Pastor’s Page | February 5th, 2026
Sermon Prep (Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
When I was a kid, I was a huge professional wrestling fan (or better known as rasslin’). One of the characters that stuck with me was one known as Brother Love. Brother Love was a preacher who was dressed in a bright white suit, a tight red shirt, and white tie. He was patterned off of the televangelists of the 80’s and his catchphrase was “I love you” with each word exaggerated and stretched out. The problem was that Brother Love wasn’t very loving. He was a heel (bad guy). He would say he loved you, then beat you in the head, do something underhanded, or he would insult you in a nice southern way. As a kid I despised him, but as an adult…sadly, I recognized him. He was the person who talked about love but never showed love. Calling yourself “Brother Love” is one thing, living in love is another. The people in Corinth would tell you they were a loving church filled with loving people, but the way they treated each other and the people around them said otherwise. So Paul wants to explain to them what love looks like.
So what does love look like? How would you recognize someone as “Brother Love” (not by the hypocritical white suit kind, but the genuine loving kind)? In verses 4-7, Paul gives us a glimpse of what love looks like. These are concrete things for us to look at when deciding if we are loving or not. At the end of Sunday’s message last week, I gave you some homework to fill out. I want you to look at this list again and see how you are doing in each area.
Some things for us to notice as we do this. First, these words are not adjectives but verbs. This is what you are to do. It is not patient love. No, love is patient with others. It is not kind love. It is Love is kind to others. It is not forgiving love, but rather Love is forgiving others. As we prepare for this week’s message, I want you to go through this list and I want you to consider a few things: 1) What would it look like if your love was exemplified like this? 2) What would it look like if you were loved by others like this? 3) How does the love of Jesus exemplify this type of love?
Also, as you go over this list, is there one thing you struggle with the most? Is there one thing that you find easier than the others? Here are some other verses to help us get ready for Sunday: 1 John 4:8, 4:16, Jeremiah 31:3, John 3:16, Matthew 22:39, Colossians 3:14, Luke 6:35, James 2:15–17, 1 John 3:18 and Romans 5:8.
Rewrite 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 using your name
This past week…
_____________ has been patient,
_____________ has been kind.
_____________ did not envy,
_____________ did not boast,
_____________ has not been proud.
_____________ was not rude,
_____________ was not self-seeking,
_____________ was not easily angered,
_____________ kept no record of wrongs.
_____________ did not delight in evil but rejoiced with the truth.
_____________ always protected, always trusted, always hoped, always persevered.
_____________ never failed in loving others.
February Sermon Series
“Living The Life of Love In An Unloving World”
02/08 - What’s Love Got to Do With It? (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
02/15 - I Will Always Love You. (1 Corinthians 13:8-10)
02/22 - It’s the Greatest Love of All. (1 Corinthians 13:11-13)
Updates, Thoughts and More
I am proud to announce the birth of my 2 nd grandbaby, little Melody Diane Gilbert. She was 8lbs and 1oz and 20in long. Not that I am biased, but she is absolutely perfect in every way. Her mom is having some complications afterwards with her blood pressure so please continue to keep her in your prayers.
The chili cook off is set for February 15th after the 2nd service. The theme this year is love (Love of chili, that is.) We will have four different competitions going on that day. First, the one we are most familiar with is the church favorite. This is where everyone will be invited to vote for their favorite chili via putting their tickets in the corresponding jar. Now, in the past there have been some accusations of ticket stuffing in certain jars (not saying names but simply saying that I tried to do this and my jar didn’t get stuffed enough). We will also be having an award for the best decorated table. We will also have an award given by a three-judge panel on the best tasting chili (no ticket stuffing, only good old-fashioned bribes.) And finally, there will be an award for the spiciest chili. It’s going to be a blast. If you would like to sign up to be in the child cook off, contact the church office.
Okay, the Super Bowl is here! I am torn with this because I like both teams and they both have great redemption stories. I think that Seattle has the better roster and overall better team, but there is something about the way that the Patriots are playing. I love their coach. I would run through a wall for that guy. I am going with my gut on this one and I am picking the Patriots to win by a field goal.
Ash Wednesday is the beginning of Lent and will start our journey to the Passion of Jesus and the Joy of Easter morning. We will have our Ash Wednesday service on February 18th at 6pm in the Sanctuary.
This week’s Table Talk question will deal with the topic of Angels. What are angels, why do they exist, how are they different from demons, and so many more questions we will attempt to answer this upcoming Wednesday at 5 pm in E101. Come join us.
What’s Going On This Week
Sunday (02/08)
Worship Services - 9:00am & 10:30am
Volunteer Meeting - 3:00pm
Monday (02/09)
Stitching Angels - 1:30pm
Tuesday (02/10)
Men’s Prayer Breakfast - 7:30am
Bible Study - 10:00am
Wednesday (02/11)
Prayer Warriors - 9:00am
Sip And Share - 10:00am
Table Talk - 5:00pm
Youth and Kids - 5:00pm
Bell Choir - 6:00pm
Choir - 7:00pm
Thursday (02/12)
Psalms Bible Study - 9:00am
Joke of the Week
Love is patient… which is Bible code for “you’re going to need the Holy Spirit for this.
Memory Verse of the Week
“And now these three remain; faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
~1 Corinthians 13:13 (NIV84)
Quote of the Week
“Do not waste time bothering where you “love” your neighbor; act as if you did. As soon as we do this, we find one of the great secrets. When you are behaving as if you loved someone, you will presently come to love him.”
~C.S. Lewis
