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Texts -- 1 Corinthians 13:2-13 (NET)

Context
13:2 And if I have prophecy , and know all mysteries and all knowledge , and if I have all faith so that I can remove mountains , but do not have love , I am nothing . 13:3 If I give away everything I own , and if I give over my body in order to boast , but do not have love , I receive no benefit . 13:4 Love is patient , love is kind , it is not envious . Love does not brag , it is not puffed up . 13:5 It is not rude , it is not self-serving , it is not easily angered or resentful . 13:6 It is not glad about injustice , but rejoices in the truth . 13:7 It bears all things , believes all things , hopes all things , endures all things . 13:8 Love never ends . But if there are prophecies , they will be set aside ; if there are tongues , they will cease ; if there is knowledge , it will be set aside . 13:9 For we know in part , and we prophesy in part , 13:10 but when what is perfect comes , the partial will be set aside . 13:11 When I was a child , I talked like a child , I thought like a child , I reasoned like a child . But when I became an adult , I set aside childish ways. 13:12 For now we see in a mirror indirectly , but then we will see face to face . Now I know in part , but then I will know fully , just as I have been fully known . 13:13 And now these three remain : faith , hope , and love . But the greatest of these is love .

Pericope

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Arts

Hymns

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  • Aku MilikMu, Yesus, Tuhanku [KJ.362] ( I Am Thine, O Lord )
  • Berbahagia Tiap Rumah Tangga [KJ.318]
  • Bila Kulihat Bintang Gemerlapan [KJ.64]
  • Bila Muka dengan Muka [KJ.267]
  • Bila Tugasku Kelak Selesai [KJ.265]
  • Dalam Kota Raja Daud [KJ.113]
  • Hari Ini Tuhan Berkati [KJ.317]
  • Jurus'lamat, Datanglah [KJ.82]
  • Mahakasih Yang Ilahi [KJ.58] ( Love Divine, All Loves Excelling )
  • Roh Kudus, Turunlah [KJ.233]
  • Seluruh Umat Tuhan olehNya Dikenal [KJ.282]
  • SuaraMu Kudengar [KJ.33] ( I Am Coming, Lord / I Hear Thy Welcome Voice )
  • Tuhan, Kau Kekal Raja Hati Kami [KJ.308]
  • [1Co 13:2] Gracious Spirit, Holy Ghost
  • [1Co 13:4] God, Whose Love Is Always Stronger
  • [1Co 13:12] Church Has Waited Long, The
  • [1Co 13:12] End Of The Road, The
  • [1Co 13:12] Face To Face With Christ, My Savior
  • [1Co 13:12] Going Home Rejoicing
  • [1Co 13:12] I Know I’ll See Jesus Some Day
  • [1Co 13:12] In Heav’n Above
  • [1Co 13:12] Jesus, The Very Thought Of Thee
  • [1Co 13:12] Jesus, These Eyes Have Never Seen
  • [1Co 13:12] Just One Glimpse
  • [1Co 13:12] Lo, The Day, The Day Of Life!
  • [1Co 13:12] O God, I Cried, No Dark Disguise
  • [1Co 13:12] Our Soldier Heroes Sleeping
  • [1Co 13:12] Rapture Indeed!
  • [1Co 13:12] Saving Grace
  • [1Co 13:12] Some Day He’ll Make It Plain
  • [1Co 13:12] Some Sweet Day My Lord Will Come
  • [1Co 13:12] Thy Ways, O Lord, With Wise Design
  • [1Co 13:12] We Shall See The King Some Day
  • [1Co 13:12] What Will It Be When We See Him?
  • [1Co 13:12] When Shall Thy Lovely Face Be Seen?
  • [1Co 13:12] When The Mists Have Rolled Away
  • [1Co 13:12] When We Reach The Glory Land

Questions

Sermon Illustrations

What if God Had an Answering Machine?; Arguments on Spiritual Gifts; Spiritual Experience; 1 Corinthians 13; Agape Love; How to Test Spiritual Experience?; The Temporary Gifts; Tongues; Summarizing Spiritual Fruit; Many Unanswered Questions; I’ll Wait Till I Get Home; Isaiah 55:9; Hebrews 10:23; James 2:13; Does God Punish People Forever?

