Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.  1 Corinthians 13:8-10

Love never fails! What a powerful statement by Paul with inspiration from the Holy Spirit. How many times in our lives have things failed? Have many times have people failed us? But true Love will never fail, you might say that sounds good but where is the proof. If you want evidence of Love never failing just look at the cross! God demonstrated his love towards us, even when we were still sinners , Christ died for You ! (Romans 5:8)

And even though we may fail Christ, Christ will never fail us! God said “I will never leave or forsake you” (Hebrews 13:5) God can’t fail you and never will, what a guarantee we can rely upon, Love never fails! As a human it’s hard to even fathom such a perfect love, this kind of love could never exist, right? Well this love exists because it’s the love of God demonstrated through Jesus Christ

Now for those who believe the gifts of the Holy Spirit has ceased, could these be scriptures to support their case? The Apostle Paul says “whether there be prophecies, they shall fail, whether there be tongues, they shall cease ” So what does this all mean? Well let’s keep things in context, we currently live in a fallen world, and even though this fallen world will fail us, God will never fail us! That’s what I believe is the main message!

Now back to the gifts of the Holy Spirit, do we truly believe the Holy Spirit is dead in our lives? The reality is none of us would be saved without the Holy Spirit, you can’t be Born Again without the Holy Spirit. You can’t be drawn to Christ, repent of your sin, or declare Jesus is Lord without the Holy Spirit. So it’s clear the Holy Spirit is still active and working in our lives!

With all that said, I believe the canon of scripture is closed, the 66 books are the inspired Word of God, there is no further revelation needed. However, do I believe we can have a “prophecy” about our personal lives or someone else’s, yes of course we do! So has prophecy ceased, not in a scriptural  sense. Do I believe the speaking of tongues has ceased? I know Born Again Christians who have or spoken in tongues, do I fully understand the purpose, no but I’m not the Holy Spirit.  

The Apostle Paul makes another strong statement “But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away” I believe Paul is talking about God’s Kingdom when we are in our glorified bodies with The Lord, all things will be perfect. Currently we live in a fallen world, so many things will fail us, however true Love will never fail us, because God is Love in Jesus Christ, Amen!

Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

We established from my earlier post that Love (Agape) is an action not just an emotion or feeling. Now Paul goes into further detail, what is the actions of Love. We got used to reading other English translations of this Chapter, sometimes it’s good to look at another translation like KJV, to get more context. 

Again we see the original Greek word Agape translated as Charity instead of the commonly translated Love, to demonstrate an action. Love is patient has become as popular as any bumper sticker, how about Charity suffereth long. Doesn’t sound as catchy, however gives some deeper context. Patience can be difficult, sometimes even suffering. Do we have the patience of Christ? 

When we see Paul describing Love here, as not envious, not puffed up, not proud, we get the message conveyed here, Love is self sacrificial, that’s a true understanding of Agape. Denying yourself for the greater good, where does that sound familiar? Oh yes that’s the gospel, the Love Christ has demonstrated to us on the cross (Romans 5:8)

And true Love seeks righteousness, rejoices not in iniquity, thinking not of evil, but rejoices in truth. The world has no true understanding of Love by these definitions. The world tells you Love is Love, but rejoices in its own iniquity, the world’s love thinks and celebrates its evil. The world’s love is self seeking and puffed up with pride. Satan’s Love is a false and deceptive Love, it’s not really Love at all, just perception

The Apostle Paul gives us a clear view and definition of what Love is by God’s standards. The world could never know or understand this love without the Holy Spirit, as God is Love. The world offers a false Love that is self worshiping and destructive.

True Love bears, believes, hopes, and endures all things!  True Love is only found through our Lord Jesus Christ, who demonstrated His Love for us on the cross, Amen!

Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:1-3

This Chapter, 1 Corinthians 13, is known as the “Love Chapter”. Now looking at the King James Version, you might say , well the word love doesn’t even appear here, let’s take a look at the original Greek. The Greek word is Agape that is typically translated as love and here in KJV as Charity, so which is right? Well they both are right, as Agape is a very deep and action, not just an emotion.

Here is commentary from gotquestions.org about the word Agape:

The Greek word agape is often translated “love” in the New Testament. How is “agape love” different from other types of love? The essence of agape love is goodwill, benevolence, and willful delight in the object of love. Unlike our English word love, agape is not used in the New Testament to refer to romantic or sexual love. Nor does it refer to close friendship or brotherly love, for which the Greek word philia is used. Agape love involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. It is distinguished from the other types of love by its lofty moral nature and strong character. Agape love is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13.

 It’s believed the KJV translated the word Agape to Charity, to demonstrate that Agape is not just a mere feeling but its a love with action. The English word Love today has become very watered down and cliche. People will tell each other they love them, sometimes just as a greeting. However Agape is a deep sacrificial love, it’s not just words spoken but also with action.

So going back to our scriptures today, I’m going to paraphrase what Paul says here “ Even if I speak with great words from people or angels, if I have no love , I am just creating loud noise” We see and know a lot of Christians who have good intentions preaching on the street or even sharing scriptures on social media, however they come across hostile or aggressive. Therefore nobody is hearing their message, as brother Fred said “We are not the Holy Spirit” , we can’t beat people over the head with the Bible and expect them to become saved. We need to connect with people, not just preach to them. This requires more work, which many don’t want to do.

Agape is an action love, it’s not just saying we love people, it’s actually demonstrating we love people. Just as Paul said “God demonstrated his own love towards us, while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8) We can have all the knowledge of the Bible, but if we don’t demonstrate the fruit of the Holy Spirit Love (Galatians 5), it’s all meaningless.

Paul goes on to say, I can have the gift of prophecy, understand all the mysteries and have all knowledge, I can even move mountains, however without love, I am nothing! Think about this! Before we puff ourselves up and pat ourselves on the back, are you doing the will of God? Did you show and demonstrate the grace and mercy that has been given to you by Jesus Christ? Remember we were all lost at one time, don’t be a stumbling block, be a vessel for the Holy Spirit!

Don’t be a noisy gong, connect with people through Love, then share the gospel message with them! Amen!