God has a way of doing and that is to love—not sometimes, not just when it is convenient, or when it feels good, but all the time and forever.
1 Corinthians 13: 8 Love never fails [never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end]. As for prophecy (the gift of interpreting the divine will and purpose), it will be fulfilled and pass away; as for tongues, they will be destroyed and cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away [it will lose its value and be superseded by truth].
God’s love does succeed; it is not something you just try, it is not a theory, but the utmost of surety! God said love never fails, fades out, or comes to an end. Therefore if we exercise the God kind of love, that love that never fails we will keep or even fix any relationship, if you we are faithful to love.
First, to love is a high standard and one that we can’t live without God maturing us in love first. Love is a maturity thing that involves letting God change how we think, and how we think— will change how we feel.
Loving God’s way not only is having experience with God and seeing things through His eyes, but having His revelation knowledge, His understanding of how to love His way. Ultimately it takes a decision to grow up in love, a decision to prefer the other person, and have the mindset of living the importance of life— which is to love anyway, to love no matter what, making a difference, all in which show the Father—Love. Love because God’s law is to love, and love never fails in anything, ever! Love never dies, it doesn‘t end and love is who God is!
Forgiving is love
Having that relationship with God and experiencing His forgiveness over and over in our own lives is a way God softens our heart to forgive others over and over. Being forgiven by the most mature Person ever, the Utmost One, changes us and helps us to forgive others. His act of forgiving us when we don’t deserve it, gives us compassion where we hadn’t had compassion before, thus we can forgive.
Forgiveness is love and what God expects of His children. His law is to love Him and then if we love Him we are empowered to love (and forgive) others. When we love Him, we care about what He cares about and we respect His expectations of love.
There is no condition to His love. Just when you thought God loved you more than that one who doesn’t know God, (that one that hurt you) God will correct you and tell you to forgive that one and not only forgive but go out of your way to love that one. Doing what God instructs for you to do will dissolve that un-forgiveness and draw that person to Love Himself.
God understands, He knows the reason we hurt and how that pain causes us to hold a grudge. That is where His compassion comes in, He understands what we don’t. If you make a decision to forgive someone God will give you the foundational truths you need to understand why the person you need to forgive is doing what they are doing that hurts you. That in turn will give you the compassion you need to forgive.
Forgiveness is the fortitude of love—
Also when you love anyway because God told you to love, not only will you have His revelation knowledge, understanding of the other persons pain, but God will heal you.
When you love the other person, even the person that is hurting you, when you forgive that person, that person is healing because of the love of God you are giving them.
That person you love anyway, (even though they may not seem to deserve our love or even if they think you owe them,) will start to respond to that love. Why? Because everyone needs love, everyone is looking for acceptance, for pardon, and that is what love does.
Some who have been treated badly for long enough have a wall built around them that keeps them from being hurt again. They hold in their feelings and don’t let much emotion escape. But as one who loves is tenacious about loving that one, soon or later the wall will come down, because love never fails.
To be tenacious we have to have God’s help. We have to have His revelation knowledge, experience with Him and an on-going relationship with Him. We have to be intentional about loving that person and dependent on God, to be that one who will no matter how we feel love anyway.
Love never fails and living like it works, will help us to love tenaciously!
God bless you and live tenaciously convinced that love never fails!