Ok. Here we go again....
7bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
8Love never fails; but if there are gifts of prophecy, they will be done away; if there are tongues, they will cease; if there is knowledge, it will be done away.
9For we know in part and we prophesy in part;
10but when the perfect comes, the partial will be done away.
Once more... our definition of love: unrestircted loyalty and unwavering commitment to what best serves another.
Vs 7:
Love bears all things - bear...to accept or allow oneself to be subjected to, especially without giving way
believes all things - believe... (1) to have a firm conviction as to the goodness, efficacy (the power to produce an effect), or ability of something (2) to accept as true, genuine or real (3) to consider to be true or honest; to accept the word or evidence of
hopes all things - hope... (1) to cherish (hold dear) a desire with anticipation (2) to desire with expecation of obtainment (3) to expect with confidence
endures all things - endure... (1) to undergo as hardship, especially without giving in (2) to continue in the same state (3) to regard with acceptance or tolerance (4) to remain firm, under suffering or misfortune without yielding
So...
Unrestricted loyalty and unwavering commitment to what best serves another accepts and allows itself to be subjected to ALL things without giving way; holds tightly to the conviction of the goodness, inherent power and ability of its object, and accepts all things as true, genuine, and real; it holds dear its desires,with confident expectation of obtainment in all things related to the object of its desire; Unrestricted loyalty and unwavering commitment to what best serves another undergoes all hardship without giving in, continuing in the same state and regarding all with acceptance and tolerance, while remaining firm- even under suffering and misfortune, and without yielding.
vs. 8
love never fails - fail... (1) to lose strength; to fade away or die (2) to fall short; to be or become absent or inadequate (3) to be unsuccessful (4) to disappoint the expectations or trust of (5) to be deficient in (6) to leave undone.
Unrestricted loyalty and unwavering commitment to what best serves another never loses strength or fades away; it never falls short or becomes inadequate; it is never unsuccessful. The expectations and trusts of unrestricted loyalty and unwavering commitment to what best serves another are never disappointed; it is never deficient and never leaves things undone.
Now. this is not all of verse 8, but it IS all of what love is/does/or does not do. And of the whole passage, I find this particular section the most comforting of all - because what I take from it is that in all that love is asked to give and to sacrifice and to commit itself to, God says to us that the end result is absolute victory. He says that love is enough all by itself to ensure that hope if fulfilled and that trust ultimately in the good and inherent power of it's object is rewarded - because love always succeeds.
So, let's go on to the rest of the verse.
We're back to referencing the spiritual gifts of prophecy,speaking in tongues, and knowledge.Scripture says that IF these things are present, they will eventually go away. They will fade. Two things to notice here. The first thing is that there is no guarantee that these gifts will even be present; and the second thing is that even IF they are present, they are not lasting. They will eventually fade. It doesnt matter what God shows us or how we can commune with angels and men. Nor does it matter how much insight or wisdom we're given, because of all that God has spoken of so far in this, the ONLY lasting thing in all this is Love. Which then puts the first three verses into perspective for me. Because if we are all caught up in things that don't last, how will we ever properly view or invest in the one thing that IS lasting? Because the Love spoken of here is a gift just like all the rest. If we dont take the right perspective on the value of each gift, then we miss the mark. Think about that. God has more knowledge insight wisdom and anything else than we can ever begin to fathom, but what He gives is Love beyond even what He's asking us to give here. He knows EVERYTHING, all our motives and failures and sins - all that stuff that nobody else will ever know about us. He knows it all. And even in that knowledge the love He has for us doesn't fade. He never stops believing in who He has destined us to be and He never gives up on His purpose in our lives. He has been so committed to us that He gave us Christ.
And HE... well, we're endebted to him for all eternity. Because he was as human as we are and he lived this out to the fullest. EVERYDAY with EVERYBODY he met. What that means to me is that, since we are all called to walk in his likeness, we are capable of the same, just as he was - through his Father in heaven. Because Christ did not walk in his own power; all power he possessed was derived through his intimate relationship with God.
On to verse 9:
It says we know in part and we prophecy in part.
How much plainer can God be with me than this? What I get is , you dont know it all. There will ALWAYS be things you dont know or understand or see. Which means that I shouldn't behave as though I do, nor should I hold too tightly to the gifts of intimacy that God has chosen to allow me to experience for this short time.
and verse 10:
When perfection comes, the partial will be done away.
Ultimately, none of the gifts matter. Not in the face of perfection - not in the presence of God. Because HE does see it all and know it all. And more than that, He's in control of it all.
Every last bit.
Reading and studying this passage of scripture bring to mind faith and meekness and humility and all those things. And it leads me to a better understanding of why Christ says the greatest commmandment is to love they neighbor as thyself. Because to love is to reflect Christ.
And that's the whole point of this whole journey, isn't it?
... alright God. Yes. Yes God. Just... yes...
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