1 Corinthians 13:1-3 – If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
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In Paul’s discussion of the spiritual gifts that were being practiced and sought in the Corinthian church, he interjects the chapter we simply call the “love” chapter. It is often read at weddings, especially emphasizing the things beginning at verse 4. However, there is a far more important use for this chapter in the body of Christ.
Notice that, in verses 1-3 above, Paul describes many things that he might have or do which are honorable. He might have the most fabulous and amazing spiritual gifts. He might be able to do incredible things. He might be so incredibly self-sacrificial that he gives away all his possessions to the poor and is martyred for the faith. However, he adds with each statement that if he does these things without love, he has done nothing and gains nothing.
Love as a motivator trumps all our actions. No deed, regardless of how righteous or sacrificial, that is not done with true, biblical, God-glorifying love will matter. Whether it be dropping money in the offering basket, singing a song at church, or selling your home and becoming a foreign missionary, if you do it without love, you gain nothing before God. So you will find that in all forms of Christian service, there is a higher test than simply your behavior; that test is the test of your heart.
God is far more interested in your heart than in your behavior. If you behave properly, but without a heart that is right before him, your behavior is simple hypocrisy. However, if your heart is right before God, loving and focused on his glory, your behavior will be right, because right behavior will be your heart’s desire. The battleground for the souls and actions of men is not fought in mere behavioral alteration, it is fought for and won or lost in the hearts of men. The battle is not for the behavior of men, it is for the hearts of men.
No, do not get me wrong. This is not some way to excuse behavior that God forbids. You can not sin out of love and therefore justify your sin. If God forbids a behavior, you must not do it. But, let me also add that your not doing it only counts if you refrain from the behavior out of love for God. Similarly, if God commands a behavior, you can not avoid doing it because you don’t feel the proper love. God commands you to do the right things, and to do them in love. Your call is not to avoid doing right until your heart changes; your call is to change your heart and do what is right. And, again, the right behavior is only worthwhile when it is done out of love.
In a preaching class at my seminary, my professor, Dr. Hershael York, told us a story about a young man he once taught who was a fabulous preacher, but who was not kind or outgoing. Dr. York told this young man that he needed to become more kind and more outgoing if he was going to become a successful pastor. The man objected to Dr. York’s challenge, asking, “Are you saying that you want me to pretend to be something I’m not?” Dr. York countered, “No, I want you to change.”
God is not calling you, in 1 Corinthians 13, to pretend to be something you are not. However, he is also not allowing you to stand still. God is calling you to change. That change is not to be merely external. God wants you to change from the heart. Then, your outer behavior will change because your heart has led you in a different direction. This is a battle of epic proportions. You fight, every day, to change your heart. You do so with the word of God, with spiritual disciplines, and only in the power of God’s Holy Spirit. You work with all your might, and when all is said and done, it will still be God who changes you. You may not righteously sit back and wait for God to change you. God commands you to work, to fight, to battle, and to love. So, today, work on subduing your own heart with the word of God led by the Spirit of God. Fight the battle to love, because without love, you have nothing.
Dear Lord, I recognize that anything I do that is not led by and motivated by love is worthless. I pray that you will empower me to subdue my heart. I pray that you will empower me to become a more loving person. Let all that I do be motivated by love for you and for your glory. I acknowledge my role in this battle. I can not sit idly by and wait for you to change me. You command I work, and so I ask that you will give your Spirit’s power and leading to my work.
Pastor Travis Peterson 