1 Corinthians 13:8-12
From Child to Man
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
Deuteronomy 4:29
Growing Faith
29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you seek him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Matthew 22:34-40
The Greatest Commandment
34Hearing that Jesus had silenced the Sadducees, the Pharisees got together. 35One of them, an expert in the law, tested him with this question:
36"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" 37Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' 38This is the first and greatest commandment. 39And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' 40All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments."
St. Paul tells us we are first children and then we are adults...We grow and we mature in life...We know more things are we age, than we did when we were children...When we are older we are more mature...We do not know as much about faith, when we are young and we know more about faith as we age...But for Paul's faith and our faith to grow we need to be grounded and be studying the teachings of the LORD and His Scripture...The more we know about our LORD the stronger our faith will be...Man is limited by being just a man...The more we know about love, the more we know about the LORD, because we know that God is love...We know only a few things now, but when we meet and are in the presence of the LORD, we will know much more about love...
Moses in Deuteronomy teaches us if we seek the LORD with all of our hearts and all our souls we will find Him...The Scripture uses the "all" your heart and "all" your soul...It takes time for this seeking to take place and the finding to happen... As we grow in life we will get to know the LORD more, as we do our seeking...Jesus reveals God's love...Jesus teaches us much about love and forgiveness (in the context of love)...Jesus furthers Moses writings, and includes the word love the LORD Your God with all your heart in your search, as well as using your mind (in this search)...This search for God and His Presence is as much about the search for love and understanding love and forgiveness of God and others, than it is our search for this entity of God (that we search for)...
If we want to lose weight we know that if we miss one meal, we will not lose much weight...If we start working out, and we work out just one time, we might not lose much weight, if that is the only time we work out...Nor, if our goal is to get in shape we cannot expect to work out one time then shower and expect to be in tip-top shape for the rest of our lives...A similar comparison may be made in our relationships...If we are married, or have children, or have a friendship -we cannot shut down the relationship...We cannot never see our spouse after today, or our child after today, or our friend after today and expect our relationship to sustain, let alone grow...
St. Paul says when we are perfect and when we are complete, we will know even more about God...To "know fully", may be the time to come, when we are in His Presence and we will are out of our hide and seek relationship with Him...We will certainly learn so much more, because we will be in that new place in heaven and in eternity...We we see our Father we will be completed and perfected...
To get to this completeness we need to grow...A growing faith requires this same deliberate, sustained effort, as well...A relationship with God requires this loving, nurturing, deliberate, sustained effort also...