Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Thank pastor for the opportunity to preach.

We’ve been in 1 Corinthians 13 for a few weeks now.

Before diving into the passage for tonight, let’s remind ourselves of the context.

Corinth was a port city known for commercial prosperity.

But that prosperity led them to evil living.

Even the word korinthiazesthai, or “to live like a Corinthian” became a part of the Greek language and meant to live with drunken or immoral debauchery.

Unfortunately, the sinful lifestyle didn’t stop with unbelievers.

The Corinthian church was full of disunity.

Paul spends the first 4 chapters of the book dealing with disunity and the next 2 chapters addressing pride’s leading to sin.

In chapter 7 he turns to addressing some of the specific problems in the Corinthian Church.

Chapters 12-14 address the spiritual gifts.

Some in the church thought they were “more spiritual” than another group because they had the gift of speaking in tongues.

They were so obsessed with their spiritual gifts that they were in danger of losing their love.

Their wonderful gifts are spoiled by their impatient, unkind, jealous and boastful behaviour.

Paul finds them proud, rude, self-seeking, quick to lose their tempers, and slow to forgive and forget.

Paul begs the Corinthians to rediscover love and count it the most important gift of all.

In chapter 14, he outlines the best way forward.

Spiritual gifts must be used with love, for the benefit of others both inside and outside the church.

Even the greatest gift is worth nothing if it isn’t received and used with love.

In the first three verses of chapter 13, Paul takes the gifts of which the Corinthians are so proud—and inflates them to amazing proportions.

Imagine a gift of tongues which includes every language in earth and heaven, a gift of prophecy that expounds all the knowledge in the universe or a gift of faith that can tell even mountains to move …

Paul says that even these sensational gifts will be nothing without love.

If we don’t have love, our gift is worthless.

In verses 4-7 Paul goes through the characteristics of love before addressing the permanence of love in verses 8 and following.

Let’s read 1 Corinthians 13:1-7

Let’s Pray

So, tonight we are looking at the first half of 1 Corinthians 13:7

1 Corinthians 13:7 (KJV 1900)

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Love Bears All Things

The Greek word, stegō, translated here as “beareth” appears only four times in scripture - twice in 1 Corinthians and twice in 1 Thessalonians.

Since the best way to understand a word is to look at the other contexts where that word is used, let’s look at 1 Corinthians 9:12

1 Corinthians 9:12 (KJV 1900)

If others be partakers of this power over you, are not we rather?

Nevertheless we have not used this power; but suffer all things, lest we should hinder the gospel of Christ.

Both uses of stegō in 1 Thessalonians are found in chapter 3 and actually show the negative side of the word.

They are both translated forbear.

1 Thessalonians 3:1–5 (KJV 1900)

Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone; And sent Timotheus, our brother, and minister of God, and our fellowlabourer in the gospel of Christ, to establish you, and to comfort you concerning your faith: That no man should be moved by these afflictions: for yourselves know that we are appointed thereunto.

For verily, when we were with you, we told you before that we should suffer tribulation; even as it came to pass, and ye know.

For this cause, when I could no longer forbear, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter have tempted you, and our labour be in vain.

In other words, when Paul couldn’t stand it any longer, they let go Timothy to the Thessalonians.

This word translated “forbear,” “suffer,” and “beareth” in 1 Corinthians 13 has the idea of holding fast like a watertight vessel.

Its It’s like a water balloon filled almost to bursting but still holding all the water inside.

Love that bears all things endures without divulging - without speaking of what it has to bear.

It is just possible that this may mean ‘love can cover anything’, in the sense that it will never drag into the light of day the faults and mistakes of others.

It would far rather set about quietly mending things than publicly displaying and rebuking them.

Some have taken this faulty interpretation to support hiding the sin of another who seems to be repentant.

That’s not loving or biblical.

More likely, it means that love can bear any insult, any injury, any disappointment.

It describes the kind of love that was in the heart of Jesus himself.

A. Forbearance

Maybe you’ve heard the term forbearance before.

Forbearance is like patience or self-control.

When a loan is in forbearance it means that there’s a temporary postponement of loan payments.

God shows forbearance when He holds back judgement that the world deserves.

Exodus 32:9-14 shows a wonderful example of this.

God was tired of their shenanigans but, God showed the Israelites forbearance by holding off their judgment.

They were given another chance to repent.

Eventually, time would run out for them.

Numbers 32:11-12

In Romans we read

Here, forbearance refers to God’s mercy, kindness, and longsuffering in delaying rightful judgment.

Paul warns mankind not to take God’s delay in dealing with sin as a sign that He is uninterested or that man is innocent.

Paul warns us not to be hasty in judging others since God will judge everyone someday.

We can show forbearance when we allow love to endure, to “bear all things.”

Practicing forbearance in real life can look like this...

...a wife lovingly picking her husband’s towel off the floor... for the thousandth time.

…a boy opening his lunch box and realizing that Dad forgot that he doesn’t like bologna sandwiches but deciding not to tell him and just eat the sandwich.

… a woman lovingly reminding a man with dementia that she is in fact his daughter.

Forbearance is letting the love we have for another person cover the inconvenience or pain an action has caused us without ever discussing it with them.

Forbearance requires us to internalize that action, redefine it as something less than it was, and move on from that action as if nothing ever happened.

All of this is possible because of the Christlike love that bears all things.

Now, what happens when we can’t move on?

When that hurt keeps exerting itself in our lives over and over again?

In those moments, we can be loving by going to that person who caused us wrong and bringing it to their attention.

Yes, this is in the context of church discipline.

But, I think sometimes we forget that this first step is something that can easily help to reestablish fellowship with someone in our lives.

Rather than festering and becoming bitter over something (that the other person likely has no idea is bothering you) go to that person and talk it out with them.

Not only does that prioritize your relationship with that person, but more importantly it prioritizes your relationship with God.

While we’re in this arena, let’s talk a little bit about forgiveness.

B. Forgiveness

Forgiveness is an outpouring of love that endures anything.

There are no lasting relationships without forgiveness.

We are people who mess up and hurt each other.

Relationships don’t develop strength and longevity because two people always agree or get along well.

Instead, they survive because forgiveness is the glue that overcomes the unavoidable offenses that occur in a fallen world.

In Matthew 18:21-22 we read

Matthew 18:21 (KJV 1900)

The teaching of the Pharisees was that we should forgive someone 3 times.

Maybe Peter was a little proud of himself for increasing that to 7 times!

But Christ responds by saying Matthew 18:22

As you know, the point isn’t that we have to forgive somebody 490 times and then we’re done.

The point is that we should forgive always - every single time.

Forgiveness is the decision to release a person from the obligation that resulted when he or she injured you.

When you injure a person, whether knowingly or unknowingly, you create an obligation .

You take something from that person —such as his time, money, pride, or dignity.

And if you take something from your brother then you owe him.

For the hurt and injured party, the legitimacy of his claim should be acknowledged before the necessity of forgiveness is discussed.