“Here for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be a burden, for I seek not what is yours but you. For children are not obligated to save up for their parents, but parents for their children. I will most gladly spend and be spent for your souls.”
2 Corinthians 12:14-15a ESV

Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13) And that is what Paul does for the church in Corinth and all the other churches He helped to plant and raise up. Slowly he died, little by little, pouring out his life in an effort to build them up. He dedicated years and years to them, his heart longing to see them grow and be fruitful in Christ.

He could have been doing other things, ‘safe’ things. Things that no one would have criticized him for, but instead, he laid down his life with every mile he traveled, with every letter he wrote, with every town he visited and with every church he helped plant. He invested himself in the Kingdom and in them, rather than focusing on this world and the temporary pleasures it could afford.

A man with Paul’s experience and intellect could have found a very lucrative position somewhere and made a nice living, relaxing and being served. But instead, because of the love of Christ in his heart, and because of his hope for redemption, he spent his life for the souls of others.

Church, this is not just a life pursuit for Paul, but a wake up call for all of us. If we want to claim to be in Christ, we must walk as He walked (1 John 2:6) and and the path He walked lead to Golgotha. Self-sacrifice is the theme of our life. Understanding that this life is temporary, and that it is to be spent in the care and upbringing of others for the sake of the Kingdom. This is what our Master taught us, and so this is what our life is to look like. Spending and being spent for others. So long as we have breath and time on this earth, lifting others up in Christ…this is what matters most, and this is our greatest outpouring of love.

Do you want to show the love of Christ to someone else? Then GoLove them by pouring your life out, investing in them, praying for them, loving on them, checking in on them, nurturing them, serving them and sharing Scripture with them for the building up of their hearts and for the building up of the body of Christ.

We must get our eyes off this world & focus on Christ. And we focus best on Christ when we serve others as He would, laying down our lives for our friends.