A More Excellent Way
Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:27-31
1 Corinthians 13 is the “love chapter” of the New Testament. Most often heard when read out during wedding ceremonies, the original context and point of the text are usually overlooked. In this context, Paul was writing about spiritual gifts and their abuse within the church. Like many churches and Christians, the Corinthians saw gifting as a sign of spiritual superiority. Their gifts were not viewed primarily in terms of tools for ministry unless you count using them like a hammer to bludgeon brothers.
What was lacking was love. Paul’s point at the beginning of chapter 13 is “what good are gifts without love?” The more excellent way is to stop pursuing spiritual gifts and instead pursue love (14:1). That isn’t to say the spiritual gifts are to be shelved and forgotten. It doesn’t even mean believers shouldn’t desire gifts. It means that gifting should be sought in the context of seeing the gifts as vehicles to express and live out love.
Love, then, becomes the animating power of spiritual gifts. The question we should be asking most is not “what gift do I have?” Rather, it should be “how can God use me to effectively love others?” If a person has a spiritual gift of teaching, for example, they should think of their teaching as a way to love others. They are expressing love through the gift of teaching.
When we pursue love, the goal is no longer showing off what we can do (teaching, administrating, discerning…). The goal is loving God and others and the gift is merely the vehicle through which love is expressed.