Lessons About Love: 1 Corinthians 13

You might have heard it first at church or in a wedding ceremony, but most people are familiar with the Love Chapter in the Bible—1 Corinthians 13. 

1 Corinthians 13 and especially vv. 4-7 are some of the most well-known verses of scripture in the Bible.  But Paul’s mood in writing 1 Corinthians 12-14 was not festive. In fact, the Corinth church was a bit of a mess. Things were very divisive because of disagreements about the gifts of the Spirit. 

Paul addressed these problems related to gifts of the Spirit in Chapters 12 and 14 of 1 Corinthians. The answer to the problems? Love. Agape love. Love is usually the first casualty when conflict arises. Their biggest struggle wasn’t spiritual, it was they didn’t know how to love each other. So, he reminds them in vv. 4-7:

Love is patient, love is kind.  It does not envy ,it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Here are some key lessons from 1 Corinthians 13:

1. Love is something we do. It is not a feeling.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is a list of actions—things we do.  Love is patient—means do that with people. 

Question: Is it even possible to love someone you don’t feel love towards? Jesus said to love a group of people we never feel love toward. Jesus said: Love your…?  Enemies. The greatest act of love is when you do something that puts someone else first when you don’t really want to.  That’s when I’m showing agape love. This isn’t a scented candle kind of love, this is real life tough. 

2. Love is not optional. 

Agape love is not extra credit from God’s point of view, it is the core of what it means to follow Jesus and the absence of it makes everything else we do for God useless! That is how important it is. 

John 13:34-35 tells us to love others how?  As I have loved you.  How will other people know you are a disciple of Jesus? If you love one another. No one will know you are a follower of Jesus without love. 

The primary way the world is going to know that we are truly followers of Jesus is how we love. Love is the music of heaven that captures the attention of the world. Love is the point. If we complain: Why doesn’t our culture understand Jesus? It’s not their dullness, it’s our lack of love. Point - God saying: You might be right on that issue but you aren’t loving toward those who are wrong on that issue. So all your views are going to amount to what? Nothing.

3. Love puts the needs of others first.

1 Corinthians 13 gives example after example for us to put people first as we show agape love.

Our ultimate example of agape love is Jesus. Jesus’ love for us shown on the cross put our needs and interests first. Ultimately, to live out agape love can’t be about us. 

 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love.

But the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13:13