If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have 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 do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. (NRSV)
Four kinds of amazing people are described in the first verses of this chapter.
The first person is someone who has the gift of gab. This person can speak to anyone in their own language or culture, can communicate any number of ideas, and is always understood. This person is an amazing communicator.
I’m not . . . an amazing communicator. I’m way less than average, often putting my foot in my mouth and frequently (but unintentionally) offending those around me by what I say. My best own advice to myself would be simply to shut up. I think that communicating with others is an extremely difficult task.
Paul says, in this passage, that being the most skilled communicator is nothing. That person is simply a noisy gong or clanging cymbal. Now, I’m married to a drummer, so I’m intimately familiar with gongs and cymbals. Used sparingly, those sounds can add a little to a song; however, used incessantly, their noise is unbearable! The best communicator in the world—living without godly love—is simply a crashing cymbal. Words without love are just noise.
The second person is someone who is a scholar, but not just a scholar, a scholar of great knowledge, someone who truly knows everything. Being a teacher and a student, I do understand the value of learning. But notice that this person is more than just a learned person. This is someone who also has prophetic powers. This person knows everything that God is willing to impart. This person is the host of all the knowledge possible for a person to know. Amazing! To be able to know that much, to be able to shift through all the knowledge and use that knowledge prophetically, speaking into other people’s lives, to give others insight and wisdom.
Paul tells us that, without godly love, a person can know everything and have the skill to know how to use that knowledge and yet . . . that person is nothing!
The third person is a person of great faith. In fact, this person’s faith is so great, that they can actually move mountains from one place to another. This isn’t a metaphorical faith, but a true faith that believes God can do what we ask Him to do. A faith without wavering, without doubting. And yet, Paul says that without godly love, this person too is nothing!
The fourth person is a person who is willing to give sacrificially. This person will give their possessions, holding nothing back, and even their own life if it means benefitting someone else. And yet, Paul tells us that even those who are willing to sacrifice all gain nothing if they fail to have godly love.
The love spoken about in this passage is the love that is the heart, soul, and nature of God Himself. This is the love that is God and that is impossible to have without Him. When Paul describes the characteristics of agape (godly) love, he is actually describing the Father Himself. And when we are encouraged to love like this, we are being encouraged simply to allow the Holy Spirit to live through and in us, for without Him, loving like this is impossible.
For all of us who aspire to excellence in our lives—to be great communicators, great students, great in faith, and great in sacrifice—we need to remember that nothing that we do (or attempt to do) means anything if we do it outside of God’s will for our lives, if we do it outside of loving others as He loves us. If we fail to be patient, kind, humble, and courteous, if we insist on our own way or resent others (for whatever reason), we have lost before we began.
© 2011 Robin L. O’Hare. All Rights Reserved. Permission granted for nonprofit and church groups to use this article in its entirety (including this notice). For other uses, please contact servinggodalone@yahoo.com.
Four kinds of amazing people are described in the first verses of this chapter.
The first person is someone who has the gift of gab. This person can speak to anyone in their own language or culture, can communicate any number of ideas, and is always understood. This person is an amazing communicator.
I’m not . . . an amazing communicator. I’m way less than average, often putting my foot in my mouth and frequently (but unintentionally) offending those around me by what I say. My best own advice to myself would be simply to shut up. I think that communicating with others is an extremely difficult task.
Paul says, in this passage, that being the most skilled communicator is nothing. That person is simply a noisy gong or clanging cymbal. Now, I’m married to a drummer, so I’m intimately familiar with gongs and cymbals. Used sparingly, those sounds can add a little to a song; however, used incessantly, their noise is unbearable! The best communicator in the world—living without godly love—is simply a crashing cymbal. Words without love are just noise.
The second person is someone who is a scholar, but not just a scholar, a scholar of great knowledge, someone who truly knows everything. Being a teacher and a student, I do understand the value of learning. But notice that this person is more than just a learned person. This is someone who also has prophetic powers. This person knows everything that God is willing to impart. This person is the host of all the knowledge possible for a person to know. Amazing! To be able to know that much, to be able to shift through all the knowledge and use that knowledge prophetically, speaking into other people’s lives, to give others insight and wisdom.
Paul tells us that, without godly love, a person can know everything and have the skill to know how to use that knowledge and yet . . . that person is nothing!
The third person is a person of great faith. In fact, this person’s faith is so great, that they can actually move mountains from one place to another. This isn’t a metaphorical faith, but a true faith that believes God can do what we ask Him to do. A faith without wavering, without doubting. And yet, Paul says that without godly love, this person too is nothing!
The fourth person is a person who is willing to give sacrificially. This person will give their possessions, holding nothing back, and even their own life if it means benefitting someone else. And yet, Paul tells us that even those who are willing to sacrifice all gain nothing if they fail to have godly love.
The love spoken about in this passage is the love that is the heart, soul, and nature of God Himself. This is the love that is God and that is impossible to have without Him. When Paul describes the characteristics of agape (godly) love, he is actually describing the Father Himself. And when we are encouraged to love like this, we are being encouraged simply to allow the Holy Spirit to live through and in us, for without Him, loving like this is impossible.
For all of us who aspire to excellence in our lives—to be great communicators, great students, great in faith, and great in sacrifice—we need to remember that nothing that we do (or attempt to do) means anything if we do it outside of God’s will for our lives, if we do it outside of loving others as He loves us. If we fail to be patient, kind, humble, and courteous, if we insist on our own way or resent others (for whatever reason), we have lost before we began.
© 2011 Robin L. O’Hare. All Rights Reserved. Permission granted for nonprofit and church groups to use this article in its entirety (including this notice). For other uses, please contact servinggodalone@yahoo.com.
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