Welcome to
Heaven's Point Of View.
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We have a very wonderful
time in store for you today.
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We're gonna be
talking about a series called
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Love, Marriage, Sex and Divorce
according to The New Testament.
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And it is my
privilege to introduce to you
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our host Dr. Tom Sheperd.
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Now Dr. Tom Sheperd,
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he has so many degrees
that it gets me confused
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and so I think what
I'd like to do right now.
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Tell us a little bit
about, something about you, Tom.
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And then we'll go from there.
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Well, I grew up in California.
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And when I was
sometime later was a teacher
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in Union College
in Lincoln, Nebraska
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and I mentioned that.
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And somebody said "Well,
we'll forgive you for that."
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Really, that's a
great university.
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I, I went to school
the Civic Union College
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in Northern California.
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And then I went to
Loma Linda University.
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I did the
theology in under graduate.
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Then I went to
Loma Linda University,
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the school of public health
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and I did a
masters in public health
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and public health nutrition
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and what they call then
the doctor of health science
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but now it's been grandfathered
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into what they call the
doctor of public health.
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So it's a public
health training degrees
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and so some of what we
talk about in these programs,
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we just get into a little
bit of our health statistics
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a little bit as we
talked about marriage--
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Then my wife, I met my
wife at Loma Linda, an MD.
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And her first name?
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Sherry. Sherry.
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Yeah. Amen.
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And we went to Illinois
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and we were there
for several years.
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Then we went as missionaries
to Africa in Malawi.
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Oh, my goodness.
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And there I used my
public health training a lot
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but eventually I felt like
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you know, I want
to, something closer
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to the ministry
of the scriptures.
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I was trained in
theology and pastoral work.
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And so came back to Andrews,
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did the MA and
PhD in New Testament.
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Oh, my goodness.
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Too much, yeah.
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And then we were
missionaries in Brazil
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for two and half years.
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And then at
Union College 13 years.
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Now I'm at the
Andrews University,
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been there for, since 2008.
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Amen.
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And Andrews is a
great place to work.
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I work with the group
of people in the seminary.
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Wonderful faculty,
it's a great school,
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we have about 350 students
in the seminary itself about,
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oh, I guess about
maybe, what is it,
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I don't know 3000 or something
in the whole university.
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I tell you
something about Andrews.
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It's interesting.
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Andrews recently
started a project.
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It came from the
president of our university.
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We want to become
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the healthiest
university in the United States.
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Amen. That's our goal.
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Now how do you do this?
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Well, if they've
got this one thing
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that they're
doing, it's a project
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to have this
wonderful wellness center
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that they want to develop.
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But we have a group of people
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who are actually looking
for a wellness director where,
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and I'm on their
search committee.
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I like to keep my fingers
in that public health stuff.
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And I'm the
chair in the seminary
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of something we called the
health promotion committee.
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So we are trying to help people,
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give people good
health information.
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Develop a program
so they can be involved
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in walking and cooking school.
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We did a wellness fair one time.
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And, and then structural change,
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you know, how do
you change things,
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how do we do things
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that are
harming people's health,
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what can we change
to make it work better.
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You know, like in lunch hour,
like a culture of movement,
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getting people
walking and stuff like that
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so it's kind of be exciting.
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So I still keep
my hands little bit
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in that public health stuff.
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Amen.
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Did you pick up
all of those degrees?
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It just absolutely amazes me.
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Now I'm J.D. Quinn,
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I'm the co-host and
I'm a student here today.
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So this is gonna
be exciting for me.
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Now I think that we're
talking about love, marriage,
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we're talking
about sex and divorce
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according to the New Testament
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because this is your
specialty, the New Testament.
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Exactly.
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Now let's back up a little
bit and have a short review
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over the definitions of love
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that you've
covered up to this part
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because we're
gonna go into agape love.
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But what other kind of
loves is defined out there?
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Well, in our first two programs
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we described a love
in the Old Testament,
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we looked at the rare
words and the common words.
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The most common
words were ahab and hesed
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and these two
different concepts,
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we described
particularly, hesed.
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It is one my favorites.
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It's a loving
kindness, this idea of,
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of God's loving-kindness
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and enjoying
loving-kindness to one other.
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When we came to
the New Testament,
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we noticed the four
different Greek words.
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Two of which don't even
appear in the New Testament,
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surprisingly for
most people the word Eros
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which we get the word
erotic but physical love
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that term doesn't even
appear in the New Testament.
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It was you know, it
was a pagan terminology,
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it was pagan god named Eros.
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And actually, the Old
Testament translated into Greek
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didn't, tended to focus
on the word agape and agapao.
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And so they used
that, so the two terms
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used in the New
Testament are philos or phileo,
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which is friendship love
and then it's agape love,
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agapa is the verb
which means the love of God
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and the kind of
love that He shows.
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And the passage
we're gonna look at today
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is the epitome
of this whole idea
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of agape love is
1 Corinthians 13.
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I think that 1 Corinthians
13, the love chapter.
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That's right. Amen.
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One that we should read a lot
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and so we want
to read the passage
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through if you read that,
what version are you using?
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I'm using the New
King James. New King James.
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I have the ESV, the
English Standard Version,
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English Standard so
between the two of us.
