MODERN LOVE (PART 2)
(Love Like That - February 19, 2023)
Series Big Idea: "When our relationship with God and others is right, the Church can be all God intended it to be"
Sermon Big Idea: “Selfless love is a priority for every Christian"
Key Scripture (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
I asked you a question last week. “How do we, as Christians, have God honoring relationships in this 21st century world?” How does the love of God influence the way we respond to people and the way we treat people in everyday life situations? Our text again today is from 1 Corinthians 13.
Most scholars believe the Apostle Paul founded the church in Corinth during his second missionary journey (Acts 18:1). Corinth was ideally located just West of a place called Isthmus. Isthmus is a tract of land that joined Northern and Southern Greece. In 44 BC Julius Caesar planted a Roman colony in Corinth which had laid dormant for over 100 years since being destroyed by the Romans for insurrection. The people who came to live in this city were known for their wealth, extravagance, and flamboyant lifestyle.
(1 Corinthians 13:4-7)
4 Love is patient, love is kind. Love does not envy, is not boastful, is not conceited, 5 does not act improperly, is not selfish, is not provoked, 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.
The wealthy who were coming to live in Corinth didn’t live with a very ridged structure between classes of people. In most cultures there is the rich and the poor. But there is no room to move up or down. If you are rich, you stay rich and if you are poor, you stay poor. That was not the case in Corinth. There was the possibility to move from the poor to the rich class.
Because of this, Corinth became incredibly individualistic and competitive. So, the only way for you to get ahead was to stay a step in front of the person behind you. It was a dog-eat-dog society. Now, this system of ethics was spilling over into the church Paul had planted here. The church became just another place to do the same thing the city was doing. It was probably difficult to see the difference between the church and the world.
Because of this problem, a delegation from the household of Chloe (1 Corinthians 1:11) questioned Paul on what should be done. In this letter Paul addresses many of the problems and situations that were happening at Corinth. These problems were not doctrinal in nature, they were relational.
There were spiritual gifts in Corinth (1:7), and even right doctrine (11:2), but there was no love. This made people fight and show how selfish and proud they were, especially when it came to spiritual gifts (12:14–31).1 In the comments that came before (1–3), the focus was on how empty ministry is when love isn't there.2 In these verses (4-7), what love does is used to describe how full it is. Love is a verb, not an idea. Love is kind and generous, and it is patient with other people. Negatively, love never envies, brags, or is arrogant, because those things are the opposite of serving others. Love isn’t expecting anything in return. Love is never rude or bossy. It doesn't care if someone hurts its feelings, and it doesn't take pleasure in the sins of others, even those of its enemies. On the upside again, love is always looking for the truth. In God's righteous and gracious will for "all things," love protects, believes, hopes, and endures what others reject.
Conclusion:
After talking about how love is the right choice (vv. 1–3) and how it is perfect (vv. 4–7), Paul talked about how it lasts (vv. 8–13). Love never gives up, which means it will never end. Positively put, it will last forever. The spiritual gifts are not like this. Some of the gifts were foundational and confirming, like prophecies and knowledge (Ephesians 2:20) (e.g., tongues; cf. 2 Corinthians 12:12; Hebrews 2:4) Every gift helps bring the church to maturity in some way. Some gifts, like prophecy, knowledge, and tongues, were active in the early years of the Church Age, while others will be active until the church is perfected. When that level of perfection is reached, the gifts will have done their job and will no longer be needed. This won't happen to love.
8 Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for languages, 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 indistinctly, 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.
Pastor Beaver's thoughts and ideas are inspired by:
Holman Christian Standard Bible
English Standard Version Bible
King James Version Bible
Christian Standard Bible
Blomberg, Craig. 1 Corinthians. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1994.
Vaughan, Curtis, and Thomas D. Lea. 1 Corinthians. Founders Study Guide Commentary. Cape Coral, FL: Founders Press, 2002.
Taylor, Mark. 1 Corinthians. Edited by E. Ray Clendenen. Vol. 28. The New American Commentary. Nashville, TN: B&H Publishing Group, 2014.
Cole, Steven J. “Lesson 5: What Love Looks Like (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).” In Christian Family Living. Steven J. Cole Commentary Series. Dallas: Galaxie Software, 2017.
Vang, Preben. 1 Corinthians. Edited by Mark L. Strauss. Teach the Text Commentary Series. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2014.
Baker, William, Ralph P. Martin, and Carl N. Toney. Cornerstone Biblical Commentary: 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians. Vol. 15. Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2009.
Souter, Alexander. A Pocket Lexicon to the Greek New Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1917.
WORDsearch. Adult Questions for LESSONmaker. WORDsearch, n.d.
Walvoord, John F., and Roy B. Zuck, Dallas Theological Seminary. The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985.
Richards, Lawrence O. The Bible Reader’s Companion. Electronic ed. Wheaton: Victor Books, 1991.
Jamieson, Robert, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997.
Blum, Edwin A., and Trevin Wax, eds. CSB Study Bible: Notes. Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017.
WORDsearch. Adult Questions for LESSONmaker. WORDsearch, n.d.
Barry, John D., Douglas Mangum, Derek R. Brown, Michael S. Heiser, Miles Custis, Elliot Ritzema, Matthew M. Whitehead, Michael R. Grigoni, and David Bomar. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012, 2016.
Ciampa, Roy E., and Brian S. Rosner. The First Letter to the Corinthians. The Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2010.
Dockery, David S., ed. Holman Concise Bible Commentary. Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1998.
Water, Mark. Key Word Commentary: Thoughts on Every Chapter of the Bible. AMG Publishers, 2003.
Brannan, Rick, and Israel Loken. The Lexham Textual Notes on the Bible. Lexham Bible Reference Series. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014.
MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Bible Handbook. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003.
Stanley, Charles F. The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible: New King James Version. Nashville, TN: Nelson Bibles, 2005.
MacArthur, John F., Jr. The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006.
Radmacher, Earl D., Ronald Barclay Allen, and H. Wayne House. Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Commentary. Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers, 1999.
Smith, Jerome H. The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge: The Most Complete Listing of Cross References Available Anywhere- Every Verse, Every Theme, Every Important Word. Nashville TN: Thomas Nelson, 1992.
Brooks, Keith. Summarized Bible: Complete Summary of the New Testament. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2009.
Hughes, Robert B., and J. Carl Laney. Tyndale Concise Bible Commentary. The Tyndale Reference Library. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 2001.
Willmington, H. L. The Outline Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999.
Keener, Craig S. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.
Jamieson, Robert, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible. Vol. 2. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997.
Brown, Francis, Samuel Rolles Driver, and Charles Augustus Briggs. Enhanced Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1977.
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