Daily Lesson for Thursday 13th of August 2026

Thus far, we have learned that love is patient, kind, joyful, resilient, believing, hopeful, and enduring (or perseverant) because Jesus is all these things. Once we see these qualities in Jesus, the next step is to imitate Him. That was Paul’s wish for the Corinthians. However, if we remove the “not” in the eight negative features of love, “we get a pretty good description of the Corinthians’ conduct within their church circle: envious, boasting, arrogant, rude, self-seeking, easily offended, and looking to see what others were doing wrong. Paul is tailoring the verbs he uses here to the Corinthian ­situation.”—Verlyn D. Verbrugge, “1 Corinthians,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Romans–Galatians, revised edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), p. 372.

The Corinthians had much to learn. So do we. After describing what love does and does not do, Paul concludes his section by emphasizing the everlasting nature of love so as to stimulate the practice of genuine love.

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One day, prophecies will no longer be necessary; we will speak only one language; and flawed human knowledge will be replaced by a brand-new knowledge of God (1 Corinthians 13:12). The gifts of the Spirit will cease only when the purpose for which they exist has reached its fulfillment (1 Corinthians 13:10). “But love will last forever!” (1 Corinthians 13:8, NLT).

Likewise, when Christ returns, faith will give place to sight (2 Corinthians 5:7), and that which we have long hoped for will be reality (Romans 8:24). And, most of all, love will endure as an emblem of the character of our triune God. Yet, there is a sense in which faith and hope will also last forever. Faith as the experience of salvation (Romans 4:3), and hope as the desire and expectation of new delights and knowledge in the new earth, will mark the experience of the redeemed forever. Yet love, God’s love, will eternally prevail.

Very soon, we will see our Lord face-to-face (1 Corinthians 13:12). Until that day comes, we are supposed to define our lives with these three virtues: faith, hope, and love. This triad is representative of the fullness of Christian life through the Spirit. That is why it was often referred to among Christians (Romans 5:1-5; Galatians 5:5-6; Ephesians 1:15,18; Ephesians 4:1-5). Love, however, is the greatest; after all, it is the only virtue used to describe the very nature of God Himself (1 John 4:8).

<–Wednesday Friday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26c-07-faith-hope-and-love/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26c-07-faith-hope-and-love

Daily Lesson for Wednesday 12th of August 2026

As we read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, we may feel frustrated at realizing that, to a lesser or greater degree, we fall short of displaying all those features of love. Likely, Paul had the person of Jesus in mind when writing 1 Corinthians 13:1-13. Indeed, only Christ perfectly revealed all those characteristics of love. Thus, ultimately, Paul’s portrayal of love is a portrait of Jesus.

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God is love (1 John 4:8). He loves us so much that He gave His only Son (John 3:16). Jesus is the full expression of this love (Hebrews 1:3). If we want to know how love expresses itself, we must take a long look at Jesus. If we pay close attention to the portrayal of Jesus in the New Testament, we will realize that all the positive features of love in 1 Corinthians 13:1-13 are seen in Him.

Jesus is patient. “But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience [makrothymia]” (1 Timothy 1:16, NIV).

Jesus is kind. The Bible says that “the Lord is kind” (1 Peter 2:3, LEB). The word “Lord” in this passage refers to Jesus. The term “kind” renders the Greek word chrēstos, which comes from the same root as the verb chrēsteuomai (“to show kindness”) in 1 Corinthians 13:4.

Jesus rejoices in the truth. Jesus experienced joy as He followed the will of the Father and felt His love for Him (John 15:9-11, John 17:12-14).

Jesus bears/endures all things. Hebrews 12:2-3 says that Jesus “endured the cross. . . . [He] endured such hostility from sinners against Himself” (NKJV). Nobody has endured so much as Jesus (Philippians 2:8). He did this for the joy set before Him!

Jesus believes all things. When Ananias questioned the genuineness of Paul’s conversion (Acts 9:13-14), Jesus answered, “He is a chosen instrument of mine” (Acts 9:15, ESV). Jesus sees people not only as they are but as they will become through His power.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

Source: https://ssnet.org/blog/26c-07-a-portrait-of-jesus/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=26c-07-a-portrait-of-jesus