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We get some good
stuff. We get some good stuff.
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Okay.
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Would you like
for me to start now?
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Please. Okay.
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This is 1 Corinthians 13,
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"Though I speak
with the tongues of men
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and of angels,
but have not love,
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I have become sounding
brass or a clanging cymbal.
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And though I have
the gift of prophecy,
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and understand all
mysteries, and all knowledge,
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and though I have all faith,
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so that I could
remove mountains,
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but have not love, I am nothing.
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And though I bestow all
my goods to feed the poor,
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and though I give
my body to be burned,
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but have not love,
it profits me nothing.
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Love suffers long and it's kind,
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love does not envy,
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love does not parade
itself, it's not puffed up.
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It does not behave rudely,
it does not seek its own,
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it's not
provoked, it thinks no evil.
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It does not rejoice in iniquity
but rejoice is in the truth,
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it bears all things,
it believes all things,
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it hopes all things
and it endures all things.
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Love never fails
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but whether there are prophecies
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they will fail.
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Whether there are
tongues they will cease,
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whether there is
knowledge, it will vanish away.
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For we know in part
and we prophesy in part.
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But when that which
is perfect has come,
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then that which is in
part will be done away.
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When I was a
child, I spoke as a child,
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I understood as a
child, I thought as a child.
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but when I became a man,
I put away childish things.
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For now we see
in a mirror, dimly,
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but then fact to face.
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Now I know in part,
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but then I shall know
just as I am also known.
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And now abide faith,
hope, love, these three,
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but the greatest
of these is love."
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Wow, amen. Beautiful.
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It's almost like a poem.
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Wow.
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Almost like poetry. Amen, amen.
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Now when you
look at this passage,
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it actually breaks
down into three sections.
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Into three sections. Yeah.
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The first is
section is in verses 1 to 3,
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we could call it
the absence of love
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because he
describes what it's like,
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if you don't have love.
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"But have not love." Yep.
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And verses 4 to 7,
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we could speak of
the actions of love.
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Some people would want to
say the definition of love
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but I think it's
probably better to say
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the actions of love.
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I like, I like action better.
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Yeah, and then the last section,
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verses 8 to 13 is
about the supremacy of love.
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Oh, yes. Okay.
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Okay, so now are you
gonna explain, explain one of--
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starting with one of them or--
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Yeah, we'll start
with the first section.
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Okay.
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Yeah, so we, we look back there.
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So we're looking at
the absence of love.
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The absence of love,
this is verses 1 to 3.
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So Paul starts off,
he uses three examples.
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He talks about
speaking in tongues,
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the gift of prophecy,
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mysteries, knowledge,
faith and giving up everything.
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Wow.
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So before we get
too far into that
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we ought to, we ought to
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set this whole
chapter in its context.
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Okay. Okay.
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The context is Ancient Corinth.
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This was a church
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you would not want
to be the pastor of.
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They were-- And why not?
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Well, they were
people with so many troubles.
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They had factionalism.
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They had somebody
involved in incest.
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They had people involved in
sexual immorality on one side
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and then on the other side
people involved in asceticism,
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it said maybe even
that if you're married,
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you shouldn't have sex
even if you're married.
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They were people that were--
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giving the gift of
tongues all mixed up,
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they had misunderstanding
about the Lord supper.
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They didn't understand
well about the resurrection.
00:10:01.73\00:10:04.20
I mean, on top--
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So their doctrine was
just all over the place,
00:10:05.67\00:10:08.00
if there was.
00:10:08.04\00:10:09.37
It was a mess. Yeah.
00:10:09.40\00:10:10.74
You know, it was mess.
00:10:10.77\00:10:12.11
So Paul dialogues
with this sick church.
00:10:12.14\00:10:14.64
You know, it's a church
with trouble and problems.
00:10:14.68\00:10:17.38
And he actually, probably had
00:10:17.41\00:10:19.51
about the most
difficult relationship
00:10:19.55\00:10:21.28
with any other churches
that he helped to established,
00:10:21.32\00:10:23.89
he had the most
difficulty with this church.
00:10:23.92\00:10:26.25
And he writes
two different letters
00:10:26.29\00:10:27.62
and you read you know,
00:10:27.66\00:10:28.99
the way he has to
argue and everything.
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They were people
there that didn't trust him.
00:10:30.76\00:10:33.06
And that, that is really hard
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to deal with if you're a pastor.
00:10:35.30\00:10:36.67
You bet. Now so--
00:10:36.70\00:10:38.10
You got nothing to
build on really, I mean.
00:10:38.13\00:10:39.47
Yeah, in this
section of the book,
00:10:39.50\00:10:42.47
he is talking
about spiritual gifts.
00:10:42.50\00:10:45.21
Okay.
00:10:45.24\00:10:46.57
He is describing spiritual gifts
00:10:46.61\00:10:48.31
and he talks about
things like prophecy.
00:10:48.34\00:10:52.41
He talks about
the gift of tongues,
00:10:52.45\00:10:54.68
he talks about all
kinds of other gifts
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that you would have, apostles,
the gift of being a teacher
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or miracles, administrations
this is all in chapter 12
00:11:01.59\00:11:04.69
where he describes
these kind of things.
