Participants: Steve Cassimy (Host), Abraham Jules
Series Code: POH
Program Code: POH000011
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00:03 Where can you find hope for the hopeless,
00:07 opportunity for transformation, 00:11 peace amid life's storms? 00:15 Only in God's free gift of eternal life. 00:20 From New York, join us on the Pathway of Hope. 00:31 You probably know it from memory, 00:33 you heard it so many times that its meaning 00:36 and message have lost their impact on you. 00:41 On Valentine's Day, 00:43 it is a favorite reference passage 00:45 for those in love. 00:47 At weddings, couples are reminded 00:49 of its significance in their relationship. 00:53 At church services, the preachers will quote, 00:56 The Apostle Paul's admonition that 00:59 even if you can speak like an angel, 01:01 move mountains, 01:03 give all that you have to the poor, 01:06 give your body to be burned, 01:08 but you do not have it, you are nothing. 01:13 Our preaching passage is familiar to most of us. 01:17 Listen now as 01:19 Dr. A J. Jules leads us in a study 01:22 of this fascinating and familiar chapter 01:26 of 1 Corinthians Chapter 13. 01:31 Seek the Lord 01:34 Seek the Lord 01:38 Seek the Lord 01:41 Seek the Lord 01:45 You love better Seek the Lord 01:47 While He may be found Call upon Him while He is near 01:53 You got a soul That it will be saved 01:56 Come to Jesus today 01:59 Seek the Lord 02:02 Seek the Lord 02:06 Seek the Lord 02:09 Seek the Lord 02:13 You know better Seek the Lord 02:15 While He may be found Call upon Him while He is near 02:20 You got a soul That it will be saved 02:24 Come to Jesus today 02:27 Seek Him Seek Him 02:31 Seek the Lord While He may be found 02:34 Seek Him Seek Him 02:38 Seek the Lord While He may be found 02:41 I hear the voice of Jesus say 02:45 Come unto Me and rest 02:48 Lay down, thou weary One Lay down 02:52 Thy head upon My breast 02:55 I came to Jesus as 02:58 I was Weary and worn and sad 03:02 I found in Him a resting place 03:06 For He has made me glad 03:10 Let the wicked forsake his way 03:13 And the unrighteous man His thoughts 03:16 Seek the Lord Seek the Lord 03:20 Come to Jesus today 03:23 Let the wicked forsake his way 03:26 And the unrighteous man His thoughts 03:29 Seek the Lord Seek the Lord 03:33 Come to Jesus today 03:35 Seek the Lord Seek the Lord 03:41 Seek the Lord Seek the Lord 03:48 You love better Seek the Lord 03:50 While He may be found Call upon Him while He is near 03:56 You got a soul That it will be saved 04:03 Come to Jesus Come to Jesus 04:07 Come to Jesus Come 04:11 Come to Jesus today 04:23 Hallelujah. Amen. 04:29 Let us pray. 04:33 Gracious Lord and our loving Father, 04:38 You have taught us how to love each other, 04:43 You have shared Your love with us 04:45 by sending Your Son to die on an old rugged cross. 04:51 We today investigate Your teachings on love 04:55 and we pray that you may make us 04:57 a more loving people. 05:01 Thank You, oh, God, for coming into this world 05:04 and demonstrating Your amazing grace and love. 05:10 We thank You for Your sacrifice on our part. 05:15 We thank You for Your promises. 05:18 We thank You for the demonstration 05:19 of that godly love. 05:22 In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen. 05:27 Today's message 05:30 "What's Love Got To Do With It." 05:34 And our focus will be 05:38 the Book of 1 Corinthians Chapter 13 all 13 verses. 05:43 We'll talk about what God expects us 05:45 to be like and look like and how we ought to act. 05:50 He's patient. 05:52 And that He does not treat us the way we deserve. 05:55 When our sins demand our lives, 05:57 He says, "My grace is sufficient for you." 06:00 He's long suffering 06:02 when our passions lead us down the road of perdition 06:04 and we spiral into a pit of moral morass. 06:08 He says, "Come unto Me, 06:10 all ye who labor and are heavy laden, 06:12 and I will give you rest." 06:14 He's long suffering. 06:15 He does not bring His wrath upon our rebellion. 06:19 When we are stressed out, He gives us peace. 06:23 Hence, when scripture tells us to love, 06:26 it is saying that we must demonstrate Christ 06:29 like character. 