DEEP and WIDE

 

October 1, 2024

1 Thessalonians 3:12

And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.

 Let's look at the two underlined words above, “grow” and “overflow.” The word “grow” (greek "pleonasai") means to multiply over and over, to become rich, to become stronger and deeper. To increase in depth and meaning. The ocean of love in our heart is becoming deeper. Our love has an increasing quality about it.

If you have been to a wedding lately chances are you heard about Love as described in 1 Corinthians 13. There the Apostle Paul emphasizes the signs of a growing and deepening love. We read that when we are more patient with others, less boastful and arrogant toward others, less prideful, less rude, less self-seeking, and not easily angered toward others. We think about how to serve and bless others.

So, growing in love means we are becoming more patient with our kids, more kind to our spouse, more humble toward the people in our life, more servant oriented toward others, and it takes more and more for us to be offended by others. Our love for others, therefore, is growing.

That leads us to our second highlighted word “overflow” (Greek "perisseusai") which refers to the scope of love. While a love that “grows” goes deeper, a love that “overflows” goes wider. I have heard it put this way "A "growing" love develops quality love, an "overflowing" love develops quantity.

Have you ever filled something with water? As the water level rises, it deepens, and when it reaches the brim, it overflows, spilling out in all directions. This can be likened to the way God's love fills us: it deepens within and eventually overflows, expanding far and wide.

When this happens in our lives, we are loving people with a deeper love, but we also find ourselves loving more and more people. Individuals we used to ignore, despise, or maybe even hate. Your love is growing and overflowing.

Loving one another is to be both deep and wide.

LET US PRAY

God,

In a world that sometimes feels cold and distant, we earnestly pray for love to grow and overflow. Fill our hearts with boundless compassion and kindness, helping us to love one another unconditionally, just as you love us. We pray for a love that transcends differences, a love that sees the value of every person, and a love that seeks to mend what is broken.

May our lives be a testament to the love you have poured into our hearts, a deep and wide love that knows no boundaries. We thank you for the love that binds us together, for it is a reflection of your amazing love for us. Amen.