00:11:04.73\00:11:06.96
And he asked a question,
00:11:07.00\00:11:09.80
series of questions
at the end of chapter 12,
00:11:09.83\00:11:13.54
does, is everybody an apostle,
00:11:13.57\00:11:15.47
does everybody have
the gift of tongues,
00:11:15.50\00:11:17.11
does everybody
heal, does everybody--
00:11:17.14\00:11:19.04
And the answer that he expects
because there is a way in Greek
00:11:19.07\00:11:22.04
to tell what
answer you're expecting,
00:11:22.08\00:11:25.61
the answer he expects is no.
00:11:25.65\00:11:27.82
They're, not everybody has this.
00:11:27.85\00:11:29.18
And then, he introduces
this chapter and says,
00:11:29.22\00:11:30.95
I'm gonna show
you even a better way.
00:11:30.99\00:11:33.52
The better way
is the way of love.
00:11:33.56\00:11:35.46
So he plunks us
down, right in the middle
00:11:35.49\00:11:37.76
when he goes to chapter 14,
00:11:37.79\00:11:39.13
he comes back to
prophecy and tongues again.
00:11:39.16\00:11:41.56
So he imbeds 1 Corinthians
13 right in the midst
00:11:41.60\00:11:45.50
of the whole
discussion of spiritual gifts.
00:11:45.53\00:11:47.67
And that's what
makes it so powerful
00:11:47.70\00:11:50.04
because he says, you know,
00:11:50.07\00:11:52.17
what if you have
all the spiritual gifts,
00:11:52.21\00:11:54.98
but you don't have love.
00:11:55.01\00:11:57.38
So he starts
off, what if I have--
00:11:57.41\00:11:59.01
He is a very bright man and--
00:11:59.05\00:12:00.55
Very bring man
and if he starts off
00:12:00.58\00:12:02.05
and he says, "If
you have the tongues of
00:12:02.08\00:12:03.99
you can speak with the
tongues of men and of angels.''
00:12:04.02\00:12:06.29
I mean, this is somebody
who is a better preacher
00:12:06.32\00:12:08.76
than, than Mark Finley
00:12:08.79\00:12:11.79
or better preacher than
any preacher you ever heard.
00:12:11.83\00:12:13.73
You know, he's just got
silver spoon in his tongue.
00:12:13.76\00:12:16.36
I mean, he can say anything
00:12:16.40\00:12:18.03
and it's just,
just blow you away.
00:12:18.07\00:12:20.54
You'll be so impress with it.
00:12:20.57\00:12:21.90
He says, "But if
you don't have love,
00:12:21.94\00:12:25.11
it's just like you
lost the ability to talk
00:12:25.14\00:12:28.04
and you're just a cymbal
that people are just clanging,
00:12:28.08\00:12:30.55
a bell that's clanging there.
00:12:30.58\00:12:32.28
Now I'm assuming that brass
probably didn't have much of,
00:12:32.31\00:12:34.98
it's probably more of a thug,
00:12:35.02\00:12:36.55
thug rather than
something sharp and clear.
00:12:36.58\00:12:39.19
Yeah, might not be
so it's sharp and clear.
00:12:39.22\00:12:40.96
Well, it's a
difference between human speech
00:12:40.99\00:12:44.73
and any kind of metal.
00:12:44.76\00:12:48.23
You know, they can make a
sound but it's not a voice.
00:12:48.26\00:12:52.43
Right so that's what happens
when you don't have love,
00:12:52.47\00:12:54.77
you lose your voice.
00:12:54.80\00:12:56.71
Then he talks
about prophetic powers
00:12:56.74\00:12:59.91
and mysteries and
knowledge and faith.
00:12:59.94\00:13:02.58
And the overriding word
00:13:02.61\00:13:05.01
that he uses again and
again there is the word, all.
00:13:05.05\00:13:07.52
All.
00:13:07.55\00:13:08.88
If I have all of
this and all of this
00:13:08.92\00:13:10.25
and all of this and all of this
00:13:10.29\00:13:12.25
but I don't have
love, I am nothing.
00:13:12.29\00:13:16.42
It just profits me nothing.
00:13:16.46\00:13:17.83
A big zero.
00:13:17.86\00:13:19.23
Yeah, he is
pushing into the limit
00:13:19.26\00:13:22.56
whenever he's saying all.
00:13:22.60\00:13:24.00
Yeah, he has, he
has this contrast
00:13:24.03\00:13:25.83
that he sets up,
it's all or it's nothing.
00:13:25.87\00:13:28.70
And when you have,
when you have all that stuff
00:13:28.74\00:13:30.91
but you don't have love.
00:13:30.94\00:13:32.57
What you have is nothing. Yeah.
00:13:32.61\00:13:33.94
Then he talks about
if I give everything away
00:13:33.98\00:13:37.55
and if I deliver up
my body to be burned
00:13:37.58\00:13:40.68
but I don't have
love, I gained nothing.
00:13:40.72\00:13:43.25
So this would be kind
of a sense of a martyr,
00:13:43.28\00:13:45.95
a person who gives,
he is a philanthropist
00:13:45.99\00:13:47.92
and he gives everything.
