Thank you, Sherry. Alright, back to 1 Corinthians
13. Going back over my old notes,
we've looked at this together eight times since I've been here. Eight times. That's nearly one
a year. As well we should look at this
often. As important as this is. This is the chapter, as you know,
on love. The word charity is used here, and that's the way we read it, and the word is used appropriately because there is no love outside
of giving. That's what we use when we talk
about charity. We think of giving knowing. We
think of free giving. unconditional, what's the word? A gift that's not constrained
or out of duty, but a free gift. That's a good definition of love.
There is no real love outside of unconditional giving. of oneself and so on. And it's fitting, we've been
going through the Gospel of John, it's fitting that we come to
this because of how many times did our Lord tell us to love
one another. Isn't that fresh on your mind
that the Lord has been telling us over and over through the
Gospel of John concerning this thing of love. He said, this
is my command, love one another. So here we are, not by coincidence
or accident, but by providence. All right, now back in context. You've got to keep this in context. Some of you weren't here in the
Bible lesson, so you need to hear this especially. The apostle
Paul has been dealing with the subject of gifts to the Church,
how that God has given gifts to the Church. Look in chapter
12, verse 28. The whole chapter, chapter 12,
is dealing with gifts. And God has set some in the Church,
first apostles, prophets, teachers, and miracles, gifts of healings,
helps, governments, and diversities of languages. And we looked at that Sunday
and we noted that some people, the reason the Apostle was dealing
with them, is that the church at Corinth
there, a large church, very large and diverse, and God gave many
gifted people to that church who not only ministered there
in that church, but went out other places. And there were
many gifted preachers and so on. Some people were apparently acting
a little proud of it, that they'd done some little
preaching, or thought they had. Most just think they have. And
some people apparently felt inferior. There were some meek and lowly
people there who just sat and listened. And they felt a little
inferior to all these gifted people. So the Apostle lays that in the
dust. He lays his pride in the dust
in chapter 12. He said, everything is by God's
grace. Anybody can do anything, it's by God's grace. No reason
to be proud of anything. He exalts the humble people.
Those who felt inferior, he tells them all through chapter 12,
he says that nobody's inferior. We're all necessary. We're all
vital. Just because the toe is not the
eye doesn't mean you don't need it. And so he lays, he exalts the
lowly, and he abases the proud. He says, it's all a gift, it's
all by God's Spirit, nothing to be proud of. Now look down
at the end of chapter 13. He sums up what he's about to
say here with these words, verse 8. He says, now love never fails. All these things are going to
fail. Prophecy, preaching, it's going to cease. There will come
a time when there won't be any more preaching. At least men
aren't going to be doing it. We're going to hear real preaching
when the Son of God stands up. And they'll fail. Whether there
be languages, they'll cease. Whether there be knowledge, it
shall vanish away. And he says really all of our
knowledge, what we know, is just partial anyway. We're like babies.
We know in part, we preach in part, but when that which is
perfect, or rather he who is perfect, is come, then that which
is in part is all going to be done away with. He gives this
illustration, he says, when I was a child, and I speak as a child,
I understood as a child, I thought, I reasoned as a child, but when
I became a man, I realized I didn't know anything. I thought I'd
done something. I hadn't done anything. I thought
I'd said something. I was just babbling. He said,
and I put away, I just forgot about these childish things.
That's the context there. But now, look at verse 12, now
we see through a glass darkly, or in a riddle. People, when it comes right down
to it, most of what's going on is just a riddle to us. It's
a mystery to us. We don't know why God's doing it, except the
only way we can explain why God does what He's doing and what's
going to happen is for His glory. He's going to get glory out of
it. We don't know how, but he's going to do it. And what's going
to happen in the future? I don't know, but something is
going to glorify him. It's a riddle. I don't know what
the future holds for you and for me, but all we need to know
is who holds the future. Right? It's a riddle. That's what he's saying. And
the only answer we've got to it is, it's the Lord. Right? That's all the answer we need.
