Faithbase

Hey everybody, I hope you are well today. And today we are taking a look at a section of 1 Corinthians 13 that says, love does not boast, it is not proud. Now these two words are very similar. In the Greek we can kind of say them in the same breath and be talking about the same thing. And I think Paul's trying to make a point here that love can't coexist with boasting and being proud, prideful, okay? What is it exactly? The boasting is elevating our own experience, our own connections, our own knowledge, whatever it might be above someone else, okay? And thereby causing that other person to feel lesser than or lower than. And not just feeling that way, but actually saying you, the other, is worse or less than me, okay? I'm up here. And maybe the intention is not necessarily to push the other person down, but to elevate yourself. The only way to do that is to be pushing someone else down. And maybe this is a name dropping, right? Like, oh, I was talking with so-and-so and doing this and that, in an attitude to put yourself above, okay? There's ways we do this with education, right? I got my education at such-and-such university and I studied under such-and-such professors and whatever that might be. I saw that a lot in higher education. This is a very high opinion of people who had better degrees from better universities, right? We see this happen with experiences. I've traveled to such-and-such places. I've built such-and-such businesses. And I have, I'm a guy of the streets, right? It's boasting. It can't exist when our heart is to love someone else. When we wanna love someone, we cannot be pushing someone else down. In fact, this verse from Philippians, I'm just gonna read a portion. I'm gonna put the rest in the devotion today. From Philippians 2 says, we've gotta do something totally different. It says, do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests, but to each of you, the interests of others. Paul doesn't say, hey, you and your peer and your neighbor and your Christian brother or sister are on the same playing field. He says, well, while you might be equal, he says, value them above yourself. Don't just not be boastful or prideful. Actually elevate the other person. This is where Christ is inviting us to love, to elevate the other. Consider that today as you continue to read and pray. Bless you.