Rev. Mark Riley

Thank goodness for Hallmark on Valentine’s Day. But when it comes to real love, I believe the Bible does a better job than Hallmark can ever hope to do, because it tells us what real love is all about!

Today is Valentine’s Day and romantics all over the world are finding clever ways to express their love to their Valentine with chocolates and hearts and roses! I am not a poet — the only poem I know is “Roses are red, violets are blue, sugar is sweet and so are you!” Thank goodness for Hallmark. But when it comes to love I believe the Bible does a better job than Hallmark can ever do, because it talks about the great love of our God! Perhaps one of the best-known verses in all the Bible is John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world …” We all know that God loves us; but the question is do we love God as we should? Jesus said in John 14:15 “If you love me; keep my commandments.” That’s how we express our love back to God the Father. But aside from that, the Bible helps us to understand the real nature of this thing called LOVE.

The apostle Paul writes an entire chapter to the Corinthian church describing real love. He writes: “If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 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. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.”

For now, we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.

The apostle is communicating three truths about love. First, Real love does the right things for the right reasons. One of the all-time kid favorites shows was “Leave it to Beaver.” Do you remember the character, Eddie Haskell? He’d act one way around grown-ups and totally different around Wally and the Beaver! That’s called being two-faced or a hypocrite. Paul says real love does things from a pure motive and to do otherwise profits nothing!

He also points out that real love contains certain attributes. Growing up in rural West Virginia, we’d say, “Go get me a ‘coke’ and anything cold and wet would do! Coke was a generic name for any kind of soda pop the local store had in stock! But the Coca-Cola Company spends millions of dollars to let us know that “Coke” is the real thing, “Coke is it!”

Paul says real love has certain unmistakable qualities — including patience, kindness, not being proud and not being envious.

Paul concludes this wonderful chapter on love by saying that in the end, there are three essential things that will matter — FAITH, HOPE and LOVE, and the greatest of these is real love! I want you to know that God’s love for us is a love that endures. He always stands ready to forgive and to pardon if we will only turn to Him in trust and repentance. He only asks that you return that love and share it with others.

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Finding Faith is written and compiled by area pastors. This week’s column comes from Pastor Mark Riley, minister of Flemington First Church of Christ.