All right, read on now. He says, Now we see through a
glass darkly or dimly. It's a darkling veil. Remember
the song we sang through this darkling veil? Then face to face. Love that song. Face to face
with Christ my Savior. Face to face, when will it be? When with rapture I behold Him,
Jesus Christ, who died for me? Then face to face, now I know
in part. Keep reading. Then shall I know
even as I also am known. I'll know. He shows us that the root of
it all, the root of true religion, is not what we know, is not what
we do, is not what we can do. or have done. The root of true
religion has something to do with love. Love to God and love
to others. Our Lord even said one time,
the whole law is fulfilled in this, this one word. It's understood. The whole law
of God is understood in one word. Now, back to chapter 12, verse
31. We'll get into chapter 13, but
we've got to lead into it. Verse 31. He says, covet earnestly
the best gifts. Spiritual. He's talking about
spiritual gifts. Those are the best gifts. Not
a new tie or a new house, for that matter. But the best gifts,
true gifts, which are spiritual. And he was talking about those
things. Knowledge, understanding, and so forth. Helps. Alright? Covet those. But, he said, yet,
show I unto you a more excellent way. This is a more excellent
way. That's the title of this message,
Brother Sam. A more excellent way. A more
excellent way. The thing to be desired above
all else. more excellent way. All right?
Now, verse 1. He says, Though I speak with
the tongues or languages of men and of angels, and have not charity. Now, I'm going to substitute
the word love now. Though I speak with
the tongues or languages, and that's what tongues is, language,
of men and of angels, and have not love, I am become a sounding
brass or a tingling cymbal." Now, he had just been talking
about prophets and apostles and teachers, and this so applies
to me. And Paul says concerning himself,
if I may appear to be a great preacher, he says, or think so,
and have not love, If I don't have a true love, if my mind
and my heart is not in this thing for the glory of God, I might
as well stood up and tinkled a cymbal. If my mind and heart is not concerned
for the glory of God and out of true love for His truth, His
person, His Son, His people, out of a true love, that his
people know the truth, not just to collect a paycheck. No matter
how good I may sound, no matter what I may accomplish, I might
as well be the gong. He says. Mr. Sounding Brass, Mr. Bunyan's character in his book,
Mr. Sounding Brass. Many people,
many fellows love the forefront, love to be seen and heard. My preachers are a proud lot.
Just watch them on TV. They're a proud lot strutting
all over the place. Without a true love for God,
for God's glory and God's people, it's one thing to love to preach. It's quite another to love those
to whom you preach, and love that gospel and that God you
preach. I tell you what, if a man loves
the God he preaches, the true God, the true gospel, buddy,
he'll preach it no matter who's sitting there, too. He won't hold back. And also,
he'll do that out of love. He'll tell a man the truth, though
he knows that man's going to get mad at him. And that's love. It really is. That's love. You
tell your children the truth, don't you? Though they might despise you
for it. But you tell them the truth, why don't you love them?
So there's what he's saying. All right, verse 2. Though I
have the gift of prophecy, though I have the gift of preaching,
or an understanding of things, understand all mysteries and
all knowledge, Do I have scriptural understanding and discernment
and insight? And this is all a gift, because
it's a gift, a prophecy. It's all a gift, any understanding.
All knowledge, do I have all faith? Though I may have strong
faith, a man or a woman may seem to be just strong in the faith,
that's a gift. Faith's a gift. So that I can
remove mountains or get over mountainous problems and have
not love, I'm nothing. Without a true love
to God and God's people, I'm nothing. Now here's the sense
of it. No matter how knowledgeable someone
may seem to be, no matter how much someone may
know of the doctrines of grace, If they don't have the grace
of the doctrine, they're nothing, a big zero. And I know men like
this. I'm telling you, I know men who
can dissect the book of Romans carefully, knowledgeably, rightly. rightly dividing the word of
truth, but they don't have the grace of the doctrine, and they're
nothing. That's sad, isn't it? Knowledge
won't save you. Christ saves. And this is hypothetical,
anyway. You know, Paul's saying this
hypothetically. He said, and understand all mysteries? Huh? Anybody understand all mysteries? Do I have all knowledge? Huh? Though I think I do. Do I have
all faith? Does anybody have all faith?