00:13:47.96\00:13:49.29
But if you don't have the
love motive underneath it,
00:13:49.32\00:13:52.09
you don't really
gain any honor from it
00:13:52.13\00:13:54.76
because it's all based on
the wrong kind of motives.
00:13:54.80\00:13:57.60
So if love is missing,
00:13:57.63\00:13:59.97
your life is really
devoid of what it needs.
00:14:00.00\00:14:03.04
No, kind of like, I
mentioned a while ago,
00:14:03.07\00:14:04.57
you have no foundations
build anything off of.
00:14:04.61\00:14:06.98
Yeah.
00:14:07.01\00:14:08.34
Do you think that
they understood it,
00:14:08.38\00:14:10.18
I mean, was he
talking their language?
00:14:10.21\00:14:12.31
Oh, yes.
00:14:12.35\00:14:14.22
What they were
interested in was tongues,
00:14:14.25\00:14:16.08
they were interested in prophecy
00:14:16.12\00:14:18.19
and all these
other kinds of things.
00:14:18.22\00:14:20.39
There was a honor shame
society and they would tried to
00:14:20.42\00:14:23.06
you know, focus and emphasizing
get everything all lined up.
00:14:23.09\00:14:27.00
In their society you did
things that increased your honor
00:14:27.03\00:14:29.76
and you're avoided things
00:14:29.80\00:14:31.13
that made you
increased your shame.
00:14:31.17\00:14:32.50
So you try to have
all the stuff all lined up
00:14:32.53\00:14:35.90
so he's, now he is
very much talking to them
00:14:35.94\00:14:38.24
and saying, look if
you have all that stuff
00:14:38.27\00:14:40.88
but you don't have love,
00:14:40.91\00:14:42.31
your life is
devoid of its meaning
00:14:42.34\00:14:45.08
that you're trying to grasp at.
00:14:45.11\00:14:47.52
All right so the
next thing he comes to--
00:14:47.55\00:14:50.05
I guess we are
looking at the second.
00:14:53.15\00:14:54.89
That's right. Right.
00:14:54.92\00:14:56.66
Number two. You
know, the second part.
00:14:56.69\00:14:58.76
Is verses four to seven,
00:14:58.79\00:15:00.33
maybe we should
read it again just to--
00:15:00.36\00:15:02.36
Yeah, man, this
is strong. It is.
00:15:02.40\00:15:05.13
"Love suffers
long and it's kind,
00:15:05.17\00:15:07.97
love does not envy,
00:15:08.00\00:15:09.37
love does not parade
itself, and it's not puffed up.
00:15:09.40\00:15:12.61
It does not behave rudely,
it does not seek its own,
00:15:12.64\00:15:16.31
it's not provoked
and it thinks no evil.
00:15:16.34\00:15:19.15
It does not rejoice in iniquity
but rejoices is in the truth,
00:15:19.18\00:15:23.82
it bears all
things, believes all things,
00:15:23.85\00:15:26.29
hopes all things and
it endures all things."
00:15:26.32\00:15:29.42
Yeah, it's a
beautiful, beautiful section.
00:15:29.46\00:15:31.76
Now the first point
that we should make here
00:15:31.79\00:15:36.43
is that
everything that Paul says
00:15:36.46\00:15:38.83
about love is a verb.
00:15:38.87\00:15:42.50
Okay.
00:15:42.54\00:15:43.87
Now usually when we
get this into English
00:15:43.91\00:15:46.24
and we say I like the way
your New King James said it,
00:15:46.27\00:15:50.48
"Love suffers long."
00:15:50.51\00:15:52.31
Yeah, mine says, my ESV
says, "love is patient."
00:15:52.35\00:15:56.99
Well, patient is an adjective.
00:15:57.02\00:15:59.09
"Love is patient
and kind," it says.
00:15:59.12\00:16:01.26
And kind is an adjective.
00:16:01.29\00:16:03.29
But actually, in
Greek these are all verbs.
00:16:03.32\00:16:06.70
All right, so the
first thing to remember
00:16:06.73\00:16:08.30
and this one he's defining love,
00:16:08.33\00:16:10.33
is that love is
something you do.
00:16:10.37\00:16:12.63
Yeah, it's action.
00:16:12.67\00:16:14.00
Yeah, it's an action.
00:16:14.04\00:16:15.37
Now there are the--
00:16:15.40\00:16:16.74
some of these verbs
are kind of stative,
00:16:16.77\00:16:18.11
that means like being a
kind of sense sort to it
00:16:18.14\00:16:20.64
so it's not wrong to translate
love is patient and kind.
00:16:20.68\00:16:24.05
But I like trying to put it
into everything in verbal sense
00:16:24.08\00:16:28.72
in translating so
love acts patiently,
00:16:28.75\00:16:31.85
love acts kindly, so
people get that look,
00:16:31.89\00:16:34.69
love is something you do,
00:16:34.72\00:16:37.16
which is quite reminiscent
of the Old Testament word hesed
00:16:37.19\00:16:41.20
that we studied earlier,
00:16:41.23\00:16:42.93
which focuses on action,
things that you do for people,
00:16:42.96\00:16:48.24
you do
loving-kindness towards them,
00:16:48.27\00:16:50.74
God does
loving-kindness towards us.
