“But the fruit of the Spirit is love…” Gal. 5:22
Love is not a possession of some kind; it is not an abstract idea, it is not only the motivating factor for behavior, rather love is behavior. In simple terms, love is action, or we may say “love is ethics.” It is concrete and visible, covenantal and relational. In fact, it is so concrete for Paul that he says I Corinthians 2 that “(he) decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.”
Love, for St. Paul, is most clearly demonstrated in the concrete suffering of Christ for us. He gave himself for us, while we were yet sinners. To love is to act; anything short of action is no love at all. A husband can say he loves his wife 100 times a day, but if he refuses to connect his words to his actions, there is no fruit to his love. Our mission is to pursue the fruit of love in word and deed. The fruit of the Spirit is love because only love is the right response to a God who loved us even to the point of death.
Prayer: O merciful Lord, there is no greater love than that a man would give his life for his friend. We praise you blessed Lord for the cup did not pass from you. We praise you for out of love you drank the cup of wrath that we might drink in your peace. We pray this through our Lord who is love, amen.
