"And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love."
1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV)
Most people are building lives that won't survive eternity. They pour their best years into careers, possessions, and reputations that time will erase. God isn't against ambition or achievement. But He draws a sharp line between what fades and what remains. Faith, hope, and love, Scripture declares, are the three things that outlast everything else.
The Greek word used here is agapē, a love that is self-giving and others-directed. This is not the love of romance or friendship, though those are real gifts. Agapē is the love that chooses to give even when there is nothing to gain. It is the only love that reflects the very nature of God, who is agapē Himself.
In 79 AD, Mount Vesuvius buried the thriving Roman city of Pompeii under volcanic ash. Within hours, a city of wealth, commerce, and culture was frozen in time, then forgotten for nearly 1,700 years. Its people had accumulated everything the Roman world valued, status, property, and influence. None of it survived. What we remember most about Pompeii today isn't what its citizens owned, but how they died, clinging to one another. Even in destruction, love above all left its mark.
Jesus makes this same truth unmistakably clear in Matthew 6:19–20: "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy...but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven." He doesn't say earthly things are sinful. He says they are temporary and therefore a poor foundation for a life. But a life built on love like this, on agapē, stores up what heaven honors. The investment that survives every ending is the one made in people, not possessions.
So what are you building right now? Take an honest look at where your time, money, and energy are going. If agapē is truly the greatest, it should show up in your calendar, your wallet, and your relationships. Faith points you to God, hope anchors you in His promises, but love is how you bring heaven into the rooms where you actually live.
Godseekers, God is not asking you to abandon your goals or walk away from your responsibilities. He is asking you to reorder them around what lasts. Love above all is not a feeling you wait for, it is a priority you choose. When everything else fades, and one day it will, the love you gave away is the only thing left standing. Build accordingly.
Prayer
Heavenly Father, You are the God who holds eternity in Your hands, and You are worthy of our deepest praise. We confess that we have often chased things that will not last, pouring ourselves into what moths and rust will destroy. Reorder our hearts today. Remind us that faith, hope, and love remain when everything else falls away. Teach us to build our lives around what You call greatest. Fill us with the courage to invest in people the way You have invested in us. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Personal Reflection
- When you look honestly at how you spend your time and energy, what does it reveal about what you truly value most?
- What is one thing you are currently building or pursuing that will not survive eternity, and what would it look like to redirect that investment toward love?
Step of Faith
Today, identify one person in your life who needs a tangible expression of agapē, and do one specific, costly thing to love them well.