00:16:50.77\00:16:52.91
So the love of
God is an active love.
00:16:52.94\00:16:56.61
And the love of God
in the Christians life
00:16:56.64\00:16:59.15
is to be an active
kind of a love and--
00:16:59.18\00:17:02.98
So basically, now
we've got away from that,
00:17:03.02\00:17:05.35
from say the Old Testament.
00:17:05.39\00:17:07.82
And now we're going to
more and where we are right now,
00:17:07.86\00:17:11.29
more of an adjective type.
00:17:11.33\00:17:13.26
Well, the way
sometimes it's translated
00:17:13.29\00:17:14.90
but actually Paul is verbal.
00:17:14.93\00:17:16.67
Yeah, now he is
coming back around though
00:17:16.70\00:17:18.43
now I see bringing it
back to their attention.
00:17:18.47\00:17:20.60
Well, he is
bringing to their attention
00:17:20.64\00:17:22.27
but he what he
really wants to show them
00:17:22.30\00:17:23.84
is that love is
something you do.
00:17:23.87\00:17:26.27
Okay.
00:17:26.31\00:17:27.64
Which is honoring, okay.
00:17:27.68\00:17:29.01
Here, here is a church
00:17:29.04\00:17:30.38
that's all
messed up with factions
00:17:30.41\00:17:31.75
and sexual misconduct
and all kinds of things
00:17:31.78\00:17:34.05
and he says, what you need to do
00:17:34.08\00:17:35.42
is get back to
the actions of love.
00:17:35.45\00:17:37.32
Agape love, that
is the love of God.
00:17:37.35\00:17:39.69
Now it's really
interesting to look at this.
00:17:39.72\00:17:42.36
There are six things
he affirms about love,
00:17:42.39\00:17:45.46
he says, love is like
this or love acts this way.
00:17:45.49\00:17:48.26
And there is kind of
two transitional terms
00:17:48.30\00:17:50.67
and then there
are seven negations.
00:17:50.70\00:17:53.30
There are things that love does
00:17:53.34\00:17:55.44
and the things
that love does not do.
00:17:55.47\00:17:57.61
Okay, so the,
00:17:57.64\00:17:58.97
the six
affirmations are like this,
00:17:59.01\00:18:00.88
love acts patiently,
you might say love waits.
00:18:00.91\00:18:04.15
Amen.
00:18:04.18\00:18:05.51
"And love acts kindly,
that is, love shows mercy.
00:18:05.55\00:18:09.85
It keeps all confidential,
00:18:09.88\00:18:12.42
it believes in
all, it hopes for all,
00:18:12.45\00:18:14.96
it patiently
endures all things."
00:18:14.99\00:18:17.29
Okay. Those are
the affirmations.
00:18:17.33\00:18:19.66
Then there is
these two transitions.
00:18:19.69\00:18:21.30
I call them transitions
00:18:21.33\00:18:22.66
because they
kind of link together
00:18:22.70\00:18:24.73
kind of like hooks.
00:18:24.77\00:18:26.57
One says, it does
not rejoice in injustice
00:18:26.60\00:18:29.04
of course, that's a negation
00:18:29.07\00:18:30.61
but then it says, it
rejoices in the truth.
00:18:30.64\00:18:33.24
All right, so those
two kinds of go together.
00:18:33.27\00:18:36.08
And then he comes to
his some of his negations.
00:18:36.11\00:18:38.98
He says, it does
not act jealously.
00:18:39.01\00:18:42.28
It does not brag,
00:18:42.32\00:18:43.69
some of this comes
before the transition part.
00:18:43.72\00:18:45.82
It does not
jealously, does not brag,
00:18:45.85\00:18:47.76
it does not put on airs,
it does not act shamefully,
00:18:47.79\00:18:50.69
it does not seek
its own advantage,
00:18:50.73\00:18:52.23
it does not burst out in anger,
00:18:52.26\00:18:53.76
it does not
keep track of wrongs.
00:18:53.80\00:18:56.50
Now if I said that to you
00:18:56.53\00:18:58.77
and you were to look at
all these terminologies,
00:18:58.80\00:19:01.00
what, is there any kind of
overriding concept says to you,
00:19:01.04\00:19:05.07
wow, that's what
love is really like?
00:19:05.11\00:19:06.88
Yeah.
00:19:06.91\00:19:08.48
Well, yes.
00:19:08.51\00:19:11.15
Yeah, what would
you, what kind of concept
00:19:11.18\00:19:13.65
especially links up
for you, you have some--
00:19:13.68\00:19:16.05
Let me share a little bit. Okay.
00:19:16.08\00:19:18.75
I'm interested
in the focus here on
00:19:18.79\00:19:21.36
it keeps confidences
00:19:21.39\00:19:22.72
I like the idea
that it doesn't--
00:19:22.76\00:19:27.73
when, when somebody goes wrong,
00:19:27.76\00:19:29.83
it doesn't parade that
out in front of other people.
00:19:29.86\00:19:32.33
Yes.
00:19:32.37\00:19:33.70
It keeps quite
when things go bad
00:19:33.74\00:19:35.60
but when the person does right,
00:19:35.64\00:19:37.44
it's there
cheering on the sidelines.
00:19:37.47\00:19:39.01
Amen. Affirmations, yes.
