The Supremacy of Love in Spiritual Life

Paul has been dealing with the Corinthian Church and the Corinthian Christians were very enamored and active with spirit gifts and there was nothing wrong with that in the first chapter of First Corinthians Paul Praises them that they excel in spiritual gifts and this was a good thing but there was a priority Problem in the Corinthian Church it wasn't that they were pursuing spiritual gifts that wasn't the problem it's that they were pursuing spiritual gifts to the neglect of something greater to the neglect of a more excellent way. [00:01:22]

The Corinthian Christians were missing the motive of the gifts they were missing the goal of the gifts friends the gifts of the holy spirit are not goals in and of themselves nobody should be satisfied if had a meeting of believers they say we had a prophecy as if that was the goal we had a miracle as if that was the goal friends the goal is love and you can have all the Miracles you can have all the prophecies you can have all this or that if it doesn't result in love friends look at it please in verse two he says you're nothing it's nothing it's meaningless. [00:05:04]

Agape is a love that loves without changing it's a self-giving love that gives without demanding or expecting repayment it's a love so great that it can be given to the unloving and the unappealable unappealing I should say it's love that loves even when it's rejected, agape love loves and it gives because it wants to it doesn't demand or expect repayment from the love given it gives because it loves and it does not expect repayment for the love that's given. [00:08:37]

Paul says listen I could give away everything I have to feed the poor but if I don't have love it's nothing now that's what Jesus told the Rich Young Ruler to do right you want to follow me sell everything you have give it to the poor and come follow me the Rich Young Ruler didn't do it but you know friends even if he would have and if he didn't have love it would have profited him nothing then he says though I give my body to be burned if I don't have love it profits nothing. [00:11:16]

Love is so valuable love is so important that apart from it every other good thing is useless sometimes we make a great mistake of letting go of what is best for something that's good but not best the Corinthian Christians were enamored with gifts hey gifts are good but but they're not the best love is the best always keep that perspective. [00:15:34]

Love suffers long and is kind now the first thing Paul does is he lists two things that love is you see he's going to talk to us about Love by telling us what love is and what it isn't the first thing he does is he tells us What Love Is Love Is longsuffering It suffers long and love is kind I want you to see something at the very beginning he goes love is described by action words. [00:16:05]

Love does not envy love does not parade itself it is not puffed up does not behave rudely does not seek its own is not provoked thinks no evil does not rejoice in iniquity but rejoices in truth here are eight things that love is not the first thing it is not is that love does not envy friends Envy is one of the least productive and most damaging of all sins Envy accomplishes nothing except to hurt love keeps its distance from Envy love does not resent it when somebody else is promoted or blessed. [00:20:31]

Love Bears all things believes all things hopes all things endures all things Spurgeon calls these four virtues loves four sweet companions strong believing hopeful enduring and you know the words that drive me crazy in verse seven it's those two little words all things listen I would have HED Paul would have chosen any phrase but that all things do you know what that means do you know what it means in the original Greek it means means all things friends I can't get us out of this with some fancy word study. [00:31:12]

Love covers all things remember that 1 Peter 4:8 how about this one you got a problem with bitterness in your heart towards somebody then don't listen to 1 Peter 48 you got a problem with it don't hear me now as I read 1 Peter 48 listen above all things have fervent love for one another for love will cover a multitude of sins well you sinned against me but I love you it'll cover over. [00:33:42]

Love Never Fails but whether there are prophecies they will fail whether there are tongues they will cease whether there is knowledge it will vanish away for we know in part and we prophesy in part but when that which is perfect has come then that which is in part will be done away friends Love Never Fails it never lets you down therefore the gifts of the holy spirit are appropriate for now the gifts will pass away he says verse eight prophecies will fail tongues they will cease knowledge it will vanish away those things are temporary but love is permanent. [00:42:42]

The three great Pursuits of the Christian Life are not Miracles power and Gifts those are not the three great Pursuits of the Christian Life is that if that's where your Christian Life is focused you're missing the mark the three great Pursuits are faith hope and love and though the gifts are precious and though they're given by the Holy Spirit today they were never meant to be the focus of our Christian Life instead we pursue faith hope and love. [00:52:39]

One reason why love is the greatest is because it will continue and even grow in the Eternal State when you get to heaven you're not going to need Faith anymore friends when you get to heaven you're going to need hope anymore all your hopes are going to be fulfilled you don't need Faith you don't need hope but there's always going to be love between the Lord and among other believers and we're going to grow in that love throughout eternity. [00:54:25]