If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing
Deuteronomy 6:5 - Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
Matthew 22:39 - Love your neighbor as yourself
Then in the next verse, the Lord says..
Matthew 22:40 - On these two commandments hang all the law and prophets
Therefore, the teachings of the Old Testament summarises to this point where we, as Christians, should fervently love our neighbour and God, with all our heart, mind, soul and strength.
What then, does love have anything to do with spiritual gifts?
Galatians 5:22 - But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness
Hence, should we have spiritual gifts, but on the other hand, no love, the gifts are, yet sadly, useless.. Love, as in Galations 5:22, is a fruit of the Spirit.. It is love that unifies the church, strenghtens and nourishes our friendship with friends, it is a vital and essential ingredient that bonds us together with our family and most important of all, love seals our ties and relationship with God.. And the gifts of the Spirit are like tools that accomplish the purpose of love - building up teh body. Love controls the use of gifts - they are not to divide the church, nor are they to be used for personal recognition.. With love, the gifts are of genuine service to the church..
In conclusion, Isaiah 49:15 states :
"Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will not forget you!"
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