SUNDAY SERVICE
AUGUST 2ND 2026 (2nd Service)
YEAR OF EL-EZER
Minister: Rev. Dr. Sam Oye
Text: 1 Corinthians 13:1-8 (TPT)
Topic: LOVE UNLOCKED (LOVING DIFFERENT AND DIFFICULT PEOPLE)
“If I were to speak with eloquence in earth’s many languages, and in the heavenly tongues of angels, yet I didn’t express myself with love, my words would be reduced to the hollow sound of nothing more than a clanging cymbal. 2 And if I were to have the gift of prophecy with a profound understanding of God’s hidden secrets, and if I possessed unending supernatural knowledge, and if I had the greatest gift of faith that could move mountains, but have never learned to love, then I am nothing. 3 And if I were to be so generous as to give away everything I owned to feed the poor, and to offer my body to be burned as a martyr, without the pure motive of love, I would gain nothing of value. 4 Love is large and incredibly patient. Love is gentle and consistently kind to all. It refuses to be jealous when blessing comes to someone else. Love does not brag about one’s achievements nor inflate its own importance. 5 Love does not traffic in shame and disrespect, nor selfishly seek its own honor. Love is not easily irritated or quick to take offense. 6 Love joyfully celebrates honesty and finds no delight in what is wrong. 7 Love is a safe place of shelter, for it never stops believing the best for others. Love never takes failure as defeat, for it never gives up. 8 Love never stops loving. It extends beyond the gift of prophecy, which eventually fades away. It is more enduring than tongues, which will one day fall silent. Love remains long after words of knowledge are forgotten.”
Introduction: The Nature and Valuation of Divine Love
First Corinthians 13 presents a profound truth: human valuation is fundamentally different from heaven’s valuation. An individual may possess eloquence in heavenly tongues, profound supernatural insight into hidden mysteries, prophetic accuracy, or mountain-moving faith; yet, if they have not learned to love, their spiritual value before God remains zero. Heaven’s evaluation system measures love content—how much of God’s love operates in and through your life.
Love must be learned and practiced. Possessing the love of God is distinct from expressing it. Every genuine child of God has the love of God shed abroad in their heart by virtue of the Holy Spirit and Christ’s indwelling presence. However, just as a city dam can hold millions of gallons of water while homes remain dry due to locked or blocked pipelines, a believer can be full of divine love that remains trapped, locked, or inhibited from flowing outward.
Trapped Love and the Need to Unlock It
Love becomes locked or trapped through emotional trauma, fear of rejection, betrayal, and past heartbreaks. Individuals often build emotional walls to protect themselves, choosing to hold love hostage rather than risk pain. Like molten magma trapped under a hard rock, the affection and care remain present internally, but a hard exterior prevents its expression.
We live in a world filled with broken, difficult, and hurting humanity. Learning to unlock and express God’s love using divine wisdom is critical, because many people around you need to experience the tangible expression of your love before they can participate fully in your life and assignment.
Defining Genuine Kingdom Love
Biblical love is not defined by emotional feelings or self-gratification. Genuine kingdom love is characterized by distinct attributes:
1. Choosing Goodness over Selfishness: It means extending grace to the undeserving and offering kindness over revenge.
2. Responsibility for Others: Love makes the well-being and safety of another your deliberate responsibility.
3. A Sacred Devotion: True love is a wholehearted commitment. Offense or temporary friction cannot destroy it.
4. A High Duty: Kingdom love operates as a duty, independent of changing emotions or convenience. Like a soldier on guard duty in the rain, love remains steadfast because it is governed by divine instruction.
Loving Different and Difficult People
Navigating relationships requires learning how to love people who are temperamentally different, emotionally complex, or genuinely difficult. Difficult people exist everywhere; in marriages, families, workplaces, and organizations. They can be hard to communicate with, slow to apologize, or resistant to correction.
However, difficult people are neither useless nor devoid of value. Abigail managed a foolish husband like Nabal by quarantining his foolishness and using her wisdom to protect their household and enterprise. David learned extreme spiritual sensitivity, agility, and decision-making while serving under a difficult and hostile King Saul.
If you are dealing with difficult people, allow God’s love to give you the wisdom, patience, and boundaries needed to manage them effectively. Conversely, if you recognize that you are the difficult person causing pain or tension to others, allow the Holy Spirit to transform and renew your mind. Do not rely on fear or intimidating behavior; cultivate genuine kindness, honor, and Christlike humility.
