1 Corinthians 13:1-3 (NIV)
If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.
Paul now exposits the “most excellent way” that he referenced in the sentence immediately before this section. Remember that the issue Paul is specifically addressing is the divisions that had sprung up in the Corinthian Church. Those with differing spiritual gifts were separating themselves from those with other gifts, each group proclaiming that their particular gift was the best, the most necessary, or the one that everyone should have because it most clearly shows spiritual maturity.
The only corrective for this situation is agape love. And Paul sets forth as clearly as he could not only what it is, but why it is necessary. Self-sacrificing agape love, the love that Jesus demonstrated continually and that is only available through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit, was the only glue that would be able to hold the diverse group in the Corinthian Church together.
Paul points out the supremacy and necessity of agape love in those first verses of this chapter, and points to several of the most highly vaunted spiritual gifts as illustrations of how they are worthless without true agape love underlying them. These include speaking in tongues, which without agape love as the motivator, degenerates into mere noise. Prophecy, wisdom, knowledge, and faith that are not motivated by agape love are completely worthless. And even abundant generosity and martyrdom that are not based in agape love do not gain anything.
Agape love is not about feelings, but about action. Agape love is precisely the kind of love demonstrated by Jesus when He emptied Himself of His divine power and knowledge so that He could live as a real human being (Philippians 2:5-11), and when He allowed Himself to be killed on the cross for the sins of all mankind. It is love that never pushes itself forward, but always seeks the absolute best for the beloved, even if that absolute best comes at great sacrifice. Agape love moves the true Christian to never seek fame for him or herself, but to always use any gift that God gives them for the good of the whole body.
Father, this whole section makes a lot more sense when we ignore the chapter break so we can read it in its correct context. This is no mere teaching on love, but a corrective to the divisions that had been allowed to take root that were centered around spiritual gifts. Help me today, Lord, to walk in true agape love, so that all I do is aimed at building up your church and every person in it. Amen.