Resources/Books

Expository Notes on the Bible (Constable)

  • Aharoni, Yohanan. The Land of the Bible. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1979.Aharoni, Yohanan, and Michael Avi-Yonah. The Macmillan Bible Atlas. Revised ed. New York: Macmillan Publishing Co., 1977.Albright, William Foxwell...
  • Isaiah next described the remnant who will stream to Zion praising God at the beginning of Messiah's reign. Notice the many triadic formations in the structure of this chapter, creating a feeling of the completeness of joy. T...
  • Ackroyd, Peter R. Exile and Restoration. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968.Alexander, Ralph H. Ezekiel. Everyman's Bible Commentary series. Chicago: Moody Press, 1976._____. "Ezekiel."In Isaiah-Ezekiel. Vol. 6 of The Expo...
  • In this pericope Micah responded to God's goodness, just reviewed, as the Israelites should have responded. His was the reasonable response in view of Yahweh's loyal love for His people (cf. Rom. 12:1-2).6:6 The prophet, for ...
  • 4:6 The angel announced a word of explanation from Yahweh that Zechariah was to pass on to Zerubbabel, the descendant of David who was the leader of the first group of returnees from exile.88He was to tell him, "not by might ...
  • The exorcism of an epileptic boy67817:14-21 (cf. Mark 9:14-29; Luke 9:37-43a)
    "The contrast between the glory of the Transfiguration and Jesus' disciples' tawdry unbelief (see v. 17) is part of the mounting tension that magnifies Jesus' uniqueness as he moves closer to his passion and resurrection."679...
  • Mark said that Jesus appeared to the Eleven on this occasion. However, John qualified that statement by explaining that Thomas was absent (John 20:24). Mark was speaking of the Eleven as a group.16:14 This event evidently hap...
  • 14:8 The Eleven regarded Jesus very highly. Notwithstanding they did not yet realize that He was such an accurate and full revelation of God the Father that to see Jesus was to see the Father. Philip asked for a clear revelat...
  • Jesus now proceeded to use the miracle that He had just performed as the background for important instruction. John presented Jesus doing this many times in this Gospel. The repetition of this pattern in the epilogue is an ev...
  • This is the first of two incidents taken from Paul's ministry in Ephesus that bracket Luke's description of his general ministry there.19:1-2 Two roads led into Ephesus from the east, and Paul travelled the northern, more dir...
  • Paul's original readers would have had another question because of what he had written in chapters 1-4. Is this method of justification safe? Since it is by faith, it seems quite unsure. Paul next gave evidence that this meth...
  • In contrasting chapters 1-11 with chapters 12-16 of Romans, perhaps the most important distinction is that the first part deals primarily with God's actions for humanity, and the last part deals with people's actions in respo...
  • 12:3 Paul began this pericope with a reminder of his apostolic authority. He probably did so because what he was about to say required personal application that would affect the conduct of his readers. The Romans had not met ...
  • "Nowhere else in Paul's writings do we find a more concise collection of ethical injunctions. In these five verses are thirteen exhortations ranging from love of Christians to hospitality for strangers. There are no finite ve...
  • Corinth had a long history stretching back into the Bronze Age (before 1200 B.C.).1In Paul's day it was a Roman colony and the capital of the province of Achaia. The population consisted of Roman citizens who had migrated fro...
  • A phrase in 1:2 suggests the theme of this great epistle. That phrase is "the church of God which is at Corinth."Two entities are in view in this phrase and these are the two entities with which the whole epistle deals. They ...
  • I. Introduction 1:1-9A. Salutation 1:1-3B. Thanksgiving 1:4-9II. Conditions reported to Paul 1:10-6:20A. Divisions in the church 1:10-4:211. The manifestation of the problem 1:10-172. The gospel as a contradiction to human wi...
  • The warm introduction to the epistle (1:1-9) led Paul to give a strong exhortation to unity. In it he expressed his reaction to reports of serious problems in this church that had reached his ears."Because Paul primarily, and...