06:31 Now these two positive qualities of love 06:33 and now followed by eight verbs, 06:35 which express what love is not like 06:38 or what love does not do. 06:40 Paul understood that 06:42 human beings naturally understand 06:43 what is cast in the negative light better than 06:47 what is cast in the positive light. 06:50 Now it must be clear that 06:51 although these are described using the negative, 06:55 in reality it pinpoints 06:57 or underlines a positive reality. 06:59 For example, Paul says that love does not envy. 07:03 By that he means that love is pleasant and desirable. 07:09 It is the opposite of being envious. 07:13 Love does not envy. 07:15 What is in view here? 07:17 It's that Paul does not say that envy is okay. 07:21 He says, "Love does not bring strife, 07:25 or contention, or rivalry." 07:28 It does not seek to bring divisions among people 07:31 or between people. 07:33 In short, love is not a game like basketball or football. 07:37 It does not include competition. 07:40 Love by its very nature is settled. 07:43 It does not need such competition. 07:46 The verb itself indicates that love does not long 07:51 for the betterment of oneself 07:53 and the detriment or downfall of another. 07:56 In short, love places the other beyond oneself. 08:00 Hence love does not envy. 08:05 And then the King James Version says, 08:07 love does not boast. 08:10 As a matter of fact it says, it vaunteth not itself. 08:14 Here Paul uses a word that is found only one time. 08:20 Literally it means that love does not behave 08:23 like a braggart. 08:25 It's not a windbag, a boaster 08:28 who only makes empty, vacuous noise. 08:31 Love is not a bag of hot air 08:33 calling attention to one's action and one's self. 08:37 In short, to love and to boast are incompatible 08:41 because boasting draws undue attention 08:45 of others to oneself. 08:47 It cannot be quantified as love. 08:50 Love does not care for this kind of attention. 08:54 It cares only for the good of others. 09:00 By implication, another powerful lesson 09:04 is brought to the foreground. 09:06 Love does not do even good things 09:10 for the other person simply 09:12 so as to bring attention to yourself. 09:15 You don't help so that people may take note 09:17 of what you're doing 09:18 and then aggrandized and compliment you. 09:21 Sometimes we do things for people 09:24 and even baptize these good deeds by saying, 09:27 it's for the Lord or praise the Lord. 09:30 When what we're really interested 09:34 in is the applause of people, such is not an act of love. 09:39 But what I may call baptized pride. 09:43 In such a case, 09:44 it's not sanctified, it's just wet. 09:48 Love is not proud. 09:50 This means that love is not puffed up, 09:53 it does not operate under pretense of arrogance. 09:58 An arrogant person is someone 10:01 who has an exaggerated opinion of his or her own importance 10:06 or his or her own merit or ability. 10:08 In short, Paul is saying that 10:10 to love is the opposite of being conceited and disdainful. 10:15 The opposite of being full of pride and insolence, 10:18 the opposite of being full of oneself 10:21 and short on others. 10:23 Love is not interested 10:26 in lauding yourself over another. 10:28 This is nothing else but pomposity. 10:32 Instead of being arrogant, Paul is saying, by implication, 10:34 that love is modest and polite. 10:38 It shows diffidence 10:39 and gives differential treatment 10:41 to the other. 10:42 In the most basic sense, 10:44 Paul is saying that love is polite. 10:47 Love knows how to say thank you. 10:49 And excuse me, please. 10:52 This leads us directly to the fourth point 10:54 that love is not rude. 10:58 As the King James says, 11:00 it does not behave itself unseemly. 11:03 The verb itself speaks about behavior 11:06 that is shameful or disgraceful. 11:09 So the intention here is that love does not behave 11:13 in a shameful or disgraceful manner. 11:17 Love is mannerly. 11:18 It does not treat the other in an unseemly way. 11:22 The opposite of rude is to be polite. 