Fruits of the Spirit: Agape – love

So I was thinking the other night about the fruits of the spirit. I was wondering if I was truly living them out the way the Lord wants me to. I thought hard about it, and came to the conclusion that as well as I do most of the time in  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control I need to do so much better. So I will regularly be posting about each of the fruits of the spirit and share my verses and thoughts about it. Hope you enjoy.

Today is Agape – love 

God is love and He wants us to love Him, and He wants us to love others. I think that I do a good job of loving others for the most part. I love my family and my friends. But do I love everyone? I haven't really ever thought about it. Do I love others like Christ loved me? Would I give my life for a random unsaved person on the street? I would hope so, but Im not sure if I would. I know that I want to give up my life (that is desires of money and worldly American possessions) to serve unsaved people in some mission field around the world. So, I guess that is love. But love is something that I should still work on. I need to show love to everyone just like Christ. I need to show love to those who don't love me.

Hear are verses about love in the Bible. They speak for themselves. They encouraged me and I hope they encourage you

"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. ² 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. ³ 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.

⁴ Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. ⁵ It does not dishonor others, 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"

And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. (1 Corinthians 13:1-7;8;13)

 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another.  By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another. (John 13:34-35)

This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.  You are my friends if you do what I command you.  No longer do I call you servants,for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you. (John 15:12-15)

Let all that you do be done in love. (1 Corinthians 16:14)

This week I will work on love. I hope you do the same. Keep me in your prayers, pray that I will go to be the man of God that He has called me to be. Pray that I will love like Christ loves. I will keep you in my prayers. You are LOVED! Now love others.