Lose the Hymnal Out of Your Hand Bible Study, Christian Love, Lesson 3

Bible Study, Christian Love, Lesson 3

February 20, 2025

Chaplain LaVina “Viny” Burns

More than likely, if you have traveled with kids on a trip in the car, you have heard the day-old question, “Are we there yet?” Yes, we have been there! There is no patience. Along with the lack of quietly waiting for the trip to end, the tempers arise, arguments begin and the peace and accord in the small surroundings in the vehicle, comes to an immediate halt! No patience, no love, no quiet tones of voices! Kindness flies out the window as one child is envious over whatever the other child has. Rudely the youngster grabs at whatever, seeking for his/her own well-being, while evil is rearing up its’ ugly head. Finally, as the kids see who “won”, they rejoice in their tactics and scheming’s!

Oh wow! Did I just describe the church family at times? Love is thrown out the window to prove a point, to get someone’s own way, to flaunt the talent that was God-given to begin with… And yet, we call ourselves the LOVING family of God. I remember as a teen-ager sitting in the evening service at church as a business meeting begin to take place. The “argument” (or am I supposed to say, “discussion”) was over the pastor. Remember this was the family of God in a meeting. Before you knew what was happening, one woman took a hymnal and shouted “Sit down and shut-up” all the while hitting the woman in the face with the book.

Now let us read the passage of Scripture from I Corinthians 13:4-7. It sums up what was missing in the “family” – Love! 4) “Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5) does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6) does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7) bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

I strongly believe when we see this type of discord amongst the family, it is time to STOP and PRAY! Satan has a hay day over God’s people forgetting the LOVE that was crucified for them. Satan loves to see envy, instead of edification, destroy one another. If the woman at the church business meeting stopped to bow her head and ask for guidance in response to what was being said, she would have been rejoicing in the Truth of what God had for the church. She was not expected to tackle the church by herself or her ideals, but was to stand firm on the Word, believing, hoping, and enduring, working together as the Family of God. This would have shown the visitors, the community, the fellow church members that the love she had for those in her chosen place of worship, was because of the Love she had within her.

And where does this all begin? With the family, in the car, on vacation, at the dinner table, sitting around, etc – the family learning to love each other in speech, actions, humility, kindness…being taught to LOVE one another. “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” Ephesians 4:32

Self-examination time: Are you Loving? Are you kind? Are you showing others the Love of Jesus living in you? Do you show Love to your family at home? Do you show Love to your church family? Do not be a sounding cymbal as the earlier verses in I Corinthians says, but open your eyes, your heart, your mouth and may Love flow from you onto others. Let others see the Love of Jesus! Lose the hymnal out of your hand if you are not going to use it to sing praises to Jesus.