Agape - God's Greatest Gift Of All, Love

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,[b] but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonour others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

But the collect asks for God's help through the Holy Spirit so that these wonderful gifts of love may be part of our daily lives:

Send Your Holy Spirit and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love, the true bond of peace and of all virtues.

But the love revealed in Jesus - agape love -- goes way beyond that.

It sets no price and demands no returns. It does not love us because we are lovely, but because God is love.

And that is our challenge - about the way we love others.

It is easy to love those who love us but much harder to love those we do not even like.

In fact Jesus calls His followers to love their enemies!

Only true self -giving love can begin to contemplate that.

Two brothers were playing on the sandbanks by the river, one ran after the other up a large mound of sand.

Unfortunately, the mound was not solid, and their weight caused them to sink in quickly.

When the boys did not return home for dinner that night, the family and neighbours organized a search and they found the younger brother unconscious, with his head and shoulders sticking out above the sand.

When they cleared the sand to his waist, he awakened and they asked him, "Where is your brother?"

He replied with tears in his eyes, "I’m standing on his shoulders"

With the sacrifice of his own life, the older brother lifted his younger brother to safety.

The tangible and sacrificial love of the older brother literally served as a foundation for the younger brother’s life.

Only those who understand how great the love of God is, who have looked long and hard at Jesus on the cross, can begin to grasp the true nature of divine love.

And only in response to that Love, the love of God can we begin to learn to love one another with agape love.

If only there was more love like this in our world it would surely be a better place to live in.

Ironically that love has to start with each one of us and that is where Paul's Hymn of Love comes in, if we turn the statements into questions about ourselves and answer them honestly AND do something about it - its a good starting point.

Am I patient and kind?

Do I envy or boast?

Am I proud?

Am I rude, am I self-seeking?

Am I easily angered and score wrongs?

Do I delight in evil and avoid the truth?

Do I always protect, always trust, always hope, always persevere?

Send Your Holy Spirit and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of love so that my LOVE will never fail.

Thank God for Jesus, the Love of God . AMEN