Loving Actions, Unmotivated Heart

ALL – Psalm 37:1-11
ALL – Proverbs 21:23-24
OT – Esther 8:1-10:3
NT – 1 Corinthians 12:27-13:13

Interesting passage for the day: If I gave everything I have to poor people, and if I were burned alive for preaching the Gospel but didn’t love others, it would be of no value whatever. – 1 Corinthians 13:3, The Living Bible

Thought: Why would I give everything I have to the poor if I didn’t love them? Why would I allow myself to be burned alive for preaching the Gospel if love wasn’t motivating me?

Sometimes we act as though the answers to those questions are obvious: “I wouldn’t.” But is that really true? I can think of other motivations. What if I didn’t love, but I was trying to prove that I did love? What if I was trying to convince myself that I truly loved God and the people He created? What if I was motivated by a fear that I wasn’t actually good and loving enough to walk with God forever? What if I really wanted to impress someone else? What if it was the only way of life I knew, and I tried to excel because I was scared to go in a new direction?

All I’m saying is this: it is possible to do the godliest of activities outwardly without any godliness inwardly. Obeying Jesus matters. But obeying Jesus isn’t about fulfilling duties and regulations. Obeying Jesus is about a whole life—both inward and outward—devoted to living out His Greatest and Second Greatest Commandments: Love the LORD your God with all your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself.

Outward actions are the best evidence we have of inner motivations. And supposed inner motivations without outward actions are pretense. Love calls for our whole existence to be devoted to our God—inward and outward.

Question: Given the Scriptural importance of love, why do we pray for so many other gifts and fruits first? When is the last time you asked God to make you a truly loving person—both inwardly and outwardly—toward Him and all those around you?

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