Love Never Fails

1 Corinthians 13:8

“Love never fails”

We have come to the last attribute of love discussed in this famous chapter. “Love never fails” is a poetic and definitive statement that encompasses all other attributes we have looked at so far. For instance, if love sometimes failed then we could not always say that love is kind. If love sometimes failed, we could not say that love never thinks evil thoughts. If love sometimes failed, then perhaps we would say that love does sometimes rejoice in iniquity.

Thankfully, though, the Bible does not say that love sometimes fails. It says that love never fails. People fail, but they do not fail because the love they have was not enough, it is because they do not have a strong enough love. This love that we have seen in the previous verses will not ever fail. It is a perfect love, a love that we are not naturally born with, but a love that we ought to desire and strive for (1 Corinthians 12:31).

To never fail means you are always consistent. It is not easy to be consistent all the time, and I know that I fail many times. Typically my first reaction when I fail is to blame my circumstances. I can state that I am too tired or that I have had a stressful day at work. Maybe I am happy or sad, excited or stressed, relaxed or anxious. With all these different emotions I may be inconsistent with how I love. If I fail to be consistent, perhaps reacting angrily when I am stressed, or putting down another with a sarcastic comment when I am relaxed, I fail to love.

We have already looked at how Jesus loved the 5,000 that he fed back when we discussed Love is Kind. His love did not fail despite His best friend dying moments before. In my opinion, outside of Him dying on the cross for our sins, this is one of the best, if not the best display of Jesus’ love on earth, but I must move on before I get too bogged down on this amazing display of love. We also see how His love did not fail when John the Baptist asked Jesus if He was really the Son of God. Surely that must have hurt Jesus to hear that, but He did not fail to love John, and instead of allowing the sad or hurt feelings He may have experienced rule over Him, He reacted lovingly. He did not behave rudely. His love did not fail.

We can look at each aspect of Jesus’ life here on earth and see how Jesus’ love was consistent and unfailing. It is a love and an example that we are to cherish and try to replicate. A love so strong and so consistent and not ruled by emotions (emotions can be good, but when your emotions dictate how or if you love then they are in control of your heart, not Christ). I think it is only fitting to end this series on love with the greatest act of love ever known to man: His death on the cross for our sins.

In all four gospels we read about how Jesus died on the cross for our sins. We read about how He willingly allowed Judas to go and fetch the soldiers to arrest Him in John 13:27. We read about how He did not try and plead His case but “opened not His mouth” (John 19:8-11; Isaiah 53:7). We read about how He was mocked, spat on, beaten, scourged, and nailed to a cross (Matthew 27:32-44; Mark 15:16-20; Luke 22:63-65; John 19:1). He did all of this for one purpose: to take away our sins and give us a chance to join Him in heaven (John 1:29; John 3:16). We see in John 19:28 that Jesus knew He had accomplished what He set out to do, and He could now die, as the only perfect man to ever walk the face of the earth and take God’s wrath for our sins to the grave.

His love was consistent. His love was boundless. It suffered long and was kind. His love did not parade itself; it was not puffed up, it did not behave rudely or seek its own. His love was not provoked, did not think evil, did not rejoice in iniquity but in the truth. His love bore all things, believed all things, hoped all things, and endured all things. His love did not fail. It never has failed, and it never will fail. He proved this on the cross, displaying the greatest love imaginable. “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for His friends” (John 15:13).

Jesus is our ultimate example. He is who we ought to model our life after. Notice I say He “is” not He “was” because He is still alive today! His death on the cross killed our sin but it did not kill Him. Jesus is greater than our sin and rose again (Matthew 28:6)! Believers who have accepted His free gift that He bought for us on the cross will one day get to meet Him in heaven and worship Him, bow before Him and thank Him personally for His love. The love that has never failed.

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