“Love is patient, love is kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-6).
A favorite Scripture reading for many weddings is 1 Corinthians 13. In this passage, the Apostle Paul is laying out the importance of love in the Christian life. Interestingly enough, the chapter begins in the middle of a thought, as chapter 12 could very well be rendered as ending with “...”. In this post, we will dig into the 12th and 13th chapters of 1 Corinthians as we reflect on the bedrock of what makes us who we are at Camp Hosea.
Living in a culture that throws so many unsolicited opinions our way, it can be easy to lose sight of what it means to love. One such opinion that has been growing in popularity is that love is whatever we want it to be. This would be a perfectly acceptable approach to life if it were truly a concept that we devised on our own. However, Paul confronts us with the idea that love is not something created by humans to be expressed amongst humans. Rather, love is something that God expresses to us through other people.
So, if love is something that God expresses to us through other people, surely God wants to express something specific to us, but what exactly? To begin to understand the answer here, we have to know what kind of thing love is. Love is one of the numerous spiritual gifts that Paul lists in chapter twelve. These spiritual gifts are commonly understood as being given to us so that we can share them with others. Upon closer inspection, however, we find that God is actually animating these gifts through human action so that they may be received by those who are built up by them.
The supreme objective of God's actions towards man is that we will know and love him in his unending majesty. As Paul turns the page from chapter twelve to chapter 13, he mentions that there is one gift that stands out from all the rest as the pinnacle expression of God's character to man. This gift that stands out amongst the multitude of other gifts and takes center stage in chapter 13 is love.
So, in our heart of hearts, what makes us so excited about being a part of your wedding day is our desire to help you communicate the pinnacle expression of God's character: love. As you share your wedding day with friends, family, and everyone else involved in your wedding day, God is truly using you to make himself known to everyone who is a part of your wedding day. At Camp Hosea, it is our honor and privilege to be a part of how you express your love for your spouse and how you share that love with the world.
If you would like to learn more about who we are, or you would like to schedule a tour of our venue, please reach out to us at our Contact Us page. We look forward to meeting you!
Photos:
Robin David Photography
Catherine + Matthew
