Thursday, June 22, 2006, Part 3

"Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things" (1 Corinthians 13:4-7). 

IDEA: Christian love is realistic.

I. Christian love is not blind to reality.

We have a realistic understanding of people.

We believe people are depraved. They lie to us and about us. They criticize us. They deceive us.

We believe that we are depraved.

The Corinthians were depraved.

II. Depraved men and women are the only kind of persons there are.

If you can’t love this kind of person, there’s no one left to love.

People who feel everyone is good will find love difficult when the first winds of reality hit.