Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.06UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.05UNLIKELY
Fear
0.05UNLIKELY
Joy
0.71LIKELY
Sadness
0.13UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.82LIKELY
Confident
0UNLIKELY
Tentative
0.37UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.81LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.84LIKELY
Extraversion
0.19UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.53LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.44UNLIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Introduction
These words that were just read come after one of the most famous discussions of love ever.
As we have noted previously, this passage was not written about marital love, though it has application for that.
This passage was written to the church.
Paul is arguing that using a spiritual gift that is highly visible and life changing is nothing without love.
He has explained what love is and how love is supposed to operate, now he is going to explain why love is the more excellent way to live.
Love is permanent.
The passion of Paul for the church is that we would not waste our time pursuing the accolades and applause of men.
We have a higher calling.
We have an urgent task that we must never lose sight of.
I want to show you a video that discusses our urgent task.
VIDEO
It is our time.
It is time we stop wasting time pursuing things that don’t matter.
We have something far more important to pursue.
We pursue the advancement of the gospel.
However, the advancement of the gospel is not possible apart from an excellent life of love.
Here in chapter 13 Paul is calling us to live with excellence.
The excellent life is a life of love!
Principle:
To live with excellence, love is our most important priority.
Guidance:
The priority of love is revealed through the pursuit of three goals.
Outcome:
When we live with excellence, we love well and that love attracts people to Jesus.
Three goals we pursue as we live with excellence.
Goal #1…
1.
A Life Of Excellence Pursues Purpose vv.
8-10
Have you ever had a day where you wake up and just lay in bed for awhile?
The longer you lay there, the more you don’t want to move.
Recently I heard these called no bones days.
It’s like you have no bones, you just can’t get out of bed.
One of the things Jess and I have noticed is that when we don’t have a plan for the day, it tends to disappear.
To live lives of excellence we must have purpose.
This means that we need to pursue the things that matter most.
We need to pursue things that have eternal value.
One of the problems in the Corinthian church was that they were pursuing things that only mattered short term.
They wanted the recognition of men.
That is fleeting and temporary.
Paul’s encouragement to the Corinthian church and to us is to…
a. Find purpose in what is permanent v. 8
Love never fails.
What’s the next word?
“But” - this word introduces contrast.
Why is love the more excellent way?
Because love never fails!
And I can just hear the argument.
“But Paul, what about all these other awesome things?”
What about being able to speak in any language?
What about knowing the future?
What about being able to reveal the deep truths about God and His will?
About that.
Those things are temporary.
Prophesy, tongues, and knowledge all change.
Prophecy will fail, tongues will cease, knowledge will vanish away.
These three gifts have in common that they are revelatory.
All three of these were used by God to reveal Himself and His will.
Where do we turn now to learn about God and His will?
The Word of God.
Keep that in mind.
Let’s do some definition.
Prophesies.
We have looked at this before.
The idea is that of speaking from God.
Either in regards to the future or in regards to His will.
They will fail – καταργέω (katargeō) abolish; set aside; wipe out. to be inactivated v. — to be or become idle, inactive, inoperative, or useless.
Finite verb, future, passive, indicative, third person, plural.
They will fail – καταργέω (katargeō)
This Greek word is used for both the failure of prophecy and the vanishing of knowledge.
Knowledge refers to special revelation or insight from God.
Both of these will be brought to an end.
Tongues refers to the supernatural ability to speak in languages not previously known.
This ability will cease.
Cease – παύομαι (pauomai) cease; stop.
to end v. — to have an end, in a temporal, spatial, or quantitative sense; either spatial or metaphorical.
Finite verb, future, middle, indicative, third person, plural.
Cease – παύομαι (pauomai)
Tongues are going to gradually cease on their own.
Quote Dr. Christopher Cone.
“In 13:8, there are three revelatory sign gifts or functions (they are not specifically referred to as gifts in this context) mentioned: prophecy, tongues, and knowledge.
Prophecy and knowledge both end the same way: they are done away – prophecies, in the plural (καταργηθήσονται) and knowledge, in the singular (καταργηθήσεται).
The verb, katergeo (to put an end to or stop to) in both cases is passive voice, meaning that an outside force will end these abruptly.
Tongues, on the other hand, will cease (παύσονται).
This verb is in the middle voice, meaning that the subject is acting upon itself: tongues will cease themselves.
Tongues is the first of these three to go.
Remember the contrast: love never fails, but these other three will.
Verses 9-10 discuss a specific event that brings the “failing” or limitation of prophecy and knowledge, but by the time that event happens, tongues have already ceased themselves.
Tongues are the least significant of these three revelatory sign gifts or functions.
Remember that after the mentions of tongues in 1 Corinthians 12-14 tongues is never again mentioned during the remaining forty or so years of New Testament history – not once.”[2]
I have the entire article Dr. Cone wrote if anyone is interested.
There is a specific event that causes prophesy and knowledge to fail and vanish.
There is a very important point to be made here from the Greek words here.
Before Prophecy and knowledge are done away with tongues will have already ceased.
It is important for us to understand that tongues were designed to gradually fade.
Let’s ponder a couple of questions.
If tongues are a vital part of the Christian life for today why are the never mentioned in any other epistle?
Why is there this ringing silence on tongues before the completion of the New Testament canon?
The conclusion we draw is that tongues had already ceased!
If we spend all our time and energy on things like tongues, prophesy, and knowledge, we are missing what is most important!
Love first.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9