00:19:39.04\00:19:40.48
Yeah, it gives them affirmation
so it keeps quite over failure.
00:19:40.51\00:19:44.41
Yes. Yeah.
00:19:44.45\00:19:46.88
I also noticed there
is an interesting focus
00:19:46.92\00:19:49.58
here on the issue of anger.
00:19:49.62\00:19:50.95
Yes.
00:19:50.99\00:19:52.32
It does not burst out in anger.
00:19:52.35\00:19:54.52
The term actually we get,
00:19:54.56\00:19:56.22
an English word
from of this, paroxysm.
00:19:56.26\00:19:59.49
That's when somebody just
oh, just burst out in anger,
00:19:59.53\00:20:02.63
a paroxysm of
anger they call it.
00:20:02.66\00:20:04.30
It comes from a Greek
word, that's right in here.
00:20:04.33\00:20:06.67
And love doesn't act that way,
00:20:06.70\00:20:09.94
you know, when in the
home somebody you know,
00:20:09.97\00:20:14.24
burst off into anger,
that's not the loving way.
00:20:14.28\00:20:16.88
That's not the Christian
way to approach things.
00:20:16.91\00:20:18.75
Oh, boy, just seems like,
00:20:18.78\00:20:20.35
boy, you think of
today domestic violence.
00:20:20.38\00:20:22.98
Yes. Man, that's--
00:20:23.02\00:20:25.15
That's completely
out of line. Yeah.
00:20:25.19\00:20:27.19
I mean, wow, this is
really interesting stuff here
00:20:27.22\00:20:31.23
because today,
we've got a long ways away
00:20:31.26\00:20:35.33
from verses 4 through 7 here.
00:20:35.36\00:20:38.80
Now I just give a little preview
00:20:38.83\00:20:41.10
when, when we're gonna
talk about Christian marriage.
00:20:41.14\00:20:43.81
This is the kind of love
that Paul is talking about
00:20:43.84\00:20:46.54
in Christian marriage.
00:20:46.57\00:20:47.91
This is what he
expects people to, to do.
00:20:47.94\00:20:51.08
There is another
interesting here that
00:20:51.11\00:20:52.91
it, it doesn't
keep track of wrongs.
00:20:52.95\00:20:56.15
Amen.
00:20:56.18\00:20:57.52
You and I are
probably old enough
00:20:57.55\00:20:58.89
to remember what
green stamps are.
00:20:58.92\00:21:00.39
Yes.
00:21:00.42\00:21:01.76
S&H green stamp.
00:21:01.79\00:21:03.12
Yeah, S&H green stamp,
we have to explain this
00:21:03.16\00:21:04.99
for those who
are little younger.
00:21:05.03\00:21:06.46
You used to go to as a
store and when buy some food,
00:21:06.49\00:21:09.23
they would have
this little machine
00:21:09.26\00:21:10.60
and they would, all
the food that you got,
00:21:10.63\00:21:12.67
you got little stamps
00:21:12.70\00:21:14.50
and then they
had all these books
00:21:14.54\00:21:15.87
that you would glue them into.
00:21:15.90\00:21:17.61
Probably people today are like
00:21:17.64\00:21:18.97
"Now, why would
you want to do that?"
00:21:19.01\00:21:20.61
But you would glue them in
00:21:20.64\00:21:21.98
and then they had
these redemption stores.
00:21:22.01\00:21:24.15
And you can take
like 20 of these books
00:21:24.18\00:21:26.28
and get a toaster.
00:21:26.31\00:21:27.75
You know, and if you saved
up thousands of these books,
00:21:27.78\00:21:30.49
you could get a trip to Hawaii.
00:21:30.52\00:21:32.29
I remember--
00:21:32.32\00:21:34.42
So you know, you
saved up the green stamps.
00:21:34.46\00:21:36.56
Now some people are saving
green stamps in their marriage.
00:21:36.59\00:21:41.13
And what they do
is, they know that this,
00:21:41.16\00:21:44.33
you know, kind of
this instruction says,
00:21:44.37\00:21:46.23
you know, you're not
supposed to act in this way,
00:21:46.27\00:21:49.40
you're not
supposed to get angry.
00:21:49.44\00:21:50.77
All right.
00:21:50.81\00:21:52.14
And so they,
they don't get angry,
00:21:52.17\00:21:55.14
they don't burst out in anger
00:21:55.18\00:21:56.88
but they put the
green stamp in the book.
00:21:56.91\00:22:00.35
But you know, but
I'm gonna remember
00:22:00.38\00:22:02.92
what happened here you know,
00:22:02.95\00:22:04.35
and then they, so
they keep adding them on
00:22:04.39\00:22:06.25
into the book you know,
00:22:06.29\00:22:07.62
and then when they get
the last stamp in the book,
00:22:07.66\00:22:10.86
some little things you
know, she burned the toast
00:22:10.89\00:22:13.13
or something like
that, some little thing,
00:22:13.16\00:22:15.03
cash in the book
and explodes in anger
00:22:15.06\00:22:17.40
and the other,
your spouse is like--
00:22:17.43\00:22:19.90
"Uh, what did I do?"