  • Paul set up a contrast between cleverness of speech and the Cross in verse 17. Next he developed this contrast with a series of arguments. Boasting in men impacts the nature of the gospel. He pointed out that the gospel is no...
  • "With rhetoric full of sarcasm and irony he [Paul] goes for the jugular. His own apostleship, which he portrays in bold relief, contrasting his own shame' with their perceived high station,' is alone consonant with a theology...
  • Paul argued for the man's removal from the church with this analogy. It was primarily for the sake of the church that they should remove him, not for the man's sake.5:6 It was not good for the Corinthians to feel proud of the...
  • Paul advised married people not to abstain from normal sexual relations.7:1 Again Paul began what he had to say by citing a general truth. Then he proceeded to qualify it (cf. 6:12-13). The use of the Greek word anthropos(man...
  • Paul began by comparing the way of love and the way of knowledge to show their relative importance.8:1 The key phrase peri de("now concerning"or "now about") as well as a change in subject matter mark off a new section of thi...
  • Paul introduced the first of the two subjects he dealt with in this chapter, the Corinthian women's participation in church worship, with praise. He did not introduce the second subject this way (vv. 17, 22). As with the othe...
  • Most of the Corinthians had been following Paul's instructions regarding women's head coverings so he commended them (v. 2), but he could not approve their practice at the Lord's Supper. They needed to make some major changes...
  • Paul had been dealing with matters related to worship since 8:1. He had forbidden the Corinthians from participating in temple meals but had allowed eating marketplace meat under certain circumstances (8:1-11:1). Then he deal...
  • The apostle began his discussion by clarifying the indicators that a person is under the control of the indwelling Spirit of God. With this approach, he set the Corinthians' former experience as idolaters in contrast to their...
  • 12:4 Although there is only one Holy Spirit He gives many different abilities to different people. Everything in this pericope revolves around these two ideas. "Gifts"(Gr. charismata, from charismeaning "grace") are abilities...
  • Next, the apostle spoke more specifically about the members of the body of Christ again (cf. vv. 1-11).12:27 "You"is emphatic in the Greek text and is plural. The Corinthian Christians are in view, but what Paul said of them ...
  • In these first three verses Paul showed that love is superior to the spiritual gifts he listed in chapter 12."It is hard to escape the implication that what is involved here are two opposing views as to what it means to be sp...
  • The apostle next pointed out the qualities of love that make it so important. He described these in relationship to a person's character that love rules. We see them most clearly in God and in Christ but also in the life of a...
  • Paul moved on to point out that Christian love (agape) characterizes our existence now and forever, but gifts (charismata) are only for the present. The Corinthians were apparently viewing the gifts as one evidence that they ...
  • The apostle began this discussion of tongues by comparing it to the gift of prophecy that the Corinthians also appreciated (cf. 12:10, 28; 13:8). He urged the Corinthians to value prophecy above tongues because it can edify a...
  • Paul concluded his answer to the Corinthians' question concerning spiritual gifts (chs. 12-14) and his teaching on tongues (ch. 14) with a strong call to cooperation. He zeroed in on their individualism (v. 36; cf. v. 33) and...
  • The Apostle Paul did not introduce the instruction on the resurrection that follows with the formula that identifies it as a response to a specific question from the Corinthians (i.e., peri de). From what he said in this chap...
  • Paul turned from Christ's career to the Christian's experience to argue ad hominemfor the resurrection.377The Corinthians' actions, and his, bordered on absurdity if the dead will not rise. This paragraph is something of a di...
  • Paul brought his revelation of the resurrection to a climax in this paragraph by clarifying what all this means for the believer in Christ. Here he also dealt with the exceptional case of living believers' transformation at t...