No. No way. Impossible. But can you
have love, true love? Yes. You can. But you can have love. All right,
verse 3. And though I bestow all my goods
to feed the poor. You know, most humanitarian efforts,
most good deeds, most charitable acts, are done for personal recognition. Yes, they are. If we could see
the heart, people's heart, God does it. That's the reason he
says, that which is highly esteemed among men is an abomination to
God. Why? How can that be? Look at the charity, look at
the good works they're doing. God's looking at their motive,
and they're doing it to get a little recognition. You see it, it's a poor example,
but you see it. In the newspaper, if somebody
gives $5 to United Way, they'll get their picture in the paper
holding a check. So-and-so has given a check to
the developmental center of, you know, this multi-million
dollar corporation gave $103.48. That's what they needed to make
up their tax break, you know. And they had their picture. And
if we examine ourselves, we'd admit that most everything
we've ever done is in hopes that somebody would find out about
it. Huh? Now, I'm not saying all the way.
I'm really not, because God overrules. God sometimes actually—well,
God's people now are a different lot. They really are. And the
love of God has been shed abroad in my heart. The grace of Christ
reigns and rules. God's people do give out of a
heart of love. I'm not saying that God's people
don't do things sincerely and without hypocrisy. They do. But
the natural man doesn't. Most is to be seen. And let me
tell you this, though. Anything done outside of the
blood of Jesus Christ, God just doesn't recognize it at all.
He won't accept it. Anything. That's what Paul says
here. You know, the so-called Catholic
Church does so much charitable work and all this, like Mother
Teresa. Mother. That woman named Teresa. She ain't my mother. My mother's
named Doris. But that woman named Teresa,
all that she did, all her life, does it count for something for
God? Not a thing. Why? She didn't worship a true
and living God. Whose name did you see all over
the universe? Mother Teresa. She wouldn't let
anybody call her that if she knew the true God. If she had
a love for His glory, if she had a love for the people that
she so-called ministered to, she'd tell them, she'd preach
the gospel to them. not get all the credit. So that's
what he's saying. And though I give my body to
be burned, and some have gone to the stake, many have died
for their cause. Huh? Well, verse 4. Now he describes
true love. Here's the character of true
love. Verse 4. Love suffereth long. True love is patient with others.
Suffer, long-suffering, that's a good word, isn't it? Suffereth
long. Puts up with. Because you remember
yourself. You remember how God's put up
with you. How long-suffering He's been
to you. Kind. Love is kind. Love is tender. Love is compassionate. Kind.
That's a good word, isn't it? Be kind. tender-hearted, forgiving,
compassionate, kind, tender. We men ought to be gentle men. Gone should be the days of us
being macho men, hard, feeling and uncaring and insensitive. I know that's a popular word
in this. He's a sensitive man. I know it's a popular word, but
it's a good word. True men are sensitive men. They
aren't hard and unfeeling with a hard exterior that can't be
penetrated. No, they're kind. They're tender. They're compassionate. They're
feeling. Read on. At the end of this, I'm going
to apply all this to who this really applies to. Think about Christ. You want
to be a man and be like Jesus Christ. You talk about kind. You talk about sensitive, tender,
compassionate, condescending, sweet, a gentle man. Oh my. Kind. Envieth not. Love envieth
not. Read on. Love envieth not. Love is never jealous of the
one it loves. How can you be? Do you reckon
David and Karen are a little more comfortable right now than
you were when you were their age, Henry? Do you think they
have a little more of this world good and whatever? Perhaps. Have a little easier than you
all did? Do you envy that? Are you jealous of that? Goodness
gracious. You don't want it hard for them,
do you? You want them to have the best.
