Paul begins our story by explaining his motives for ministry. 2 Corinthians 5: 11 Because we understand our fearful responsibility to the Lord, we work hard to persuade others. God knows we are sincere, and I hope you know this, too. 12 Are we commending ourselves to you again? No, we are giving you a reason to be …
Paul tells us we will see perfectly in heaven in 1 Corinthians chapter thirteen, but that is not so on this earth. Paul is not talking about physical eyesight but how we understand spiritual things in this lifetime. In this lifetime, Paul tells us it is like looking through an imperfect mirror, especially in connection …
Becoming mature in the faith is not easy, but it dramatically affects our lives and interactions with others. As Paul writes his letter to the church in Corinth, it is to address problems in the church. One of the problems he was working through was people not loving others when using their spiritual gifts. Speaking …
When do the gifts end? Paul speaks of the end of the gifts, but can we tell the timing of this end from 1 Corinthians 13? Some streams of Christianity contend that gifts such as tongues, prophecy, and words of knowledge have already ceased. Other parts of Christianity say that these gifts continue to this …
Love is an action, and I believe Paul wanted the Corinthians to act in love. They boasted about their gifts and acted rudely toward each other. Love would humble them and allow them to promote others. If we love others, we are concerned about their needs and less preoccupied with our rights. They envied what …
Spiritual gifts without love are meaningless because love is the heart of all spiritual gifts. In our body, the heart makes everything work properly, like a motor in a machine. If our heart stops, the rest of the body will also cease to function. In 1 Corinthians 12:8-11 we learn spiritual gifts are the ability …
When I was picking scripture readings for our wedding, I found one entitled the Love Chapter. It said some fantastic things about love, and I could see that following what it said would benefit our marriage. 1 Corinthians 13 is often read at weddings for this reason. At the time, I didn’t know about interpreting …
We desperately need each other. The Lord made me very aware of this during the recent events. During this same time, you may have had a similar experience. When people became isolated, they could not be in contact with many people. Living a more secluded life, you could not use your gifts as much or …
God gives gifts because He loves us and has a plan for our lives to use them to help others. In addition, the Lord is a master builder. He gives us unique skills and gifts to work with Him to accomplish His will. To think the Lord gives us gifts so we can help Him …
Being satisfied with your gifts is helpful for any person and is the Lord’s desire. As people, it is easy to become jealous because of someone who has a gift or talent you wish you had. Our enemy, satan, is always at work trying to tempt people to make them feel dissatisfied. Thus, he wants …