Love suffereth long and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not herself, is not puffed up, doth not behave herself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; rejoiceth not in iniquity, but in the truth; beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, and endureth all things.
Love never faileth; but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail, and whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away, for now we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part will be done away; for now we see through a glass darkly, but then face to face. Now we know in part; but then we shall know even as we are known; and now abideth Faith, Hope, and Love, but the greatest of these is Love.
If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and His love is perfected in us. God is love, and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God and God in him; but if a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he prevaricates, for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? And this commandment have we from Him, that he who loveth God love his brother also.
If there be therefore any consolation in Christ, if any comfort in love, if any fellowship in spirit, look not every man on his own things but also on the things of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who made himself of no reputation and took upon himself the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of man.
And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even the death upon the cross. Wherefore God hath highly exalted him and given him a name that is above every name; that at the name of Christ Jesus every knee should bow, and that every tongue should confess that Christ Jesus is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
My dear sisters and brothers, let us strive to follow the example of Christ and live up to His definition of greatness, namely, He who would be the greatest among you, let him be the servant of all.
Loving, self-forgetting service to others is the shortest, the safest, and the most joyful road to God. The recognition of the fundamental unity of each with all, the fellowship of the spirit, is the realization of God. To reach that realization let us endeavor each day to forget the often unprepossessing exteriors of our brothers and seek to serve the divine essence hidden within, which is the basis of fellowship.
We will now enter the silence together and concentrate on SERVICE for a few moments.