Everlasting Love
Paul has already made it clear that our spiritual gifts are not the most important things about us—there is nothing bad about being able to prophesy, speak in tongues or having special knowledge, but they are not worth more than love. Love is of primary importance; gifts are secondary, just tools. All gifts will come to an end, but love never will.
Sinclair writes, “Love never falls or fails. But one day all of these spiritual gifts—no matter how important they seemed to the Corinthians—would come to an end. They would no longer be needed. But love will never be redundant. It will never pass away or cease. Does this all sound more romantic than realistic? Perhaps you know too much of broken hearts or cold relationships to believe that ‘love never ends’. But remember, Paul wants us to fix our eyes on Christ’s love—a love that didn’t float in romance and rose petals, but was grounded in reality.”
The night before he died, Jesus had a special meal with his closest followers. He knew exactly what the next 24 hours held for him: betrayal, abandonment, condemnation, death. If you or I were facing such a difficult experience, we would probably be fixated on it to the exclusion of other people and their problems. We probably wouldn’t be thinking about how we could love them. But Jesus isn’t like us: “He laid aside his outer garments, and taking a towel, tied it round his waist. Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was wrapped round him.” (John 13:4-5)
Jesus’ actions here were an analogy for his incarnation, when he came from his place of heavenly honour to the life of a lowly servant. Sinclair writes, “He was stooping down for them. Faced with their sin, and with his impending sacrifice for it on the cross, his love lasted ‘to the end’ (John 13:1). He was ready to do whatever it took, whatever the cost. The foot-washing was a dramatic picture of how much he loved his disciples.” Jesus has this same love for each of us, and he helps us to love others in the same way. When we feel our love might fail, we can call out to the Spirit, and he will fill us with never-ending love.
Today, reflect on how Christ’s never-ending love endured the cross for you. In what circumstances are you currently relying on God’s love to “never end”? Pray for a right understanding of Christ’s love for you, and for opportunities to share it with others.
Love Came Down at Christmas by Sinclair B. Ferguson (published by The Good Book Company) available to buy at Eden Christian Bookstore or Amazon.