In the name of Jesus, who loves you more
than you can imagine, dear fellow redeemed,
Just
by a show of hands, I’m curious to see how many of you had at least part of
this text read at your wedding? I’m just impressed that any of you remember
anything about your wedding service—let alone one of the readings.
This
is easily one of the most requested texts at weddings because it has such a
good description of what love does. That’s really a good thing because marriage
isn’t going to work if you’re not patient and kind. It doesn’t work if you envy
or boast. It certainly won’t work if constantly insist on your own way or keep
a record of wrong.
However,
you will notice that not once in this text is marriage mentioned. Neither are
husbands or wives. Let’s remember for a moment the audience who first received
this letter: the Christian Church at Corinth. We’re jumping in here at the end
of the letter, but Paul gives us a few clues to discover what he’s been talking
to them about for twelve chapters.
This
was a divided congregation. They were puffed up for all sorts of reasons;
people who spoke in tongues thought they were better than everyone else, eloquent
preachers boasted of incredible prophetic powers, there were people divided
over sex, sacrifices, and in general, people just didn’t like each other.
That’s
the problem Paul is addressing here. What does it matter if you speak in
tongues if you aren’t using your words to build people up? What does it matter
if you have knowledge if you lord it over people? What does it matter of you
have faith that moves mountains, but you won’t lift a finger to help your
neighbor? What does it matter if you give away everything you have—even your
body—if you don’t love? None of this matters with love. Without love we are
just a clashing gong or clanging symbols. We are no better than nails on a chalkboard.
So
here’s what we can infer: the Corinthians weren’t kind, they were envious and
boastful, they were arrogant and rude, they insisted on their own way, they
were irritable and resentful, they rejoiced over wrong doing and gossip. They
would not bear with one another, trust each other, hope for the best from each
other, or endure with each other.
And
neither do you. Look at yourself against this list. Are you any different? If
you wonder, ask your husband or your wife. Ask your kids or your parents. Ask
your coworkers or neighbors.
You’re
too afraid to ask, aren’t you? I know I am. That’s because I know what the
answer would be. Put my name in the blank instead of the word “love” and you
would quite often find a list of lies. Quite often I’m not patient or kind, I
envy and boast. I could go on. The same is true for you, isn’t it?
God
has put us in places where all we have to do is love each other—to just for a
second think about someone other than ourselves. But we can’t do it, can we? The
standard is too high. This chapter would separate us not only from our
neighbor, but also from God. That’s what we should be truly worried about. God made
those other creatures we’ve to whom we’ve been unloving. When we are unloving
to other people—who are made in God’s image—we’ve been unloving to God.
The
good news is that God is not unloving towards us. Go back to those verses about
love and put Jesus name in place of the word “love”. What do you get then?
Jesus
is patient and kind. That’s certainly true. Jesus does not envy or boast. He
doesn’t have to envy anything because it all belongs to Him in the first place.
But He didn’t come into the world boasting; instead He came in humility and
meekness.
Jesus is not arrogant
or rude. Each time someone came to Jesus in faith, He would listen to them—even
if He tested them first. Jesus welcomed children, lepers, the blind, the lame,
and the dead. He helped them all given them blessing, healing, and life.
Jesus did not insist on
His own way. Instead He let them lead Him to the cross. In injustice and
cruelty He was lead away. “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was
crushed for our iniquities; the chastisement that brought us peace was upon Him,
and by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5)
Jesus was not irritable
or resentful—that means He doesn’t keep a record of wrong. That’s the beauty of
the Gospel right there! God doesn’t keep a record of your sins! Here’s what
Psalm 103 says about God’s record keeping:
“He
does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our
iniquities. For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his
steadfast love toward those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west,
so far does he remove our transgressions from us.” (Psalms 103:10-12)
Jesus does not rejoice
in wrong doing but rejoices in the truth. God was so moved by our sinful
condition that He sent His only Son into the World. Not only does He rejoice in
the truth—He is the way the truth and life—no one comes to the Father but by
Him.
Jesus bears all our
troubles. Jesus is trustworthy in all things. Jesus gives us hope in all
things. Jesus helps us to endure all things. Jesus’ love never ends.
In
verse 8 Paul is leading into what he means when by love not ending. Prophecies,
tongues, knowledge, are all passing away. They are passing away because
something far more awesome is coming. It’s going to be like a child growing up.
It’s going to be like looking in a modern mirror instead of an ancient mirror—which
was nothing more than a polished piece of metal.
What
is this he’s talking about? It’s sort of cryptic stuff. To see what he means,
look ahead two chapters to 1 Corinthians 15. That chapter is all about Jesus’
resurrection and our resurrection!
Paul
says, “So now faith hope and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these
is love.” Faith and hope are pretty great, what makes love better? Again the
answer has to do with 1 Corinthians 15 and Jesus’ resurrection.
Think
about someone you know and love who has died and is now with the Lord. Think of
how their relationship with God changed once they died. It didn’t get worse it
got better! Do the people in heaven need faith anymore? Do they need hope
anymore?
Let’s
think for a moment about what faith and hope actually are. Faith is the
evidence of things that are unseen. The Holy Spirit creates faith through God’s
Word—given in baptism and as the Word is shared in all sorts of different ways.
By faith we trust that what Jesus did, He did for us. Peter says in the first
chapter of his first book,
“Though
you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe
in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,
obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.” (1 Peter
1:8-9)
Hope
works much the same way. Hope is the confidence that what we’ve been promised
is actually going to happen. Paul says in Romans chapter 8: “For in this hope
we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he
sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans
8:24-25) Our hope, as we confessed in the Creed is “the resurrection of the body
and the life everlasting.”
Faith
and hope are wonderful gifts that God has given us for this time until Jesus
returns. But when we are with Jesus, we won’t need faith anymore. Instead we
will see Jesus. The things we have believed in will be revealed. When we see
Jesus we won’t need hope anymore. The things we have hoped for will have
already happened.
But
love will remain. When we are with Jesus there will be nothing but love! We
will have God’s love for us. We will love God perfectly. We will love other people
perfectly.
So
since this going to happen in the future, why don’t we start practicing now?
Just today, God is going to give you numerous opportunities to be patient and
kind. He’s going give you opportunities to forgive, build up, and rejoice with
other people. Are you ready to see them when they come? Are you ready to do
them when you need to? By God’s grace you are. He will certainly help you do
it.
Amen.
