June 24, 2026
June 21, 2026
June 21, 2026 “Maranatha: A Church That Loves the Lord”(1 Corinthians 16:22-24)
1 Corinthians 16:22-24 New International Version
22 If anyone does not love the Lord, let that person be cursed! Come, Lord[a]!
23 The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you.
24 My love to all of you in Christ Jesus. Amen.[b]
1 Corinthians 16:22 The Greek for Come, Lord reproduces an Aramaic expression (Marana tha) used by early Christians.1 Corinthians 16:24 Some manuscripts do not have Amen.
Marantha: A Church That Loves the Lord
1 Corinthians 16:22-24
The love for God by the church in Corinth had grown cold, and Paul focuses on this. The end of His letter.
1 Corinthians 16:22 ESV
[22] If anyone has no love for the Lord, let him be accursed. Our Lord, come!
When our love towards God grows cold, so does our love for others. We might do many things and do them well, but it is pointless if there is no love.
There is a thinking that if we attend church regularly, we will continue to love God. Paul warns us that church attendance, many good works and sacrifices does not amount to much if there is no love for God.
We should pray that we would love God, and our love would not grow cold. We call to God; we should not feel that it is a burden
Maranatha means, "Lord, come!" Paul says this to remind the church that our hope is in Jesus and he is coming back.
The Book of Revelation is not a scary letter. When we understand who the letter was written to and its purpose, we can be encouraged. Jesus coming should not be a burden.
Maranatha is not a call for desperation but of expectation. Because we love God, we cannot live carelessly. We have to live with hope, love and faith. We have to do all things in love.
When we love Jesus, our attitude changes towards everything. We can see people differently, even difficult people. We can see situations differently despite how bad they are. We can see our true motivation when we serve the church.
We can do all the good works and serve the church fervently, but without love for God, then we are not serving God. We are just keeping busy.
Although a church's love grows cold, it can always return to God. We need to ask if we love the Lord. Service can be joy again. The word becomes hope again. Our love for the congregation will grow again.
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