1 Corinthians 13:4-8 (NIV)
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails.
Paul is writing to the Corinthians about the grace of love. He had told them you can have the gift of knowledge or the faith to move mountains, but without someone to show people the love of Christ, it's meaningless. So he goes on to describe what love is not and what love is.
There is a phrase people use that misrepresents love, "He says he loves me, but he is not in love with me." First off what is love: patience, kindness, protectiveness, trusting, hopeful, truthful, preserving, never failing. Those are some strong words, which show a lot of faith in a person. Second, look at what love is not. It's not envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, easily angered or evil. In order to love a person there are some very strong commitments that take place. Love is just not about feelings, it's about a relationship, commitment and your determination to honor Christ. But for a person to say they love someone, but THEY ARE NOT IN LOVE WITH THEM means it's just about how they feel at the moment. I love my wife, but if we are having a disagreement at the moment I'm not feeling very loving at that second. If I just went on those feelings then I would never feel like I loved her. So love cannot be just about how you feel at the moment. Look at Paul's words and see that love is about commitments as well. Pray for God's understanding of Love that He would make your love in relationships stronger. May He allow your love to be Christ like and more than just a feeling.
