By Waylon Bailey
Happy Valentine’s Day!
When I think of Valentine’s Day, I often think of a number of passages of Scripture, passages which speak of the love of God and the love of a man and a woman.
Of all of these passages, my favorite is 1 Corinthians 13. This wasn’t written for a marriage although it fits marriage beautifully. It was written for the church. It was written about how believers relate to one another.
Love is patient and is kind; love does not envy. Love does not brag, is not proud, does not behave itself inappropriately, does not seek its own way, is not irritable, does not keep a record of wrongs; does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
The next phrase may be the best of all, “Love never fails.” It doesn’t mean that love is never defeated. Rather, it means that love doesn’t quit. Love can be counted on. It won’t quit, and it won’t give up.
The word for love is the Greek word, Agape.
Agape is not a feeling; it is an action. It always seeks the absolute best for another person.
When we love as God loves, we look for the needs of others. We seek to do to others as we want done to us. We love other people as we love ourselves, and we give our best.
“An now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13).
Waylon Bailey is senior pastor of the First Baptist Church, Covington. This editorial first appeared on his blog.