11:25 A person who claims to love another, 11:27 but speaks or acts rudely is not manifesting love. 11:32 He may be infatuated with your body, 11:34 but rude words actually say I don't love you. 11:38 She may be excited about what you'll look like, 11:41 but rude words actually say, I don't love you. 11:44 He may be captivated 11:46 by your shape and figure, your job, 11:48 but rude words to you actually say, 11:51 I don't love you. 11:54 On the other hand, you may not always say 11:56 those three little words you like to hear, 11:58 but if he treats you with respect, 12:00 his politeness is saying, I love you. 12:03 She may not do things the way your mother did them, 12:06 but if she takes care of you, her politeness is saying, 12:10 I love you. 12:12 He may not be as expressive as others, 12:14 but if he treats you with the delight reserved 12:17 for loyalty, his politeness is saying, I love you. 12:22 Love is action. 12:27 Love is not self-seeking. 12:30 In other words, love does not seek our own way. 12:33 In short, love does not behave in the modern idea 12:38 that after I am served and satisfied 12:41 then I will turn to give to you what is left over 12:45 or as the adage puts it when I am okay, 12:48 then everybody and everything is okay. 12:51 Love is not selfish. 12:53 Love is not interested with self-gain 12:56 and self-justification. 12:58 Instead, it is interested 13:00 with the worth of the other person, 13:02 even the enemy. 13:04 Indeed, this is the idea of Romans 15:1-3. 13:08 When it says that Jesus did not please Himself, 13:11 but He took the insults of others. 13:14 He was not self-seeking. 13:17 It is selfishness in marriage 13:20 and relationships that often brings destructions. 13:24 Because of this green eyed monster, 13:26 people are willing to give only 50% of themselves. 13:30 In such cases, let me remind you that 13:33 50% plus 50% does not equal 100%. 13:39 You have to give up selfishness and devote 100% of yourself 13:44 in order to derive 100% satisfaction. 13:48 Love is not easily angered. 13:52 Now this means that it is not easily provoked. 13:56 This harks back 13:57 to the very first equality of love 13:59 which is long suffering. 14:01 Love shows forbearance and patience. 14:03 You see, anger generally expresses itself 14:06 in hurtful words and ways. 14:09 So love is incompatible with which, 14:11 that which brings hurt and increases anxiety. 14:16 Love thinks no evil. 14:18 Literally, this means that love does not keep 14:21 our record of wrongs. 14:23 It does not devise evil against anyone. 14:28 Neither does it keep a record of those things. 14:31 Now the justice system around the world 14:34 keeps a record of anything 14:36 and everything wrong that is reported to it. 14:39 That is the nature of the system. 14:41 But this is not the nature of love. 14:44 Love does not keep records of wrong 14:47 or reminders of the wrongs that we have committed. 14:51 In other words, love practices forgiveness. 14:56 Even though the text does not say directly, 15:00 the intent is clear. 15:03 Since love refuses to bring up and resurrect the past 15:07 with its hurt wrongs and ailments, 15:09 it means that love is by nature forgiving. 15:13 Sometimes when people do wrong, we refuse to forgive them. 15:18 Whenever the opportunity comes around, 15:21 we proverbially throw it in their faces. 15:24 Scripture intones that this is opposite 15:28 to the character of love. 15:30 Love keeps no record of wrong. 15:33 It is forgiving. 15:34 This is the very nature of God. 15:36 It was God in Christ 15:38 who refused to throw our sins in our face 15:40 according to the 2 Corinthians 5:19. 15:43 Instead, He chose to reconcile us unto Himself. 15:46 To be certain, love does not try 15:48 to settle the score, 15:50 it is not interested in vengeance or revenge. 15:52 Love attempts to reconcile. 15:56 The reconciling nature of love 15:58 is now elaborated upon in verse 6 16:01 when Paul says, "Love does not delight in evil, 16:05 but rejoices in the truth." 16:07 There are two sides of this. 16:09 These are two sides of the same coin, 16:12 since the same verb is used. 16:15 Love is not interested in the wrongs 16:17 or mistakes that people make. 16:19 Instead, love forgives those mistakes and rejoices 16:23 in every victory gain rejoices, 16:26 in every act of kindness that is made, 16:28 in every act of forgiveness offered, 16:31 in every sorrow that is forwarded. 16:33 This all brings the light to true love and true lovers. 16:38 Love hates evil. 16:41 That's why Scripture says that it rejoices in the truth. 