00:22:19.93\00:22:23.27
Because the person
didn't communicate overtime
00:22:23.30\00:22:25.74
to keep the other
person in aware of,
00:22:25.77\00:22:29.04
you know, what was hurting them,
00:22:29.08\00:22:30.41
what was painful to them,
00:22:30.45\00:22:32.01
where there were
challenge is in their life.
00:22:32.05\00:22:34.02
And they just
burst out at the end.
00:22:34.05\00:22:36.38
I mean, that's not
really the way of love
00:22:36.42\00:22:38.79
and keep each other--
00:22:38.82\00:22:40.16
From as far away
00:22:40.19\00:22:42.59
as love suffers
long and it's kind.
00:22:42.62\00:22:45.63
I mean, that's
really getting away from.
00:22:45.66\00:22:47.83
But I notice, I know that
00:22:47.86\00:22:50.77
lot of this goes
on today in homes
00:22:50.80\00:22:52.53
and it just breaks your heart.
00:22:52.57\00:22:53.97
Yeah.
00:22:54.00\00:22:55.34
I know that, Shelley
and I do a lot of counseling
00:22:55.37\00:22:59.41
and conflict
resolution is a big one.
00:22:59.44\00:23:02.31
That's just one, if you
ask what would like to work on,
00:23:02.34\00:23:05.38
how do we handle conflicts?
00:23:05.41\00:23:08.75
And oh, this is fantastic.
00:23:08.78\00:23:11.22
Well, let's go back
to 1 Corinthians 13.
00:23:11.25\00:23:13.99
So we got to go now
down to the last section.
00:23:14.02\00:23:17.99
Which is all about
00:23:18.03\00:23:19.36
how Paul illustrates
the supremacy of love?
00:23:19.39\00:23:21.20
The supremacy of love.
00:23:21.23\00:23:22.56
So remember he has placed this
00:23:22.60\00:23:24.73
in the context of
the spiritual gifts
00:23:24.77\00:23:27.40
that he's talking about
where the Corinthians for them,
00:23:27.44\00:23:31.47
I mean, speaking in tongues,
00:23:31.51\00:23:32.94
speaking prophecy
whatever you think that is,
00:23:32.97\00:23:35.84
you know, they were, they were,
that was big stuff for them.
00:23:35.88\00:23:38.28
This was like you go to church
00:23:38.31\00:23:39.68
and this is a
really where it's at.
00:23:39.71\00:23:41.68
And so Paul comes back to that
and he says, love never ends.
00:23:41.72\00:23:47.69
As for prophecies
00:23:47.72\00:23:50.26
oh, that things
that you love so much,
00:23:50.29\00:23:52.39
Corinthian Church, that
stuff that's really mean to you,
00:23:52.43\00:23:55.43
guess what's
gonna happen to that.
00:23:55.46\00:23:57.53
It's all gonna pass away.
00:23:57.57\00:23:59.13
Oh, those tongues
you love to speak in,
00:23:59.17\00:24:01.74
they will cease.
00:24:01.77\00:24:03.10
They'll vanish.
00:24:03.14\00:24:04.47
Knowledge, it will pass away.
00:24:04.51\00:24:06.51
Well, why Paul, why
is it gonna pass away?
00:24:06.54\00:24:08.68
"For we know in part,
and we prophesy in part."
00:24:08.71\00:24:12.88
So our prophecy, even today,
00:24:12.91\00:24:15.52
you know, we study the
prophecies of the Bible,
00:24:15.55\00:24:18.22
they are wonderful prophecies.
00:24:18.25\00:24:20.06
But they don't
explain every single thing.
00:24:20.09\00:24:22.62
They're just partial.
00:24:22.66\00:24:24.33
We're like people
who were looking through,
00:24:24.36\00:24:28.36
you know, just the
fog trying to understand
00:24:28.40\00:24:30.80
where things are headed,
when is Jesus coming back
00:24:30.83\00:24:33.74
and some of
those kinds of issues.
00:24:33.77\00:24:35.97
And Paul says, you
know, as good as prophecy is,
00:24:36.00\00:24:39.21
as good as tongue is are
they, they're just partial.
00:24:39.24\00:24:43.31
But when the perfect comes
00:24:43.35\00:24:44.68
so now, now he's
going to start talking about
00:24:44.71\00:24:48.68
several comparisons
00:24:48.72\00:24:50.42
to show how
partiality is replaced by
00:24:50.45\00:24:54.32
that which is complete,
that which is full, okay.
00:24:54.36\00:24:58.19
So he says, when
the perfect comes
00:24:58.23\00:25:01.43
the partial will pass away
00:25:01.46\00:25:03.03
and he tells a
story about childhood.
00:25:03.06\00:25:04.67
Amen.
00:25:04.70\00:25:06.03
When I was a child,
I spoke like a child,
00:25:06.07\00:25:09.07
I thought like a child,
I reasoned like a child.
00:25:09.10\00:25:12.54
Now I have some grandchildren,
do you have some grandchildren?
00:25:12.57\00:25:14.78
No, but we have a lot
of spiritual grandchildren.
00:25:14.81\00:25:17.51
Oh, that's nice.
00:25:17.55\00:25:18.88
Amen. That's nice.
00:25:18.91\00:25:20.25
I've got five grandchildren,
I'm a very rich man.
