Love Is Not By Power

Spirit & Life Devotional
Sunday, 20 March 2016
Chinaemerem Joshua Ibezim

Love Is Not By Power

"Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. Love is not rude, it is not selfish, and it cannot be made angry easily. Love does not remember wrongs done against it. Love is never happy when others do wrong, but it is always happy with the truth. Love never gives up on people. It never stops trusting, never loses hope, and never quits." 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 ERV

If you were to judge yourself with the Scriptures above, would you pass or fail? Or if you were to rate your love on a scale of 1-10, what would your score be? I think we should all take the test now, after all, the Bible instructs us to judge ourselves.

Just before David died, he said to Solomon, “You remember what Joab son of Zeruiah did to me. He killed two of the commanders of Israel’s army, Abner son of Ner and Amasa son of Jether. Remember, it was during a time of peace when he spilled the blood that splattered onto his sword belt and army boots. I should have punished him then. Use your wisdom, but don’t let him die peacefully of old age. And remember, Shimei son of Gera is still around. He is the Benjamite from Bahurim who cursed me when I ran away to Mahanaim. But when he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I made a promise to him before the Lord that I would not kill him. Now, don’t leave him unpunished. You are a wise man. You will know what you must do, but don’t let him die peacefully of old age.” 1 Kings 2:5-6, 8-9

Brothers and sisters, that was David, a man of God! Even David failed the test of love; for many years David bore grudges against Joab and Shimei. That's to tell you that we cannot truly love by our own abilities; we can only love by the power of the Holy Spirit. True love is divine.

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