16:45 Interestingly, the Hebrew Bible the word eh'-meth 16:48 translated truth is the same word 16:50 from which we derive the English word amen. 16:53 So since we believe in love that loves the truth, say amen. 16:58 Love is that which deals truthfully. 17:01 It is the amen of the soul. 17:03 What this intense is that love 17:06 is faithful and always remains loyal 17:10 and concreted in truth. 17:12 And when love is tested and remains loyal, 17:16 it must be awarded a loud amen. 17:21 Verse 7 now wraps up the finale with a machine gun firing 17:27 of verbs concerning love. 17:30 Paul says, "Love bears all things, 17:33 believes all things, 17:36 hopes all things, endures all things." 17:40 Now the structure of this verse 17:41 indicates that the first element 17:44 bears all and the fourth element 17:46 endures all, deal with the present. 17:50 In other words, 17:52 Paul is saying in the present life, 17:54 love seeks to protect and love perseveres. 17:57 Now the second and third elements 17:59 point more toward the future. 18:02 In other words, Paul is saying 18:03 that love will always trust, love will always hope. 18:08 At stake are now the then and the now, 18:12 both in the present and in the future. 18:14 The character of love is such that 18:17 you can put up with everything and with anything. 18:22 When hardships come, love can put up with them. 18:26 When difficulties come, love can put up with them. 18:29 When strains and stresses come, love can put up with them. 18:34 When the bills are high and the money is low, 18:36 love can put up with them. 18:38 Why is this the case? 18:40 Because love never ceases to have faith 18:43 and never ceases to hope. 18:49 Love is tenacious in the present. 18:53 It is confident of the future. 18:56 And because of that it allows the person 18:58 to deal with every kind of circumstance and situation. 19:03 Putting it poetically, 19:05 Song of Solomon 8:6-7 captures the intentionality. 19:10 It says, "Love is strong as death. 19:14 Many waters cannot quench love, 19:16 neither can the flood drown it." 19:19 Love has an enduring quality 19:22 that reaches beyond the highest mountain 19:25 that goes deeper than the deepest valley 19:27 that expands wider than the greatest diameter. 19:30 Love is enduring. 19:32 I like how the contemporary English version 19:34 puts this verse from Paul. 19:36 It captures the idea totally. 19:37 It says, "Love is always supportive, 19:40 loyal, hopeful, and trusting." 19:44 The English poet Shakespeare puts it in this famous line. 19:49 "Love is not love that alters when it alteration finds." 19:54 Paul now leads us 19:56 into the third important feature, 19:59 the permanence of love. 20:01 Listen to verses 8 to 12. 20:02 Today's English version puts it in plain language. 20:06 Love is eternal. 20:09 There are inspired messages, but they are temporary. 20:13 There are gifts of speaking in strange tongues, 20:17 but they will cease. 20:19 There is knowledge, but it will pass. 20:23 Five gifts of knowledge 20:25 and of inspired messages are only partial. 20:29 But when what is perfect comes 20:32 then what is partial will disappear. 20:36 When I was a child, 20:38 my speech feeling and thinking were all those of a child. 20:42 Now that I am an adult, 20:44 I have no more use for childish ways. 20:48 What we now see is like a dim image in a mirror, 20:52 then we shall see face to face. 20:56 What I know now is only partial then it will be complete, 21:01 as complete as God's knowledge of me. 21:05 The permanence of love 21:07 is immediately brought to the forefront 21:10 when it says, love never fails. 21:16 What the apostle is teaching 21:19 is that love has a lasting 21:23 and abiding quality. 21:25 By nature, it is durable, eternal and everlasting, 21:29 immovable, impersonal, 21:31 and immortal, perennial, perpetual, 21:33 and persistent, stable and steadfast. 21:39 The permanence of love is highlighted 21:42 by the following contrast 21:44 given in the rest of the verses. 21:47 This contrast is introduced by the word but. 21:52 Notice how Paul puts it as the original Greek testifies. 21:57 Love never fails, 21:58 but immediately the reader understands 22:02 the impermanent changing nature of everything 22:06 which is to follow. 