1Corinthians 13

13 If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal. 2And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3And if I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profiteth me nothing. 4Love suffereth long, and is kind; love envieth not; love vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not its own, is not provoked, taketh not account of evil; 6rejoiceth not in unrighteousness, but rejoiceth with the truth; 7beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8Love never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall be done away; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall be done away. 9For we know in part, and we prophesy in part; 10but when that which is perfect is come, that which is in part shall be done away. 11When I was a child, I spake as a child, I felt as a child, I thought as a child: now that I am become a man, I have put away childish things. 12For now we see in a mirror, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know fully even as also I was fully known. 13But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

Our world is in desperate condition. We have a lot of self-called, self-styled technicians, and bureaucrats, and doctors of whatever, who have prescribed many medicines or form of medical care that relieves symptoms without dealing with the cause of the condition for humanity’s hurt.

“What the world needs now is love.” And, Jesus, talking about the last days, said, “Because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold” (Matthew 24:12).

Today, our world or many of its leaders, does not know what a woman is, or the difference between a natural born boy or girl. Do we think it really knows what love is? Hollywood sells us its idea, and to many, even Christians, buy it, because we see them live it out.

Forest Gump said, I might not be a smart man, but I know what love is.

Satan wants to kill the Love that comes from God

He wants to bring death to innocence, the innocence of your children death to purity, death to happiness; spiritual death, physical death, eternal death. Satan is a murderer. One of his chief weapons is the distortion of God meaning of love.

Satan wants to destroy our families

Why does Satan want to destroy the family? Because the family is the basic unit of society. Take away our families, and our church is decimated, our city is decimated, our nation is decimated, and civilization is decimated.

Satan wants to deceive man, defile his mind, destroy the home, and dominate the world. So he is a thief. He is a murderer. He is a destroyer.

The Value of Love

It literally means Christ-like love. That kind of love is absolutely indispensable; there’s no substitute for it.

It is greater than Oratory

Speakers and preachers may have the gift of oratory, it is no substitute for love.

Love Is greater than prophecy

If you want to get a crowd, if you were to announce, I’m going to preach a series of sermons on prophecy

Love is greater than Knowledge

John Wesley, who is the founder of Methodism, said that “all knowledge without love is splendid ignorance.”

Love is greater than faith

Faith is indispensable, it’s incredibly important. You cannot know God without faith. And yet, he says, “Even if you had faith—such faith that you could move mountains and you had not love,” he says, “it’s nothing. What good is it to remove mountains if you can’t remove malice, if you don’t have love?

Love is greater than feeding the poor

You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.

Love is greater than martyrdom

Though I give my body to be burned, and have not [love], it profits me nothing”

There are people today who will blow themselves up in order to blow somebody else up

People don’t love others often because they don’t love themselves.

The Virtue of Love

Love Is Patient

“I don’t have much love” A lack of patience is literally a lack of longsuffering; it is a lack of love.

Love Is Kind

What is kindness? It’s love in the little things. Another word for kindness is courtesy, just being kind, being courteous.

Love Is Not Jealous

Jealousy’s a horrible, terrible thing. If you really have love, you’re going to be willing to give credit when credit is due. You’re going to be able to praise others. You’re not going to think that somebody else’s gain is your loss.

Love Is Humble

True love is humble, it can say, “I am sorry, please forgive me. True love can say, “I forgive you.”

Love Does Not Behave Unseemly

true love is not rude. People say, “Well, I just say what I think. I speak forthrightly. I have the gift of prophecy.” Don’t ever excuse your rudeness under the guise that you have the gift of prophecy.

Love Is Unselfish

It’s unselfish; it “seeketh not [it’s] own” (1 Corinthians 13:5). You’re … This Christmas, stop worrying about what you’re going to get. Begin to think about how you can show the love of the Lord Jesus.

Love Is Even-Tempered

It doesn’t have a hair trigger. Mr. Drummond wrote “No form or vice, not worldliness, not greed of gold, not drunkenness itself does more to un-Christianize society than an evil temper.”

Love Is Not Suspicious

It doesn’t think the worst, It’s not paranoid.

Love is Victorious

Love never fails. Love is eternal; it will never pass away.

Love Is the Greatest Virtue

Love is more important than education, and ability. It’s more important than money, and nice looks. It’s more important than prophecy and a word of knowledge. All of these things are going to pass away when we see Jesus face to face. Only love will be there.

Loving God and our Neighbor Is the Greatest Commandment

Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:37–40).

Jesus said love is the greatest commandment. Then, it only figures, what would be the greatest sin? To fail to love, because that would be the breaking of the greatest commandment.

Love Is the Greatest Testimony

“By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one for another” (John 13:35).

Love Is the Greatest Motivation

Love so amazing, so divine Demands my soul, my life, my all (Isaac Watts).

It’s the love of Jesus Christ. When Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Peter … lovest thou me?” (John 21:17). And then, he said, “If you do, feed My sheep” (John 21:17). He didn’t say, “Do you love sheep? He said, Do you love Me?”

Love Is the Greatest Confirmation that we are His Children

Do you want to know whether you’re a child of God? Do you want to know whether you’re saved, on your way to Heaven? Listen to the Word of God. 1 John 3:14-15: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren”

All of these traits of love are to be shown by us if we are Jesus’ children, if we are believers, if we are born again from above. They do not automatically happen in us the moment we commit our lives to Christ. We have to become obedient to them, and yield to Him in order to live these traits out. We have to train ourselves in every one of these areas in order to let Him control us.

1 Timothy 4:7 But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. 1Ti 4:8 For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come.