Is your love for the Lord boastful?

Love does not boast, “show off”…

Jesus does not stand over the host of heaven and say, “Look what I made him/her do!” He is not seeking to use you so that He may brag about what He can get from you. He doesn’t use you to show off His supernatural power. He certainly doesn’t use you to elevate His status above others. He created the universe, He doesn’t need any of that.

On the flip side, is your love for the Lord boastful? Have you ever felt proud when the Lord answered your prayer and wanted to brag about it to others? "Look what the Lord did for ME. Look at how God loves ME, look what i made Him do!" It’s great to declare the blessings that the Lord gives so long as it brings glory to Him, but it is unloving to brag about it if we do so to make ourselves feel superior, as if our connection is better or greater than someone else. If this is our aim, we wonder why the Lord doesn’t keep feeding our ego by answering our prayers the way we want Him to do it.

Do you ever believe that the Lord loves you more than He loves those who are your enemies? Do you say in your heart that He loves you more than “those people”? Does not John 3:16 declare that He loves all the world, and 1 Timothy 2:4 that He desires all men to be saved? When Jesus commands us to love our enemies, is He not justified in saying it because He already does? Perhaps judgment is held back because He loves “those people” just as much as He loves you. And so should we all.

1 Corinthians 13:4…love is not boastful…