Love Always
Liz’s band is going to play for Youth Fest—unless all their arguing destroys the band first!
Before You ListenLet's Get Started
Theme: Learning selflessness.
1. 1 Corinthians 13:7 gives us a lot of words about love. What does LOVE mean? In 1 Corinthians 13 Paul lays out clearly what love is and is not. Love is NOT: envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, easily angered, rejoicing in evil. Love IS: patient, kind, forgets wrongs, rejoices in truth, protects, trusts, hopes, perseveres.
Who in your life do you trust to protect you? Who will never let you down? Who always hopes for the best for you? Is there one person? Are there many people?
2. Jesus is the best model of love. Philippians 2:5-8 says “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:” He is God, and he became a person to die for you! As you listen to today’s episode, think about whether you are willing to make even small sacrifices for others.
After you listen
Memory Verse
“[Love] always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres”
Quiz
A: Because of all the arguing, they leave Liz and the band.
Reflect
In today’s episode, the band members had to learn to put their own interests aside and show God’s love to others. In Acts 5:17-42, the high priest in Jerusalem threw the disciples in jail for preaching about Jesus. During the night, an angel helped the disciples escape and told them to go right back to preaching. It wasn’t in the disciples’ best interests to obey—they might be thrown right back into jail, or they might even be killed!
But the disciples weren’t worried about themselves. They only wanted to share the good news of Jesus with the people. They trusted God to protect them, so they kept sharing his love with those in the city. “Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah” (Acts 5:42). When you love others, you can put some of your own needs aside and model God’s sacrificial love.
Read more about people who put others’ needs before their own in Ruth 1:15-18, Hebrews 11:24-26, and Acts 4:32-35.
Challenge
“Let us not love with words or tongue, but with actions and in truth” (1 John 3:18).
Think of something you enjoy doing, like watching TV, or reading a book, or playing a video game. Try sacrificing something you enjoy to spend time with someone else. Play a game or read a story with a younger brother or sister. Help your dad make dinner. Do homework with a friend. Fold a load of laundry with your mom. What other ideas can you come up with?
