The Supremacy of Love

The supremacy of love is absolutely clear as you read the pages of the Bible. 

The apostle Paul confronted the church in Corinth with a message of order and the nature and application of spiritual gifts. In 1 Corinthians 12, he discussed spiritual gifts and how they work in the church. The chapter concludes with these words: “And I will show you a still more excellent way.” (ESV)

He then wrote the eloquent, profound and beautiful passage about love – what we call the love chapter – 1 Corinthians 13. He reminds us that no matter what our spiritual gifts are, they are practically meaningless if they are employed absent love! In other words, it doesn’t really matter if your theological positions on moral issues in our culture are correct if you hold those positions absent love. Being theologically right won’t change the world.

Jesus clearly identified the greatest commandments: love God, love each other. “Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” Peter 4:8 (ESV)

1 John is a textbook about love. God is love (1 John 4:16). The fruit of the Spirit is love (Galatians 5:22).

Do I need to go on?

We can do everything right as far as the church goes but if we neglect love, we have accomplished nothing. Our love comes from God. It is to be expressed unconditionally and to all we encounter.

It is easy to love those we like. People who are pleasant and fun to be with are easy to love. But the world is full of messy people and our challenge is to love them. John asserts that if we cannot love our brother who we have seen, we cannot love God who we have not seen (1 John 4:20).

When we face the world around us, it is good and proper for us to ask God to help us love. Our culture is increasingly divisive, fearful and angry. Love is the only thing that can overcome that.

It is much easier to take a combative attitude with respect to the world, adopting a spiritual warfare mindset. But we must keep in mind that spiritual warfare is something that is fought in the spiritual realm. We are not fighting against anyone in the physical realm.

Living the supremacy of love

Remember what Jesus said:

But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.

Luke 6:35–36 (ESV)

Did you see that? God is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. We need to imitate that! Jesus issued these words as a command to his followers. This means we intentionally love and completely eliminate the idea that love must be a feeling. This is the supremacy of love that will change the world.

Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends.

1 Corinthians 13:4–8 (ESV)

If nothing else, this passage reminds us that we need help to love in this impossible way. God gives us that help when we ask him. And that is what we need to continually do!

Being determined to love as God has called us to will change our lives and change our world. Start now!

I love you.