You want them to have all that they can have, don't you? That's
where we parents, it's a great fault with us parents, isn't
it? We want to lavish too much on our children when it might
not be good for them. But that's the way love is. Love
is extravagant. Not stingy. Oh no. Envieth not, never jealous, always
happy with the prosperity of others. Always happy with the
prosperity of others that they love. Always. Vaunteth not itself. Read on. Love vaunteth not itself. Or that is, seeketh no personal
recognition. Martin says he's not rash or
thinks without thinking. That's irrational. Vaulteth not
itself. Seeks no personal recognition.
He's not puffed up. Or love, that is, doesn't seek anything in return. Vaulteth not itself. Now, you
know what I did for you, don't you? Remember that. Doesn't bring
it up. Vaunteth not itself. Love vaunteth
not itself. It does it because it wants to.
It forgets about it and seeks other ways to keep doing it.
It's not puffed up. Never proud of what it's done.
It does it out of a desire. Out of love. Not puffed up. Never proud. Verse 5, love does
not behave itself unseemly. Unseemly is a good word there.
Love doesn't misbehave. Unseemly, that is true love. True love to God's people will
keep you from ever acting and speaking in an offensive way. Lashing out at somebody with
offensive words. True love. Well, you know, we
do it. We get in a fit in the flesh
at times. We might do it, but it doesn't
make it a habit of it. You know, I lash out at my daughter
every now and then because I'm an old sinner. Because I'm a
man. Because I'm getting the flesh. Because I forget how my Heavenly
Father treats me. And I lash out at her. But I
don't make a habit of it. I generally speak to you like
this, don't I, sweetie honey pumpkin doodles? Huh? Be careful that you don't speak
to your dog or your cat better than you do your own family.
I'm telling you the truth. We laugh, but are we guilty? If so, greet that old dog like,
you know, and then snap it twice. Ought not to be. That ain't love. We all need this, don't we? Not
misbehaving, not unseemly, lashing out, not making a habit of it.
Seeketh not her own. Read on. Love seeketh not her
own. Love thinks on things of others. Now here it is, so-called Christmas
time. And we're all going to get some
gifts, aren't we? Now tell me, what are you looking forward
to? Let me ask somebody in here.
Ed, there you are. What are you looking forward
to, Ed? Getting gifts from your children or having them open
the ones from you? Really, from your heart. Now,
what is it that you look forward to? What's going to give you
more pleasure? Getting that brown polka dot
tie that you'll never wear? Take it back, Kevin. Or giving them? what you picked
out out of love and so forth. You see that? Thinketh on others,
seeketh not her own. Love is not concern. Really now, if you didn't get
a thing, would it bother you? John, you act like you mean that. Would it? That's love. That's love. Do you see what
I'm saying? They never do anything for me.
Love doesn't think like that. Love, you know, chief of sinners
thinks like that. They never do anything for me,
and they ought not to ever do anything for me. I don't deserve
to have anything. If they did for me what I ought
to have coming to me, boy, they'd kick me out. That's what an old sinner ought
to say, not get his feelings hurt. Nobody ever invites me
over. They ought to just be amazed. I can't believe, honey, they
invited us over. What do they want us for? Right? Seeketh not her own. Is not easily
provoked. That goes hand in hand with just
what I was saying, isn't it? Not easily provoked. Not touchy,
not defensive. If someone's unintended offense could make you quit, and you
don't love Christ, you don't love the gospel, you don't know
God. I mean, we all do it. We all offend,
as James said, in many things, we all offend, don't we? And
it's unintended. If that could make us quit, then
we don't know God, don't know Christ, don't love the gospel,
don't love God's people. He that loveth not his brother,
how can he love God? That's what John said. Read on. Love thinketh no evil. Thinketh
no evil. This is what love said. He didn't
mean that. She didn't mean that. I know, you know, but they didn't
mean that. I'm not going to take it that
way. I can guarantee you that we're
wrong most of the time in our judgment of what way other people
have acted and so forth. We see somebody do something
or say something, we're wrong. We don't know the whole story.
