King James Version, with Nii Okai's journal notes · 7 notes
Read 1 Corinthians 13 in the app
1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.
2And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
I used to wonder how one could have faith to move mountains ⛰ and yet not have love.
How could one attain the heights of such mighty works without having passed the foundational rudiments of the fruit of the Holy Spirit?
Then as I matured in Christ I realized that it actually is possible 🙆.
One can be spiritually gifted and yet lack the spiritual fruit of love, joy, peace, as stated in Gal 5:22.
This is actually the sign of maturity in Christ, not the gifts, because as the name suggested they are gifts of the Spirit.
And we all do know people who have gifts incommensurate with their character, but that is why it is a gift 📦
3And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
How can one give his body to be burned 🔥 and not have love?
It actually is possible to make sacrifices because of pride, to prove a point etc, and yet lack love.
We know people who are very hard working and sacrifice so much for their job and others, yet are narcissistic and violent on others.
4Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
5Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
6Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
7Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
8Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
Love never fails; you can walk 🚶 in love perpetually, but with tongues, prophecies and knowledge (gift of knowledge etc) it will cease at a point, because you receive as the Spirit gives.
And you are given these gifts in part; you don't know all there is, but only what the Spirit wills.
So all these gifts will cease at a point, but LOVE doesn't.
So is FAITH AND Hope, but love is the greatest.
9For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
10But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
Paul argues that love never fails (in that it never ceases or comes to an end), and earlier he had mentioned that love was the more excellent way.
Now he goes ahead to make the point that things like prophecy are not complete, tongues are not complete, in the sense that with prophecy and tongues it will come to an end eventually, because you have some knowledge but not all knowledge. You prophesy in part.
When prophecies and tongues cease, which they will, love will continue to exist.
LOVE is forever.
In other words, when that which is perfect 👌 is come, you choose that over the imperfect... i.e. you choose love always over the gifts, because as we have seen the gifts can be exercised outside of love.
And that is childish 🧒. So we have a lot of childish believers and leaders actually.
Gifted but childish... Again the manipulation and mind control is real even in the church.
We give all these children such high regard in the church and suppress the real men.
11When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
Ei, am I hearing this right, that gifts are childish things compared to love ♥?
That love is so superior to the gifts that it is like a full grown man compared to a child 🧒...
Or in other words, those young in the faith chase the gifts at the expense of love, but as we mature we walk in love more and more, because we realise that is the most excellent way.
12For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
13And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Where did Paul get this system of priority from? Who even gave him the knowledge of these three things?
Where did such knowledge come from, and what metric was used to graduate them in order of importance?
In fact, how do you even measure three such vast and awesome attributes?