The Strength of Love

Love...bears all things, believes all things 1 Corinthians 13:4, 7: (NKVJ)

When love "bears all things," it respects and keeps the shortcomings of others. When we hear something negative about another person, there is a tendency to want to tell others; but love does not tell anyone about another person’s shortcomings. When love hears an evil report about someone, the first thing God's love motivates us to do is to pray for them rather than gossip and speak badly about them with others.

This is how love "believes all things." It does so by praying the Word of God over others and then believing God's Word about them. If we hear gossip about someone, our response should be "I believe they are blessed. God has given them all things pertaining to life and godliness." If another makes a mistake we can say, "God has given them wisdom and counsel."

If another brother or sister has sinned we can say, "God forgives their sins and is ever ready and willing to display His mercy toward them to forgive them. I pray for God's mercy on them and that they will find mercy." We can be an intercessor. Love keeps the attitude of God. It sees the faults of others through faith in the Word and confesses and prays the Word over them. Love looks past another’s actions and puts the Word over on them. We are not ignorant of their actions, but we look at something beyond their actions. Whose report will you believe? Their actions or the Word of God? We must choose to pray and to confess the Word over them.

In the Masters’ Service,

Bishop James Swinson

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