00:25:20.28\00:25:21.75
You're a very rich man.
00:25:21.78\00:25:24.82
And those are the
kids-- And it's so exciting.
00:25:24.85\00:25:26.59
Oh my, I've got this
little three year old
00:25:26.62\00:25:28.52
and he's talking you
know, he's making little senses
00:25:28.56\00:25:30.86
and describing things you know,
00:25:30.89\00:25:33.03
so it's, talking
with him is so cute.
00:25:33.06\00:25:35.63
But if that was
what was happening
00:25:35.66\00:25:37.13
when he was 15,
00:25:37.17\00:25:38.77
or when he was 20
that would be sad.
00:25:38.80\00:25:41.24
We got, we got an issue.
00:25:41.27\00:25:42.60
So Paul says,
when I became a man,
00:25:42.64\00:25:45.61
I gave up childish way.
00:25:45.64\00:25:46.98
So he's-- he's
really illustrating
00:25:47.01\00:25:48.44
how the partial is gonna
be replaced by the mature.
00:25:48.48\00:25:53.82
"For now we see
in a mirror dimly."
00:25:53.85\00:25:56.79
I like the way the, the
New English Version puts
00:25:56.82\00:26:00.59
that says, "we see the puzzling
reflections in the mirror."
00:26:00.62\00:26:05.23
The mirror is back
then we're not shiny
00:26:05.26\00:26:07.00
and like ours--
00:26:07.03\00:26:09.23
You know, he says, we
see the puzzling reflections,
00:26:09.26\00:26:11.50
like we can't totally understand
00:26:11.53\00:26:13.64
where things are headed
00:26:13.67\00:26:15.07
but then face to face,
from where we get that song
00:26:15.10\00:26:18.24
"Face to face
with Christ my savior.
00:26:18.27\00:26:20.58
"So now I know in
part, then I shall know fully
00:26:20.61\00:26:22.74
even as I've been fully known."
00:26:22.78\00:26:24.41
So then he comes to the
three that always abide,
00:26:24.45\00:26:26.38
faith, hope and love.
00:26:26.41\00:26:29.18
But he says, that the
greatest of these items is love.
00:26:29.22\00:26:33.42
Isn't it a beautiful chapter?
00:26:33.46\00:26:34.79
I mean, I just to-- yes, it is.
00:26:34.82\00:26:38.26
We have an older couple
00:26:38.29\00:26:40.10
that every Sabbath they
read this to each other.
00:26:40.13\00:26:44.20
You know, and
I've always thought
00:26:44.23\00:26:45.57
that's my intention,
00:26:45.60\00:26:47.04
Shirley, is to do that some day,
00:26:47.07\00:26:50.51
you know, whenever I get pass
00:26:50.54\00:26:51.91
this childish
stage into manhood,
00:26:51.94\00:26:55.91
well, I want to do
it because I've just--
00:26:55.94\00:26:57.55
Yeah, Ellen White actually says
00:26:57.58\00:26:58.91
that it would be good to
read this chapter everyday,
00:26:58.95\00:27:01.38
we go to meditate on
it, you know, memorize it.
00:27:01.42\00:27:04.32
And it really
illustrates the kind of love
00:27:04.35\00:27:08.12
that is to be in our marriages.
00:27:08.16\00:27:09.49
Now the only
way to get this love
00:27:09.52\00:27:11.89
is for the power
of the Holy Spirit,
00:27:11.93\00:27:13.40
the power of God
to work in our life
00:27:13.43\00:27:14.76
because it's not something
we can manufacture on our own.
00:27:14.80\00:27:17.33
Yes. Not at all.
00:27:17.37\00:27:18.70
You'll never be
in completely manhood
00:27:18.73\00:27:22.57
or adulthood or maturity
00:27:22.60\00:27:25.11
without the aid
of the Holy Spirit.
00:27:25.14\00:27:26.54
Exactly. Amen, amen.
00:27:26.57\00:27:28.41
All right.
00:27:28.44\00:27:29.78
So it's a, it's a
wonderful passage,
00:27:29.81\00:27:32.01
enjoyable to, to ponder
00:27:32.05\00:27:34.25
and to understand
the great definition
00:27:34.28\00:27:36.58
the Paul brings to us.
00:27:36.62\00:27:37.95
This is the definition
we have to keep in mind
00:27:37.99\00:27:39.62
as we come to Ephesians 5
00:27:39.65\00:27:41.12
when we talk about
Christian marriage.
00:27:41.16\00:27:42.96
Agape love, agape love,
just remember that, A-G-A-P-E.
00:27:42.99\00:27:48.33
I want to thank you
00:27:48.36\00:27:49.70
for spending this
30 minutes with us.
00:27:49.73\00:27:51.73
I hope that you've gleaned
some affirmation over here.
00:27:51.77\00:27:56.34
It helps make some things clear.
00:27:56.37\00:27:58.37
I love the way that
Dr. Tom Sheperd teaches.
00:27:58.41\00:28:02.51
Calmly, resolutely and just,
00:28:02.54\00:28:06.82
just thank you
Jesus for being here.
00:28:06.85\00:28:08.95
God bless you.
00:28:08.98\00:28:10.42