Where Would You Be Now?

1Corinthians 13:8-13 (NRSV)

Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

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Without love, where would you be now?

Long Train Runnin' from "The Captian and Me" by The Doobie Brothers

This section of First Corinthians is often reserved for weddings, that's a shame. This passage isn't really about wedded bliss. Sure, faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love; these are great things to base a relationship upon. But this is not the love Paul is talking about.

This chapter is set between two chapters on the spiritual gifts. Chapter 12 deals with the gifts of God and their role and use in the church. Chapter 14 calls members of the church to strive for greater gifts. One deals with the existence of the gifts and the other with their use in the world.

But without love, all we can do is make noise, like a noisy gong or clanging cymbal. The Doobies ask the question well, without love, where woud you be now? We would be in a mess.

If people were able to chose the gifts of God for themselves, more often than not--the gifts of prophecy and healing and toungues would be chosen. People would pick something flashy. After all, who wants service and teaching when there is something flashier in the bag to pick from.

If you wonder if this is true, consider the number of people who want to be the football star and the cheerleader--or root for them--and the number of people who want to be a lunch lady--or root for them. An old comic once said that another way to think of this is if we all became what we "wanted to be when we grew up" from the second grade, there would be a lot of firemen and ballerinas.

So we need love because in the love of God all of the spiritual gifts are flashy. In love, regardless of the gifts we receive and exhibit, we do it for the benefit of the Lord and the Body of Christ. In love there is a blessing of selflessness that increases the gift far beyond what we could ever know or understand.

Using the spiritual gifts as God intends blesses not only the one with the gift, but the one who receives the work of the gifted, and all of creation--and all for the glory of God. That's much bigger than the simple flash of a miracle that looks more like a magic trick.

Being the star is fun, but without love, where would you be now?