Love, In Spite Of
1st Corinthians 13:4-7
Tuesday will mark a day that has been set aside for the theme of “love”. The origin of this lover’s day goes back to as early as 270 A.D.
This day will be filled with flowers, cards, chocolate and other gifts.
In fact, in 2005 -
180 million roses were produced just for this holiday.
A day of Love!
· It’s a day to think about that one special person that you are close to.
· No doubt, you have spent this day thinking about several people over the course of your life.
· Many different individuals have gained your attention on this day.
From the early days of passing out Valentine cards in elementary school, to purchasing that one perfect rose to have sent to the school for your teenage love.
The memories I have of passing out superman valentines. Holding that one special card out for the little girl in the class who was honored enough to receive the only Wonder Women card that I had. You knew in first grade that she was special.
And as we get older, we seem to get bogged down with life that we don’t take this day to be serious. We pass it off as another day for corporate America to make money while we purchase gifts just to keep ourselves out of the doghouse.
But today, I want us to not only think about how special this day will be. I also want us to remember that this day should represent the entire year of how we have shown our love not only to our mate, but also to our Heavenly Father.
You have a companion that has chosen to spend his or her life with you… IN SPITE OF! And that is what we are going to talk about today.
But just as your companion loves you in spite of, you have a Heavenly Father who puts up with a lot as well.
LOVE, IN SPITE OF…
Read 1st Corinthians 13:4-7
Several words throughout the Bible translate into the word we refer to as “love”.
Probably the most popular one used is the “Agape” love.
It means affection, benevolence, good will, high esteem and concern for the welfare of the one loved.
It is deliberate, purposeful love rather than emotional or impulsive love.
It’s this kind of love that has your spouse loving you, in spite of…
In spite of (what?)
1. In Spite of Our Past:
In spite of your:
Past relationships with other friends
Girlfriends / Boyfriends
High School days and those childish pranks
College days and those childish pranks
Those times you wanted to be a cowboy
Those times you wanted to have 3 girls
And then you found that special person and you didn’t know how to act. Because you acted a fool so many times in the past that now you are coming across as “cheesy” or “corny”.
Because now you are in love! But that doesn’t change your past.
Those bad relationship decisions
The live in boyfriend
The loose girlfriend
They all stand to come back to haunt you, now that you have that special person!
But your spouse chose to look past that.
God has done the same time. He loves you in spite of your PAST.
· He was there to see how you acted before you were introduced to Him.
· He saw the fights
· He saw the times you cheated someone out of money
· He saw the times you claimed you loved Him but didn’t act like it.
But yet, God still loves us in spite of our past. In spite of what had our attention!
Instead of being focused on God:
Guys: Cars, Sports and Women
Girls: Latest clothing trends, TV Hotties
But in spite of leaving God out in the cold during those years, He loved us anyway. And when we couldn’t get our boyfriend/girlfriend to wait on us to grow up… God did!
And he doesn’t throw it up in our face.
Philippians 3:13
“…Forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forth unto those things which are before us.”
If you were to think back into your “player” days, it wasn’t very pretty.
But thank God this Valentine’s Day for a spouse that loves you in spite of your past.
But also Thank God for the fact that he too doesn’t hold our past against us when we come running to Him!
Your spouse loves you…
2. In Spite of your Pimples:
You know what I am talking about.
(Getting ready for a date and one appears)
In spite of what you consider imperfections!
Your spouse looked past:
Your Fleshy Flaws
1. Out of date hairstyle
2. Your lack of taste in clothes
3. Too much cologne
4. Bad first kiss (bumping heads/noses)
Your Filthy Mouth
1. Cursing
2. Bad Pick Up lines
“It must have hurt when you fell from heaven”
“Do you have a map? I keep getting lost in your eyes”
“If you were a tear in my eye, I would not cry for fear of losing you”
“Do you have a Band-Aid? Because I just scrapped my knee falling for you”
· Large Shoe size
· Color of hair
· Height
· Size of your ears and nose
· Weight problem
What you consider to be flaws, they overlooked.
God is the same way!
There are “pimples” in our spiritual life that God looked past.
Our lack of faith in a situation
No active prayer life or Bible study
Too much weight of sin
But He chooses to look past those things when we come to Him for help and love.
Your spouse also loves you…
3. In Spite of your Problems:
No doubt, some of you were really messed up when you met your spouse.
Drugs
Alcohol
Bad Attitude
Or maybe it was the baggage that they inherited from your last relationship.
It could have been negative baggage – debt
You just wanted a wife and you got $10k in bills. It’s not what you asked for but to get the one you loved, you had to take the baggage of her past.
It could have been precious baggage – kids
You just wanted a husband but he had two precious kids that came with their daddy. It’s not what you asked for but you took them in made them as though they were yours.
The problems they inherited when they accepted you were not their fault but they took you and your problems anyway.
God looked down on this earth and saw that you were in trouble. Instead of looking away and leaving you for dead, He too, picked you up and chose to take you just the way you were.
· He knew you were divorced!
· He knew you were a drinker
· He knew you were a womanizer
· He knew you had “pimples”
· He knew you were a sinner – but He loves you anyway.
God loved you so much that he proved it!
How is His love proved?
John 3:16
God did not only tell us that He loves us – He proved it when His only Son came to die for you. Christ came to where you were:
· Hospital Room
· On the Bar stool
· At the drug dealer’s house
· In your bed of depression
Christ came to were you were:
· When you were in pain
· When your feelings had been shattered
· When the one that you loved – walked away!
God loves you in spite of your:
Past – Pimples (flaws) – Problems!
He just wants you to come just as you are!
Song:
O how He loves you and me. O how He loves you and me.
He gave His live, what more could He give?
O how He loves you. O how He loves me.
O how He love you and me.
