by 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Today we celebrate love, but in a culture that defines love in only physical and emotional terms most people do not understand what true love is. You see, the Bible defines love in different terms than our culture does.
How does God define love? He says people who really know how to love are patient and kind. They are not envious of what others have and they do not brag about what they have. People who know how to love will not selfishly expect to get their own way all the time. Loving people are not easily irritated by others and they are not resentful toward people who have wronged them.
In a society that prides itself on tolerance and acceptance perhaps one of our culture’s greatest misconceptions regarding love is this. Love does not celebrate sin or overlook it. Instead, love rejoices when sin is revealed and dealt with.
Love bears all the persecution and mistreatment the world throws at us because of our faith in Jesus. It is because of our love for God and each other that we place our hopes in all the promises God made to us, and we endure all the hardships this life brings because we know He will keep those promises.
Scripture says God is love, and God loved us so much He sent His only Son to die for us so that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. Jesus said this: No greater love has any man than to lay down his life for his friends. That is exactly what Jesus did for us.
Friends, that is the way God defines love. Let us celebrate that kind of love today and every day.
Have a God Filled Week and a Happy Valentine’s Day,
Brother Donnie
Midland Baptist Church 
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