Clarifying Statements
If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3
The greatest gift from God is our ability to love. It has a way of cutting through things. If I like something, I might do it well. But if I love it, I will work tirelessly to improve and make an impact for it. As such, the greatest chapter in the Bible is 1 Corinthians 13. Perhaps that is why my wife and I got married because both of our favorite verses come from this chapter. As such, I wanted to spend some time in this chapter breaking it down and sharing bits and gems from it. So, my journey begins …
One of the great communication tools or arts you could say is the gift of clarity. The best way to do so is what they call ‘clarifying statements.’ For example, we might look at a banana, and say it is a fruit. But if I am talking on the phone to my wife and tell her I am eating fruit, she will be on the other side of the line thinking, “Duh! That didn’t tell me anything.” She will ask more questions. What kind of fruit? Is it the apple I left for lunch? She’s cute like that 😊 At any rate, I typically would not be so simplistic in my answer. I would say, “I’m eating a banana. No, I did not eat the apple you left this morning.” By clarifying my statement of what I am and am not doing, I avoided unnecessary back and forth.
This brings me to today’s verses, which is all about God making the case for love. It motivates and clarifies. What I love about today’s verses is it points out how empty life is without love. I think about my youngest daughter and the many struggles we had with her growing up. My pushing her was not only challenging but also demanding, and our clashes at times were epic. Along those lines, I asked why I was so driven to push her in way I would not anyone else. Plain and simple, I wanted the best for her and expected it. I love her and want her to succeed. But if I did not love her, none of it would matter to me. That is what Paul is pointing out here. It was never just about the accomplishments, the devotion, or even the power given from God. It is all about the love that we have for God, His people, and all His creation. It matters so much more when you have love in your heart, and here’s the important thing. Love is unlimited. There is a danger if you are loving the wrong things, but assuming your love is in order, you can call upon it to do things that will amaze you. Therefore, the Greatest Commandment says, “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matthew 22:37b-39) If that is in order, all other things tend to fall in place.
All God centered things focus on love. There is nothing in the Bible that notes anything of success based on just liking God. Relationships, lives, and journeys change simply because a switch is flipped to loving it. So let us clarify things in our lives understanding we do not change the world by liking each other. We change it by loving each other because as the last verse ends, “if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.” What in your life needs replacing because you only ‘like’ it, and how can you replace it with something you love? My prayer is we make a clarifying statement not to like. But to love for God and others. Amen.