  • As I have pointed out, each section in this epistle concludes with some practical admonition. These verses constitute a summary exhortation for the whole letter.16:13-14 Paul urged his somewhat unstable readers to be watchful...
  • Adams, Jay. Marriage, Divorce and Remarriage in the Bible. Phillipsburg, N.J.: Presbyterian and Reformed Publishing Co., 1980.Andrews, J. N. "May Women Speak in Meeting?"Review and Herald. January 2, 1879. Reprinted in Advent...
  • 1:17 Paul returned to his concept of God as the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ (v. 3; cf. Matt. 6:9). He combined with this fact the idea that all glory belongs to the Father (vv. 6, 12, 14; cf. Acts 7:2; 1 Cor. 2:8).Paul as...
  • Having described the basis of Christian unity Paul next explained the means by which we can preserve it, namely with the gifts that the Spirit gives.4:7 Whereas each believer has received grace (unmerited favor and divine ena...
  • Paul turned from how not to walk to the positive responsibility Christians have to live in holiness.4:20 In contrast to unsaved Gentiles, Christians' minds are no longer dark, they are no longer aliens from God, and their hea...
  • Paul had already written that he prayed for the Philippians (vv. 3-4). Now he explained what he prayed so his readers would know specifically what the apostle was asking God to do for them. In response to God's working in the...
  • 3:18 Paul did not say all women should be subject to all men, only that wives should be to their own husbands."The exhortation should not be weakened in translation in deference to modern sensibilities (cf. again 1 Cor. 14:34...
  • The Thessalonians' response to the gospel and their continuance in the faith caused Paul and his companions to thank God for them continually.13Three characteristics of these Christians stood out to Paul. First, they had turn...
  • As is true of so many of the shorter Bible books, this one too is an illustration (cf. Ruth and Esther). Philemon in particular illustrates the outworking in life of the great doctrines taught in the other Pauline writings, e...
  • Having just encouraged his readers with a reminder of God's help for the faithful (1:14) the writer next urged his readers to be faithful. He did so to warn them of the possibility of retrogressing spiritually and consequentl...
  • The writer returned again from exhortation to exposition. He now posed the alternatives of rest and peril that confronted the new people of God, Christians.127The writer warned his readers so they would not fail to enter into...
  • Even though the danger his readers faced was great, the writer believed they could avoid it. Consequently he concluded this warning as he did the ones in 2:1-4 and 3:1-4:16 with a word of hope to encourage his audience.6:9 Th...
  • The Arminian interpretation of this verse (view one above) is as follows. If a person claims to be a Christian but gives no evidence of true faith by the way he lives, he may never have been saved or he may no longer be saved...
  • To prepare his readers to meet the Lord soon Peter urged them to make the best use of their time now that they understood what he had written about suffering.4:7 Like the other apostles Peter believed the return of Jesus Chri...
  • This section introduces John's recapitulation and expansion of his exposition of what is necessary for people to have fellowship with God. He changed his figure from God as light to God as the Father of the believer."John beg...
  • v. 20 The contrast Jude introduced with "But"distinguishes Jude's readers from the false teachers. Since we are God's temples under attack by hostile enemy forces, we need to build ourselves up, to strengthen ourselves spirit...
  • Essentially what John saw next was Paradise regained (cf. 2:7; Gen. 2; Luke 23:43; 2 Cor. 12:2). Having viewed the splendor of the New Jerusalem he now saw what will nourish and enrich the lives of God's people there."Up to t...

Expositions Of Holy Scripture (Maclaren)

  • Whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. 13. And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three …'--1 Cor. 13:8-13.WE disc...
  • It is perhaps not too artificial to point out that we have here three triads of which the first describes the life of the Spirit in its deepest secret; the second, the same life in its manifestations to men; and the third, th...
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