Ch. 13 A Better Way

1 Corinthians 13. A Better Way. 

1. What is the basis of Chapter 13? What is it based on? Why does this matter?

   1. In Chapter 12 Paul delves into the topic of spiritual gifts, something that caused great division among the Corinthians. Many thought that the flashier gifts such as tongues and prophecy were for the more gifted Christians. 

      1. This is still seen today but differently depending on what church you go to. Often in America people view the gifts of knowledge and teaching as correlating to the more gifted Christians. This leads to people viewing pastors as super-Christians, with a chance to begin to idolize them. 

      2. Reformed and Baptist – gifts of knowledge, wisdom, and teaching. 

      3. Pentecostal – tongues, prophecy, healing, and miracles. 

      4. Lutherans – the sacraments. 

   2. In Chapter 13 Paul delves into the topic of love, more specifically unconditional love. He is not simply starting a new argument here but continuing this previous argument from Chapter 12 (remember that chapter divisions were added later). 

      1. Paul’s primary objective in Chapter 13 is to get the Corinthians to understand that no matter what your spiritual gifts or good works are, if they are used or performed without love for God and love for your fellow man, then they are worthless. 

      2. This also applies to anything you do. If you live without love then you are living a life that is pleasing to Satan, not God. 

2. What gifts have you noticed people tend to idolize? Are there any that you tend to idolize? Why do you think this is?

   1. I’ve noticed some friends who idolize the miraculous gifts. 

      1. Personally, I’m a cessationist or conservative continuationist at best. I don’t believe the miraculous gifts are still around, but I am open to the idea that the matter of spiritual gifts is different in other countries. Either way, such events require great discernment. 

   2. I’ve noticed I am more likely to idolize gifts of knowledge, teaching, and wisdom. I enjoy studying and learning challenging theological and philosophical topics and I enjoy challenging engineering concepts that force me to think critically, research, and work as a team with others to come to the best conclusion. 

      1. I think this comes from what church we grow up in and what our personality is like. Those who are more emotional tend to draw to gifts that will provide more of an experiential moment, those who are different may draw to gifts that provide insight. 

   3. Some care about who the best speaker is, who has the biggest crowds, most degrees, and so on.

3. How can we prevent this?

   1. Recognizing the weight of love compared to that of spiritual gifts and good works.  

4. What good is it to have gifts of the Spirit yet be without love? Verses 1-3. 

   1. None, in fact it is worse than not having them at all. 

   2. The gift of tongues enables the speaker to speak in different languages that they did not previously know. A tongue is a language. 

      1. The tongues of men are human languages. The tongues of angels are not as clear. They may be true heavenly languages that are at times participated in during their worship gatherings, or it may be a figure of speech Paul uses to make a larger point about love. 

         1. Whatever the answer may be, it would not be beneficial to speak in tongues without love, and furthermore it would also be detrimental to those around you. Noisy gongs and clanging symbols are utterly repulsive. 

   3. The gift of prophecy makes the speaker a mouthpiece for God; the gift of knowledge enables one to understand God’s Word and remember it far better; the gift of faith bolsters one’s trust in God to care for them and the world. 

      1. Paul uses hyperbole here to describe a level of giftedness that has never been seen. He isn’t saying that this could happen, but that even if it did then it would still not be of any worth if these gifts were used without love. 

      2. Furthermore, Paul describes the hypothetical Christian with these gifts yet without love as nothing, for they contribute nothing to the Church. We see the reference to Matthew 17:20 when Paul mentions a faith that can move mountains. Yet even that is nothing without love!

   4. To give away all one has, including their life, is to make the ultimate sacrifice. 

      1. At this point Paul moved from spiritual gifts to good works. The reference to Mark 10:17-22 shows the reality of most peoples’ feelings about giving away all they have. We don’t want to, it’s a major sacrifice. 

      2. Paul finishes this point by going to the most extreme example, dying as a martyr for Christ. He is not simply talking about someone who willingly burns themselves up to make a point, but one who refuses to reject faith in Christ even to escape the most painful death imaginable. 

         1. Even to the point of sacrificing one’s own life to not reject Christ, if this act is done out of anything but love for God then it leads to no gain. 

            1. A potential alternative reason could be for self-glorification (to appear more spiritual than other Christians). 

5. What is this love Paul describes? What makes it unconditional? Verses 4-7. 

   1. This is unconditional love, agapē (noun) or agapaó (verb) in Greek.

   2. Love is a condition of one’s heart that translates into action. You do what you do either because you love it, or you love what you will get because of it. This is why by nature all we do is sin (John 3:19, 1 John 2:15). 

   3. Even after being born again our flesh still clings on and there will be times when we must choose to love others even when our desire is to put ourselves first. Love is more than just a feeling and is more than just a choice; it’s both. 

   4. It is unconditional because it does not depend on the one or thing being loved, but on the commitment and faithfulness of the one loving.

TO BE CONTINUED :)