Empty-Handed (Friday Devotional)

 

If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

- 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

When I went to the grocery store Tuesday night, I didn’t expect it to be an eventful trip. My list wasn’t especially long, the store was quiet, and nothing in my half hour walking up and down the aisles indicated anything about the night would be particularly memorable.

Then I got to the checkout line, started loading my groceries onto the belt, and reached in my pocket for my wallet. Feeling nothing, I frantically patted my other pockets to no avail. As my face reddened, my memory caught up to the situation. I knew exactly where my wallet was: my sock drawer at home. All I could do was sheepishly explain my mistake to the cashier, apologize profusely, and go home empty-handed—I had $75 worth of groceries on the belt, but I didn’t have what I needed to pay for them.

In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul warns against making the same kind of spiritual mistake—accumulating a spiritual abundance but lacking the one thing you need most. Writing to a church that had become fixated on the strange gift of speaking in tongues, he cautions that “if I speak in the tongues of mortals and angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.” He goes on to say that the most powerful prophet, the wisest scholar, the most faithful believer, and the most sacrificial giver gain nothing if their gifts are unaccompanied by love.

It’s a reminder that we still need today. Too often we appreciate eloquent preachers but overlook faithful parents; we recognize generous givers but ignore tireless teachers; we thank decision makers but look past the humble servants who implement those decisions. Yet if we will look to the cross of Christ, we will see that sacrificial love is far more powerful than anything else we have to offer.

You can go through life doing good works, saying the right things, and setting a positive example—you can fill your spiritual shopping cart until it’s about to overflow. But take it from me, there’s one thing you need to make the rest of it worthwhile. I pray you know where to find it.