“I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the course and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the gospel of the grace of God.” (acts 20:24)

The writer of these words was Paul, some times called “the great Apostle” of Jesus. Few people on earth have grasped the gospel of the grace that Paul did, and displayed the truth of such a statement in their lifestyles.

“I have worked much harder (than other apostles), been in prison more frequently, been flogged more severely, and been exposed to death again and again. Five times I received the forty lashes minus one. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was pelted with stones, three times I was shipwrecked, I spent a night and a day in the open sea. . . I have known hunger and thirst and have often gone without food; I have been cold and naked.” (2 Corinthians 11:22-27)

The man who wrote these words, who willingly experienced these hardships, also wrote, “Love is patient and 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.” (1Corinthians 13:4-7)

It seems to me that these words must come from a different source from the ones above, for these express a spirit of sweetness, as if the beatings and the exposure to death had left no trace of anger or resentment toward man or God. When I read 1 Corinthians 13, I always marvel, and wonder where Paul could have learned the meaning of love, or the essential nature of its workings in human souls. The only answer that occurs to me is that the Spirit of Love Himself must be speaking through Paul, and that Paul’s abandoning all earthly attachments has left room for the Holy Spirit of God to fill Paul’s vacancy with an intimate understanding of God’s loving character. The contrast between the words of 1 Corinthians 13, and the man who went about persecuting Christians, and then suffered such extremes for his faith, can hardly be reconciled without admitting the presence of Another Voice in Paul. That voice is full of kindness and devoid of anger. Not only does Paul describe love, but he even recognizes its preeminence, both in the present and in eternity: “And now abide faith, hope, and Love, but the greatest of these is love.”(1 Corinthians 13:13). How does he know this? He knows it from Christ Himself.

Love in Him,

Prue