If you love someone, you will be loyal to him no matter what the cost. You will always believe in him, always expect the best of him, and always stand your ground in defending him. 1 Corinthians 13:7 The Living Bible

For Roy’s Sunday school class today we read the entire book of Paul’s first Epistle to the Corinthian church. To make reading easier, I chose the Living Bible, which is a paraphrase.

When I started in on Paul’s teaching about love, I had to stop in my tracks. The particular segment, “. . . you will always expect the best of him . . .” seemed like too high a standard for me! 

All through the month of December, I had challenged myself to memorize about 10 or so verses from 1 John 4.  (Verse 16 is my favorite!). Writing to encourage the church, the aging apostle had painstakingly emphasized how important brotherly love is since God is love. If I want evidence that I am truly connected to Jesus, the measure is how I love those in my church. But what does THAT mean concretely?  How do I show love?

To be honest, I can’t say I always expect the best from the one whom I love most in this world, let alone others. Sometimes I imagine that Mike might let something trigger him as it has in the past, whether aggressive drivers or the threat of tornadoes. I try to remind myself that the past does not predict the future, certainly not with God who is always working in us.

Yet, if that is how I think about my husband, and that’s evidence of the quality or essence of my love, then it would appear that I don’t abide in Jesus.

I would despair were it not for the FACT that God empowers me to TRY to love my husband and others this way–expecting the best from them. And when I fail, I can rest in Jesus’ forgiveness and righteousness credited to me. 

And what about the other elements having to do with my loyalty, belief, and ready defense of brothers and sisters? Unless presented with factual evidence to the contrary, I conclude that we are to take fellow Christians at face value and defend their honor, unless the Lord guides us differently.

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