1 Corinthians 13

Highs and Lows

Recap

If you could sum up the whole Bible in one word what would it be? (LOVE)

Why is that?

Throughout the whole Bible, we see this theme of love emphasized and made to stand out. In the old testament, we see God always make a way and provide for the Israelites, despite how much they turned from him and rejected His ways.

We see this theme in the new testament where Jesus sums up the two greatest commandments, Love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself. We also see this theme on the cross, and in the teaching of the apostles after this.

Love is obviously important, but how does it apply with spiritual gifts?

Read 1 Corinthians 13: 1-3

1 Corinthians 13:1–3 CSB

1 If I speak human or angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I give away all my possessions, and if I give over my body in order to boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.

We can do a lot of good things through our service and spiritual gifts, but if it is not fueled by love, it is pointless. Everything we do, especially relating to spiritual gifts and service, has to be fueled by love to really be productive.

Why does love have to be our fuel or motivator?

(Service is a heart issue, just like the rest of our faith. Jesus always pointed to the heart when examining something. Just like he said it was not enough to “not sin” outwardly, you had to not sin inwardly. This applies to service also, you cant serve outwardly and not serve inwardly.)

What does true, Godly love look like? Describe it.

Read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 CSB

4 Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not arrogant, 5 is not rude, is not self-seeking, is not irritable, and does not keep a record of wrongs. 6 Love finds no joy in unrighteousness but rejoices in the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

This passage gives us an idea of what our love should look like to really serve in love. It’s not enough to want to be helpful and then not have these other characteristics, serving in true, Christ like love, means embodying all of these characteristics. In this list, we can see both character traits of Christ, as well as the fruit of the spirit. Why is that?

Galatians 5:22–23 CSB

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things.

As we increase our fruit of the spirit, we begin to look more like Christ.

Read 1 Cor 13:8-13

1 Corinthians 13:8–13 CSB

8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part, 10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will come to an end. 11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put aside childish things. 12 For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, as I am fully known. 13 Now these three remain: faith, hope, and love—but the greatest of these is love.

Verse 8 starts with love never ends. The word used here is agape, which means God’s love. This is literally an endless love that doesn’t ever run out.

Paul then counters this by saying that tongues, prophecy, and knowledge will all come to an end, Why is that?

Verse 9 and 10 answer this, we do all of these spiritual gifts with a partial understanding, or a limited amount, but when Jesus comes back, there will be no need for supernatural gifts in the natural world. Our whole world will be supernatural at that point, therefore there will be no more spiritual gifts. The partial spiritual world we experience will now be a full spiritual world.

Paul says we are just getting a glimpse of what our eternity looks like through spiritual gifts. It is like looking in a mirror, we can only see the things right in front of us, but not the whole picture. He says one day we will have the full picture and spiritual gifts will be no more, with the exception of love, faith, and hope, the greatest of these being love.