Right? We don't know what went on that
morning or that night. It's probably not directed at
us. Probably not. Unless they're just an old... They didn't mean that. She didn't
mean that. She didn't speak to me of that. Well, she didn't
mean it. I mean, she just had a bad day. If I had to work at wherever,
if I had automotive fashioners, I'd do me and everyone else too. If I had to go to work at MW,
I'd snap at people too. I'd get snapped at all day myself.
Right? I didn't mean it. I had to drive
a truck all day and watch people pull out in front of me. It's a wonder you don't come
in the house just swinging. It's grace. It's what it is.
It's so. You're wrong. We're wrong most
of the time. Love doesn't think any evil. Rejoice, verse 6, rejoiceth
not in iniquity. Love rejoices not in iniquity,
but truth rejoices in the truth. In other words, love doesn't
Rejoice over the failures of others. You know, that's what gossip
is, really. That's what gossip is. Rejoicing over the failures
of others and kind of lifting ourselves up like we wouldn't
do that. You hear what so-and-so did?
I sure wouldn't do that. That's what gossip is. God hates
it. Proverbs speaks of it. And love
rejoiceth in the truth. That is, wants to get to the
bottom of things. Verse 7, beareth all things. You know, we ought to put up
with anything and everything. Those we love, we do. Our family,
we put up with everything. We put up with everything. We
put up with things from our, worse things from our own family.
then we'll endure from others. And that ought not to be. It
is not so with God's people. Now understand that when he says
these things, he's stating a fact, isn't he? He's not telling us, no, you
ought to be this way, although we should. I mean, we should.
What he's saying is, God's people are this way. If the love of
God is in their heart, they are this way. Huh? Isn't that what
he's saying? Did you see that, Sherry? Love
rejoiceth not in iniquity. It doesn't say you ought not
to. It shouldn't. But it's a fact. Do you see what I'm saying? And
we're not perfect. That's the reason he wrote it.
For our learning. That we'd remember. But the fact
is, now, Love beareth all thing. Love will put up with whatever, if you really love. Won't it? I've had all of him, I can stand.
Uh-uh, not if you love him. You'll stand all he gives you.
Right? That's what that says. Beareth all thing. Believeth
all thing. Believeth all thing. believes
the best, hopes for the best, endureth all things, in sickness
and sorrow. Oh, the marriage vows. They're
so ideal, aren't they? Well, they're true of God's people.
That's the reason I don't like to marry unbelievers. Boy, I can have two believers
make these vows because it's true. They both know and love
God and love Christ. They can say it before God and
men in sickness and sorrow, poverty and health, wealth. Why? Because verse 8, love never
fails. No, true love never fails. Never. I don't love you anymore. That's
not possible. That means God's a liar, because
he said love never failed. What the person ought to say
is, I never really loved you to begin with. I thought I did,
but I didn't. Love never failed. Somebody leaves Somebody loves
God, somebody loves Christ, somebody loves the gospel, they'll never
leave. It's impossible. Love never fails. Love won't quit. You love God's people, God's
family, and Christ said, if you love me, you love them. Can't have one without the other.
You'll never leave God's people. Never. No matter what happens. No matter who does what. It's
family. It's family. That's what the very word love
means. Familial love. Agape. Close intimate family affection. Never leave. Never. That's what
this reason John said. They went out from a Because
they were not of us. If they'd been of us, they no
doubt would have continued with us. Why? Well, they love God,
they love the gospel, and they're not going to get anywhere else.
