Have all faith so as to remove mountains

Give all I possess to feed the poor

Deliver my body to be burned,

And then realize I’m:

A noisy gong or clanging cymbal

Nothing

Profiting nothing.

These are some of the most sobering words that I can read.  You mean to tell me that God is serious about all of this?  I can do ALL of those things and yet be essentially nothing without love?  Why don’t any of these things mean anything without love?  Why is love the ingredient that puts value into all of these wonderful abilities, giftings and offerings?   I wrote in last week’s blog that David Stern writes in The Jewish New Testament Commentary:

• “The word for “love” is “agape,” defined in the New Testament as giving of and from oneself; love expresses itself in acts of benevolence, kindness and mercy in which heart, mind and will are united because they are motivated and empowered by God.  Such love goes beyond what one can generate of oneself, because it has its origin in God.  When such love is experienced by one person from another, the experience is of God’s love channeled through that other.” (Emphasis mine.)

While the abilities, giftings and offerings seem powerful and even supernatural, if the motive behind it is not love (expressing itself with heart, mind and will and empowered by God) it doesn’t profit one thing.  Nothing.  In fact, it drives the knife deeper and says that I’m just a clanging cymbal or a noisy gong.  I am nothing.  Nothing.  Zip.  Zero.  Nada.

I’m thankful for this.  Really.  God, in His infinite wisdom, knows exactly what we’re made of.  He knows that if we, on our own, sacrificed our bodies, had giftings, great faith, etc., we would be so full of pride no one could stand us!  Our pride would get in the way of anything we would try to accomplish.  With the love of God as our motivator our eyes are not looking at ourselves but at Him – Love Himself.  He doesn’t just love; He IS love

(I John 4:8).  Love isn’t just an attribute of God; it is His very essence.  We need this kind of love to operate and make the things we do useful.

Thanksgiving is tomorrow.  Most of us will be covered up in preparations for the day.  Can we take some time out to use this season of thanksgiving to thank God for giving us Himself in the form of love?   By knowing Him we can know what love is and what it looks like.  By knowing Him we can exhibit true love.

I’m thankful that He loves me and never gives up on me.