WITHOUT LOVE

TEXT: Corinthians 12:31-13:3

I.          PAUL SHOWS THE IMPORTANCE OF LOVE IN SERVING GOD Verse 31,

A.       In The First Phrase Of Verse 31 We See Paul's Disclosure

"But covet earnestly the best gifts."

Two things are to be noticed in the development of spiritual gifts:

1.      First, there is cultivation. Now, we already know from First Corinthians 12.7 that every single Christian has at least one spiritual gift. And for that to be true the gifts must be given at the time of salvation, or else that verse would not be true in the case of every believer. And there is overwhelming evidence to conclude that you do not get more spiritual gifts later on.

2.      Then what does Paul refer to when he urges his readers to "covet earnestly the best gifts?" It needs but a little explanation.

3.      Folks, God does not inform you what spiritual gifts He has given to you when you trusted Christ. His plan is for you to serve Him in various ministries, to study the Word of God, to seek His leading in your life, so that you will begin to discover the gift or gifts that you possess.

4.      What I'm talking about will necessarily include some experimentation. Being a bus helper for a while, asking to help out in Sunday School, serving as an usher. You see, you'll never know that you're a this or a that until you try your hand at it. But some people will never know what their spiritual gifts are because they are afraid of failure so much, they won't try anything new. Too bad.

5.      Now, the reason this kind of cultivation of gifts is necessary is because so many spiritual gifts require a considerable amount of spiritual maturity or Bible knowledge before they can be properly used. For example: A person may not realize for a couple of years that he has the gift of teaching. Why? He has not learned enough of God's Word to properly exercise that gift.

6.      That's the first thing to notice. The second thing to notice in this verse is quality. Paul makes reference, here, to "the best gifts." That he makes reference to "the best gifts" means that there are best gifts. That means some spiritual gifts are better than others. They are more useful and more productive.

7.      What you and I need to do is realize which ones are the best gifts, Biblically. Unfortunately for our Pentecostal friends, the gift of tongues always comes out on the bottom of every list and comparison of spiritual gifts that Paul makes. That means, and there will be more evidence of this in the next chapter, every other spiritual gift given to Christians is superior, is more productive, is more useful, than the gift of tongues.

8.      So it's the cultivation of gifts and the various qualities of gifts that Paul discloses.

B.        Now Notice The Second Phrase Of Verse 31. This Is Paul's Direction.

"and yet shew I unto you a more excellent way."

1.    Quite obviously from the Corinthian's carnality, it should not surprise us that they were off track in the area of spiritual gifts. According to First Corinthians 12.1 they were very ignorant in this area. So Paul seeks to remedy that problem by providing them with some direction.

2.  His direction, first, involves revealing. That's what the word "shew" means. Though spiritual gifts are nice and some people spend a great deal of time dealing with them, there is something that Paul wants to reveal to these Christians he loves so deeply.

3.  His direction, next, involves realizing. The word "way" refers to a path or a way of life. The word "excellent" is a word which implies that what Paul is about to deal with is far and away superior to even the best of the spiritual gifts.

II.       THE IMPACT OF LOVE ON SERVING GOD IS SHOWN IN THE NEXT THREE VERSES

To show the impact of love, Paul shows what happens when love is missing.

A.       In, With Love Missing, Notice What You Are v 13.1

1.      Let me make some comments and then we'll try to agree on what Paul is saying here.

2.      The word "though" establishes a condition. It's almost like Paul saying, "Let's just suppose, for instance, that I speak with tongues of men and angels." He's setting up a hypothetical situation.

3.      Now notice the word "tongues." This word is used by Paul to refer to languages.

4.      "Charity" simply means love. Not sexual or erotic love.

5.      "Sounding brass" and "tinkling cymbal" refer to noise. It's the kind of harsh noise that's made by clanging metal objects together.

6.      Okay, what does Paul mean in this verse? He is saying that no matter how eloquent your speech happens to be, if you speak not from a heart of love you have become only a maker of noise. That's all you are...a maker of noise.

7.      You can even talk angel talk, which has always been Hebrew or Greek in the Word of God, by the way, and the effect of your great speech, without love, is to leave you a maker of noise. That's all you are without love.

8.      Have you ever heard the hollow words of someone who stood before you without love? Then you know what I mean. Though his or her words are nicely spoken and have wonderful content, you don't want to hear anything from someone you don't think loves you, do you? Of course not.

B.        With Love Missing, Notice What You're Worth V 2

1.      You may be a vast repository of prophetic insight and comprehension of the things of the Word and of the future.

2.      You may have the consummate understanding of those things which were once hidden in ages past but are now revealed, called mysteries. Know all of the implications and ramifications of theology.

3.      Now listen to this: You may even have a great warehouse of faith. But if you have not the love to which Paul is referring, you are worthless to the cause of Christ.

4.      Now understand that you aren't necessarily a worthless human being without love, but you surely are worthless insofar as the beneficial effects you produce are concerned.

5.      You can know to love someone. But knowing to love them doesn't help them nearly so much as actually loving them.

6.      Then start majoring on loving people. If you feel like you're worth nothing now, maybe it's because you're not worth anything. Begin serving God with real love for others and you'll be worth a great deal.

C.       With Love Missing, Notice What You Benefit V. 3

1.      Paul is talking about real sacrifice here. This is ultimate sacrifice. This is also a verse that religious liberals and army generals don't like very much.

2.      What good does it do for a young soldier boy to give his life for his country without the motive of love? No good. That's why, in the Old Testament, God didn't want anyone in a fight who didn't want to fight. Only volunteers.

CONCLUSION: This evening we have seen how critically important love is to the cause of Christ. And though spiritual gifts are important, it's this thing called love which is vital, which is indispensable, which cannot be substituted. It is the one ingredient in the recipe which cannot be eliminated.

Tired of feeling utterly worthless? You probably feel that way because you are worthless. But you don't have to be worthless to the cause of Christ. By being a lover of the brethren and a lover of the lost you can become a vital cog in the machinery, an important link in the chain. Only then will you begin to benefit from giving of yourself.

How does one going about doing this? Turn to Galatians 5.22: "But the fruit of the Spirit is love." Real love is a by product of the unencumbered presence of the Holy Spirit.

If you are a Christian and you don't have love, there's a sin problem that is grieving and quenching the Spirit of God. Deal with that and He will give you love.