22:07 Interestingly, the things 22:09 that were important to the Corinthians 22:11 are the very things that Paul now says 22:13 are impermanent. 22:15 The things that they cherish 22:17 are the very things that will pass away. 22:21 So when there are prophecies, they will cease. 22:25 Where there are tons of languages, 22:28 they will be still. 22:31 Where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 22:34 In other words, the things which we cherish, 22:38 which we put our assets into, 22:40 these are the very things that will fade. 22:46 They will certainly dry up like the crabgrass 22:50 when the heat of the sun stinks it. 22:53 In short, Paul is saying 22:55 that although the spiritual gifts 22:56 are wonderful, they are only for the present. 23:00 The nature of things even as important 23:03 as the spiritual gifts is impermanent. 23:07 To be certain, they are good, they are wonderful, 23:11 but they do not have eternal quality. 23:16 Only love has an eternal quality. 23:20 Paul then highlights this by pointing 23:23 to the growth factor in people. 23:26 He says in verse 11, "When I was a child, 23:30 I talk like a child, I thought like a child, 23:34 I reasoned like a child. 23:37 But when I became a man, 23:38 I put childish things behind me." 23:41 So everything that is passing which is only temporary, 23:45 it's like childhood, in comparison to adulthood. 23:49 No one remains a child forever. 23:51 The boy grows to manhood, the woman grows to womanhood. 23:56 Childhood is temporary. 23:58 Furthermore, everything that is passing 24:00 which is only temporary. 24:02 It's like looking into a mirror in comparison 24:05 with seeing someone in person. 24:08 The mirror only gives the reflection, 24:11 seeing the person face to face shows all the detail. 24:17 Knowledge is partial, prophecy is partial, 24:22 but love is complete. 24:24 Finally, Paul points to the supremacy of love. 24:30 Listen to the last verse, verse 13. 24:33 There remains faith, hope and love. 24:37 But the greatest of these is love. 24:42 Faith is what allows us to exist in the present. 24:46 Without faith, it is impossible to serve God. 24:51 Faith is what tells us that we can move and we can walk. 24:55 When we wake up in the morning, 24:57 we have faith that our legs can still locomote. 25:01 Faith is important for present existence. 25:05 This is not to say that 25:06 faith has no usefulness in the future. 25:09 In the very fact, it is a fact that we believe or have faith 25:14 and the fact that we have faith 25:16 that allows us to plan for the future. 25:18 But in practical terms, 25:19 faith is what allows us to have the ability 25:22 to be involved in life in the present. 25:25 Hope on the other hand 25:26 is important for our future existence. 25:29 Hope allows us to believe in the future. 25:33 Even when difficulties come, 25:35 hope says that there will be a way out. 25:38 Hope allows us to see beyond the darkness of the storm. 25:42 Hope allows us to face the future. 25:45 Hope encourages us to look into the distance. 25:48 Hope allows us to see into the future, 25:52 but love lives both in the present 25:55 and in the future. 25:58 Hence it is not limited to the present like faith, 26:03 neither is it limited to the future like hope. 26:06 Instead, it places one foot in the present 26:12 and anchors the other in the future. 26:16 It stands above and beyond faith and hope. 26:21 It straddles the now and the then. 26:23 It goes beyond the present and the future, 26:25 hence love is supreme. 26:29 So what's love got to do with it? 26:31 Everything. 26:34 "By this shall all men know that 26:36 you're My disciples if you have love one 26:42 for the other." 26:51 Thanks for watching Pathway of Hope. 26:54 If you would like to be prayed for 26:56 or would like to learn more 26:58 about God's word, please call 27:01 1 (877) 520-HOPE 27:06 or 1 (877) 27:09 520-4673. 27:13 You may also watch more of our programs online at 27:17 www.pathwayofhope.tv. 27:23 If you would like to make a tax deductible love gift, 27:27 please send your gifts to Pathway of Hope 27:30 at P.O Box, 280704, 27:36 Queens Village, New York 11428. 27:41 Thanks for watching Pathway of Hope. 27:43 And may God's blessings be yours today. |
Revised 2020-06-23