Paul’s prayer at the end of chapter 3 prepares the ground for the points he wants to go on to make in chapter 4. He prays for their love to increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else. Archbishop Michael Currey reminded us about the power of love at the recent royal wedding. ‘Love is not selfish or self-centred. Think and imagine a world where love is the way. Imagine our homes and families where love is the way. Imagine neighbourhoods and communities where love is the way. Imagine governments and nations where love is the way. Imagine business and commerce when love is the way. Imagine this tired old world when love is the way. When love is the way – unselfish, sacrificial, redemptive. When love is the way the earth will be a sanctuary.’ Powerful words. God is love. His love is made known through the community of the church. Paul prays for the church to be so full of love that it overflows.

Then, he turns to the issues of sex and money. He prays for them to be strengthened by the Spirit to live lives that are holy and blameless – lives set apart for Him. He turns to sexual immorality – using a Greek word: porneia, which is an all-inclusive word, referring to any sexual relationship outside of the marriage covenant. He calls for self-control and faithfulness in marriage. He warns them that their sexual conduct will one day be judged by Jesus.  Worth noting that Paul gave these commands to a first-century Roman culture that was marked by sexual immorality, added to by the immoral sexual practices of pagan temples. If we think that our culture is fallen then hear this description from the writer Demosthenes describing life in ancient Roman Empire: “We keep prostitutes for pleasure; we keep mistresses for the day to day needs of the body; we keep wives for the faithful guardianship of our homes.”

We are to take our standards of sexual morality from God and not from the culture. We are to offer a distinctive alternative. Christians are the new temple – one indwelt by the Spirit of God. We can be empowered to live differently.

In v:9-12 Paul turns his attention to the church as family. In particular applying love in a practical way by meeting the needs of one another financially. He tells them not to be overly inquisitive – or nosey (!) – prying unnecessarily into other’s business, and he encourages them to work for a living. He is speaking against a culture of dependency.  But, he also calls for them to practice love by being concerned for one another – and if that means financial support then to freely give it, just as they had to the Macedonian church.

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Ask the Father to fill you to overflowing with His love.