What Real Love Looks Like
Month 10: Loving One Another · Memory Verse
Today's Scripture
Read together: 1 Corinthians 13:4-5
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs.
Memory Verse
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no account of wrongs.”— 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 (BSB)memorize this week
📖 Bible-in-a-Year (optional)
Today's reading: Matthew 8–10
Reading the whole Bible in a year — do this when you have extra time.The Heart of It
Yesterday Paul told us love is the most excellent way. Today he gets practical. He tells us exactly what love looks like when it walks into a room. And notice something wonderful. Paul doesn't describe love as a warm feeling that floats through your chest. He describes it as things you do and don't do. Love "is patient." It waits when someone is slow or difficult. Love "is kind." It looks for ways to be good to people. Then come the things love refuses to do. It does not envy what others have. It does not boast. It is not proud. It is not rude. It does not insist on its own way. And it does not keep getting offended or keep a list of wrongs.
Here's a beautiful test for this passage. Read it again, and quietly put the name "Jesus" in place of the word "love." Jesus is patient. Jesus is kind. Jesus does not envy. Jesus is not proud. Jesus is not easily angered. Jesus keeps no account of wrongs. Every word fits Him perfectly, because this is simply a picture of Jesus' own heart. And that's why our verse is worth hiding deep inside us this week. When we memorize it, we're memorizing a picture of the Lord we love. We're also memorizing a description of who His Spirit is making us become.
Around the Table
Love is patient (it waits), and love is kind (it's nice on purpose). Can you say it with me? "Love is patient, love is kind."
Let's do it: Practice "patient": stand still and wait quietly while you count to five together. That's love waiting!
Paul lists things love does and things love won't do. Love isn't just a feeling. It shows up in how we act.
Let's talk: Which one on the list is easiest for you right now? Which one is hardest?
Try reading the verse with "Jesus" in place of "love." It fits Him perfectly, because this is a picture of His heart.
Let's go deeper: If this list describes Jesus, what does it tell you about the kind of person the Spirit wants to grow in you?
💬 Conversation Starter
Can you act out "patient" with your face and "kind" with your hands? Let's guess each other's!— Love is something you can actually see.
🛡️ Defending the Faith
Some people say love just means letting everyone do whatever they feel. But this verse shows that love is patient and kind, and that it refuses to be rude or selfish. Real love has a shape and a direction. We can explain that with gentleness and respect (), because the way we say it should look like the love we're describing.
For Dad · Go Deeper
A great spiritual exercise this week is to read slowly with your own name in the blank: "Dad is patient, Dad is kind, Dad is not easily angered, Dad keeps no account of wrongs." It's humbling, and that's the point. None of us pass that test on our own steam. Only Jesus does. But this is exactly why the gospel comes before the command. We don't memorize this verse to feel guilty or to grit harder. We memorize it as a prayer, asking the Spirit to grow in us the very love we can't manufacture. Let your children see you receive grace at the points where you fall short of this list. That teaches them where real love comes from, far better than a flawless performance ever could.
Draws on: Paul David Tripp, Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family.
Let's Pray Together
"Father, thank You that this is a picture of Jesus' own heart. As we learn these words, please make them true of us. Make us patient. Make us kind. Set us free from envy and pride. Grow Your love in our family by Your Spirit. In Jesus' name, amen."
Love isn't just a feeling I have. It's a way I treat the people right in front of me.