1 Corinthians 13:3
King James Version (KJV)
3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
When I hear this verse or read it for myself I think about Pastors. There are many Pastors out there that give their stuff away. They feed the poor and they are constantly burning their body out. For what purpose would someone do all these things if they don’t have love? Some Pastors do it out of guilt from the church people. Some Pastors do it because of tradition or religiosity.
Paul was making something very clear here. If you give, feed and burn and you don’t do it out of love it will not profit you anything. Jesus, when He gave His body to the church, He did it with the love that He had for you and I. He gave his body as a love sacrifice. Did it profit the World? Absolutely! His body and His blood profited you and I. He did it out of the love that He had for the Father. It was God’s will that Jesus would go as a living sacrifice of love.
Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers if you can’t preach or teach out of love then you should not stand in the pulpit. If you are feeding the poor and giving all your goods to benefit others, yet you are not walking out love, then you should stop preaching, start receiving and start meditating on love. God wants love to be poured out whenever we preach, teach or give. God wants men and women to give with love and not out of duty.
Love does not give out of duty. Love gives because Love ( who is God) first loved us.
The reason why Paul wrote about giving, feeding and burning, with love, is that there is a reaping principle in place. Seed, Time and Harvest. This flows after everything. If you sow in love you will reap in love. Galatians 6:7-8 (KJV) 7Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting. This principle is always at work. Paul wants people to sow love because out of love will flow the fullness of the blessing.
I have found that people receive when love is activated and flowing. People will respond to a loving person. Be that person of love today! Go the extra mile to love. Do you have issues with some people? Go bless them with love. Love your neighbor as yourself! It’s a great commandment. Will you follow it?
Scripture Study: 1 Corinthians 13
Be Blessed!
Pastor Philip's Blog 
So true. God looks on the heart while man looks at the exterior.
The one thing God is….love and he gave it away… thanks for your blog today Pastor Phil.
Hi Pastor Phillip, you made a great point about giving from the heart, we must always do this, but Jesus Loved greatly and gave much yet He was rejected and mocked and killed and He tells us regardless how much we Love we too will be persecuted, it is not dependent on us, but that should not stop us from showing Love and if we are in Christ Jesus and perfected in Love, we can be no other way.
To some people we will be a bad aroma, our Love will cause them to react to us negatively and will remind them in their spirit that they are eternally separated from God and all that is good, to others we will be a pleasant aroma and they will respond.
What are we to do… Faith comes from hearing the Word and the Word is Truth, to know God’s Truth we need to have His Wisdom through the empowering of The Holy Spirit, we were not born with God’s wisdom we must ask for it believing we have received.
I will leave a link for encouragement. http://freedomborn.wordpress.com/2011/10/10/the-gaining-of-wisdom/
Christian Love from us both – Anne
Very true! We too will be persecuted. Jesus said as they have persecuted Him they too will persecute us. We are able to love because He first loved us. The aroma of our love will be offensive to others. I believe the reason for this is that people are not used to a love that always gives. Most people believe love has to be earned and that’s not truth. Love always gives to benefit the the one true love. It’s unfortunate that people will think that love stinks and that’s why we need to love in the midst if being persecuted. Thank you for your kind words of encouragement and I look forward to reading your blog. Together we can create an atmosphere that will encourage other readers. Keep blogging and be blessed! Have a blessed day! Pastor Phil