And they love us. They love God's people. You don't
leave those you love. Love never fails. But then without
it from us, it might be made manifest. Everybody's not of
us. Everybody's not God's people. They speak with the tongue of
men of angels. They give this and they give that and they do
this, but they're not of us. Why? They left! Simple as that, isn't it? Then he says in verses 8 through
13, and we read these verses so I won't read them again. He
says, these things, these gifts, prophecies have failed, languages,
knowledge, and so forth, are all going to fail. Now abiding
in this life, in the flesh, faith, hope, love, these three. This is how we abide. This is
how we live. This is how we're going to abide. This is how we're going to make
it. Remember the message on the just
shall live by faith This is how we're going to live before God,
and this is how we're going to make it in this life, by faith.
Trust in God. How about it's faith? Faith's
going to, we're not going to, someday we're not going to live
by faith. We're going to see him. We're going to need faith. Faith
is believing what you don't see, who you don't see. Someday that's
going to give way to sight. Hope, now we hope. Oh, it's a good hope. It's a
sure hope. In a person, it's going to give
way to reality. It won't be hope, oh, I hope,
I hope, I hope we're going to say, it happened. Hope's going
to give way to happening. But love won't cease. Love never fails. See there? It never fails. It's
going to, I tell you what, it's going to increase. It's going
to increase. It's going to be perfect. I'm
going to love him. Well, I'm still not sure we're
going to love him like he loved us. We're going to love him from
a true heart. And isn't all of this fitting, and isn't this a description
of our Lord himself? That's the reason all the way
through the epistles he tells us, Husband, love your wives,
how? As Christ. Do this, as Christ. Consider everything as Christ.
Christ is long-suffering. Christ is kind, oh, so kind. He left his father's throne,
he left the riches and glory and honor and esteem of heaven
and came down here to be a nothing, that we through his poverty might
be made rich. Envieth not. Oh, he didn't envy
anything. Oh, vaunteth not himself. Oh,
he was meek and lowly, not puffed up, not proud of what he did. He did it out of love. Father's
proud. Death not behave himself unseemly,
Christ sought not his own. Oh, I'm so glad he's not easily
provoked. Aren't you? Oh, how I provoked him time and
time again. Thinketh no evil. People, there's nothing in me
to think good about, but yet he's going to say to his people
someday, Rejoices not in iniquity. Oh,
my. He grieves over my failures.
Rejoices in the truth. Oh, his joy is in making me his
child. Beareth all things. Oh, what
he bore. He bore my sin in his body on
a tree. Believeth all things by his faith. Hopeth all things. He lived by
faith. Endured all things for me. Christ never failed, never failed. He didn't fail, and he never
will fail. And so, the lesson is, no matter
who I am, what I do, it doesn't matter without God-given, Spirit-instilled
love. for Christ, the gospel of God's
people. How good I look and sound and
what I do and so forth, it's the heart and the motive that's
not right. I'm a nothing to nobody, and
I'll be proved to be in the end. But in God's people, I'm persuaded
of better things than you. Paul said in the Hebrew, I'm
persuaded by the things of you. Things that accompany salvation.
And these are the things that accompany salvation. Alright, let's stand. Our Lord, we thank you for this
book, this Word. We thank you that you are the
one chiefly described here. We are so glad and so thankful
to you that you are so long-suffering and kind and merciful and beareth
all things and do what you do, endure all things and never fail
us. We thank you. You who are love,
God is love. And Lord, we believe that you
have Indeed and true. Shed your love abroad in your
people. We see it, how imperfect it may
be and wanting, yet it is there and we thank you for it. It is
by grace, no doubt, because our flesh is so corrupt, our natures
are so vile, so selfish. Thank you for the grace and the
love you have put in your people. And Lord, we sure aren't proud
of it nor satisfied with it. And we ask for an increase, a
great increase, a double, triple portion of your Spirit in this
matter called love. We pray. Lord, thank you for
this church which you so evidently have done this too, but we need more. So keep us in your love, keep
us in your name, and instill your love in us. In Christ's
name we pray. Amen.