Jesus is the Way the Truth and the Life

In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul writes:

If I speak in the tongues[a] of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 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, 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 dishonor 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. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now, we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

Processing Our Present Culture

I often find myself struggling to know what to think, let alone say, in our present culture. Every week it seems is another week of news we must try and process. In recent weeks, we have been witnesses again to violence that is difficult for us to understand. I think we all agree that violence toward another is wrong, and life is precious.

I am reminded that the Psalmist wrote:

“The Lord examines the righteous, but the wicked, those who love violence, he hates with a passion.” – Psalm 11:5

Returning to Paul’s Instructions

Moments of violence can leave us grieving, anxious, angry and hopeless. Sadly, many times these moments can also cause division among us. The question I always want to ask in these moments is how I should respond as a follower of Jesus.

This week as I have asked this question, I have been going back to Paul’s instructions in 1 Corinthians 13. In this chapter, Paul keeps reminding us that love is the key to following Jesus.

Love Is Strong

Love, as described by Paul, is not passive, weak or simply an emotional response. The word love that is used in the Bible to describe God’s love for us and the love we should have for others is a strong word. It is an intentional choice of the will that many times defies what our feelings or natural response might be.

How could we ever follow Jesus’ command to “love our enemies” if love was simply acting toward another like we feel we want too. God is our example. That even though in our sin we are the “enemies of God”, God so loved us that he acted toward us in a way one could never imagine. God sent Jesus to us while we were yet sinners. Love is strong.

Nothing Matters Without Love

Paul reminds us that nothing is more important than acting in love. How do we choose to love others above all else?

First, we are humble. Paul says we do not see everything as it is. We see in a mirror like a reflection; we know in part. Paul is reminding us that even at our best we don’t know it all nor do we see everything clearly. We begin with humility.

We realize that love is what makes the other aspects of faith genuine. We might have knowledge, or the ability to speak and even faith that moves mountains but if we have not love, it is nothing. We might have the best intentions. We might give what we possess to the poor and make great sacrifices for what we believe but if we lack love, it comes to nothing. No matter what we do without love it fails.

What Love Looks Like

We also notice that love causes us to act a certain way with others. Read these words again slowly:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor 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. Love never fails.

Truth and Love Together

It has been said that:

“Truth without love becomes legalism and leads to a dead faith. Love without truth leads to sinfulness and the consequence is false faith.”

We must speak the truth, but we must always speak the truth in love. We must love but we must also speak the truth about Jesus because we reveal our real love when we share who Jesus is with another.

Choosing the Way of Love

So how does this inform our current time of grief, anxiety and anger? It reminds us that we can choose to think and act differently toward others in such moments. We can choose the strong act of love.

As your pastor I want to encourage us to be people who love God and love others. Let that be the starting place. I will be honest with you and tell you that if you choose the way of love, it can be a lonely place and it is not easy. However, Jesus never promised us this would be easy. Jesus only promised us that he would be with us.

I am praying that we will choose the way of love which I believe is the way of Jesus. The way of Jesus is not weakness, but it is the strongest and most powerful choice we can make.

Jesus is not just another way to look at the world, but Jesus is the way the truth and the life.