The Power of Love

Love never fails; 1 Corinthians 13:8a

We have been looking at powers that God has endowed mankind with above other creatures. Mankind has the power or ability to alter future outcomes by using his power to make a choice that introduces a specific set of consequences. Likewise, mankind can disrupt the physical laws of nature and indeed the universe by exercising the power of prayer. But the power of love is on a very different level than even those. Love is declared here in scripture to have an eternal quality about it. Yet, mankind has been given the privilege of experiencing and displaying this same love. The very thought of this should bring to mind an array of questions. How can a mortal be given a power that is immortal? How can that which is finite experience and exercise a power that is infinite? We are not born with the power of love in us but we can experience it.

The bible does not define love but it describes love as a selfless and unconditional attitude of grace. It is selfless in that it finds motivation in the needs of others. It is unconditional in that it does not depend on others or expect anything in return from others. This type of love is sometimes referred to as one of the abiding virtues of Christianity. Our text is a simple Greek phrase consisting of three words that make a statement whose scope is challenging in any language to comprehend. “Love never fails;” These three Greek words literally mean “Love can not even at any time become of no effect;”. This statement clearly ascribes to the virtue known as love the attributes of God. When John declares that God is love it is in agreement with this statement. Note that John does not say that love is God. Love is of God. When the word “never” is used in its absolute sense, it can only be applied to that which is of God. When God commanded the light to separate from darkness it set in motion a never ending physical phenomenon that has been observed since time began. To this day there is no communion between light and darkness. What God does can not, even at any time, become of no effect. God’s power will always continue to work. To better grasp the biblical concept of love, we should take a look at both its source and its characteristics.


I. What is the Source of This Power?
A. Love is of God (God is Love)
B. We can only Love after We experience God’s Love (We love because he first loved us.)

II. What are some of the Characteristics of Love—Other than Eternal
A. Patience
B. Humility
C. Selfless
D. Difficult to Provoke
E. Rejoices in Truth
F. Quietly covers All Things

Love is so powerful that it can change the very hearts of people. Jesus used it to address the attitude of his disciples at a time when they were selfishly debating about who was going to be the greatest among them. Jesus took some water and a towel and washed their dirty feet. John said it was a demonstration of Jesus loving his disciples to the end. During the Civil Rights movement the rallying cry was that physical force would be met with spiritual force. Their spiritual force was shown through acts of love. Prayers were sent up for those that were abusive and vicious towards God-fearing people. Soft answers were given in return for rude and nasty questions. People suffered until their tormentors tired and refused to inflict any more abuse. People bowed down and prayed as they were being arrested for obeying the law of the land. People patiently suffered until laws were rewritten, historical errors were corrected, social injustices were outlawed and the hearts of evil people became tender and remorseful. Love pushed the social boundaries until a new society was born. New dimensions in social understanding came out of the movement. To this day we still don’t know the fullness of the dimensions of love. How far will love go or how long will love wait are just two of the many questions that probe in search of love’s dimensions. Mankind has been endowed with a powerful force that we don’t fully comprehend. Although we might not know the full dimensions of love, we do know its extreme limit in mankind’s experience. Again, Jesus defined it for us. Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. This is the extreme limit to which mankind can exercise the power of love. God so loved the world that he would push himself to an extreme. While we were yet in our sins, Christ died for us.


Robert C. Hudson
June 7, 2009