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1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (4a)
Through the better part of the first twelve chapters of 1 Corinthians the Apostle Paul has been directly convicting the congregation of the church at Corinth. These things are sometimes hard to receive by those who are guilty, but the corrective criticism is necessary to gain an understanding of the ways of the Lord as meant for the Christian in personal growth. But as the Apostle Peter states in 1 Peter 5:10 (NKJV), “But may the God of all grace, who called us to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after you have suffered a while, perfect, establish, strengthen, and settle you.” In the case of 1 Corinthians 13, beginning at verse 4, the Apostle Paul changes course and lets the congregation of the church at Corinth begin learning the importance and blessings of love. As we have taken weeks, even months to struggle through the first twelve chapters of 1 Corinthians, I want to make sure that we equally take our time to reap the blessing of Paul’s teachings as guided by the Lord in love.
I have noted today’s Bible study as 1 Corinthians 13:4-7, but we will study each piece of these verses to gain a better understanding of love and how we should implement love in our own lives. Today we will study 1 Corinthians 13:4a, but I will include 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 as each day’s Bible study until we complete the passage as a whole.
1 Corinthians 13:4a states, “Love suffers long and is kind;” It is important to understand love as Paul has stated in 1 Corinthians 13:1-3 that we can do many things that may seem loving, but if we do things without the proper intentions being “without love,” then all is lost. For love to suffer and yet be kind is the essence of love. True love suffers because true love cares about what happens to those around themselves. Ture love suffers because true love cares for others more than one cares for themselves. Jesus says that we should love our neighbor as ourselves, and places it as the number two most important commandment that along with loving God first fulfills all the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 22:37-40). And in John 13:34 Jesus declares, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.” In the love of Jesus we find the second part of 1 Corinthians 13:4a, and that is, that love is kind. Simply, always, in everything love is kind. Just as Jesus was kind to everyone, so should we be.
This is a promise of what love is.
As we begin reaping the benefits of learning about love, I ask you to do a self-evaluation of the love that you have in your heart and of the love you show to others. Let this be a time of growing in the love that God showed and gave to us, through His Son Jesus, and the salvation that we have in Him.
Dear LORD,
You have been teaching us about the things in which the congregation of the church at Corinth needed to change about their lifestyles in growing as a Christian. We too need to learn from these lessons. But as we now enter a new Spirit of love in our study of Your Word, please help us to open our hearts to Your great love for us and to grow in our relationships with You as we welcome Your Holy Spirit to work in our lives and transform our lives to the lives in which You desire us to have – in Christ. In Jesus name I pray, amen.