If I give all I possess to the poor . . . but do not have love, I gain nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:3
After taking the pieces for my special-order table from the box and laying them out before me, I noticed something wasn’t quite right. The beautiful top for the table and other parts were accounted for, but it was missing one of the legs. Without all of the legs, I couldn’t assemble the table, rendering it useless.
It’s not just tables that are useless when missing one vital piece. In the book of 1 Corinthians, Paul reminded his readers that they were missing one essential component. The believers possessed many spiritual gifts but lacked love.
Using exaggerated language to emphasize his point, Paul wrote that even if his readers had all knowledge, if they gave away every single thing they owned, and even if they willingly suffered hardship, without the essential foundation of love, their actions would all amount to nothing (1 Corinthians 13:1–3). Paul encouraged them to always infuse their actions with love, movingly describing the beauty of a love that always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres (vv. 4–7).
As we use our spiritual gifts, perhaps to teach, encourage, or serve in our faith communities, remember that God’s design always calls for love. Otherwise, it’s like a table missing a leg. It can’t achieve the true purpose for which it was designed.
Read:1 Corinthians 13:1-7 (NIV)
13 1 If I speak in the tonguesa n of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecyo and can fathom all mysteriesp and all knowledge,q and if I have a faithr that can move mountains,s but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poort and give over my body to hardship that I may boast,b u but do not have love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient,v love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.w 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking,x it is not easily angered,y it keeps no record of wrongs.z 6 Love does not delight in evila but rejoices with the truth.b 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.c
INSIGHT
- When have you experienced love being a missing ingredient?
- What is an example where love was integral?
While English gives us only one word for love, the Greek language uses several words. Eros expresses romantic or sexual love; storgē speaks of family love, as in the love of a parent for a child; phileō describes brotherly or friendship love; and agapē describes the highest form of love, a love that sacrifices itself for the one loved. This is the word frequently used in the New Testament to describe God’s love, most notably in John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son.” The sacrifice of Christ was the ultimate expression of God’s self-sacrificial love for His lost creation. This is also the type of love on display in 1 Corinthians 13, leading Paul to affirm, “but the greatest of these is love” (v. 13).
PRAYER
Heavenly Father, it amazes me that You do everything in love. Help me learn to love like You. In Jesus name, I pray. Amen!!
Read: 1 Corinthians 13:1-7 (NIV) | Bible in a Year: Psalm 16-17 ; Acts 20:1-16
