Thus far, we have learned that love is patient, kind, joyful, resilient, believing, hopeful, and enduring (or perseverant) because Jesus is all these things. Once we see these qualities in Jesus, the next step is to imitate Him. That was Paul’s wish for the Corinthians. However, if we remove the “not” in the eight negative features of love, “we get a pretty good description of the Corinthians’ conduct within their church circle: envious, boasting, arrogant, rude, self-seeking, easily offended, and looking to see what others were doing wrong. Paul is tailoring the verbs he uses here to the Corinthian situation.”—Verlyn D. Verbrugge, “1 Corinthians,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Romans–Galatians, revised edition (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), p. 372.
The Corinthians had much to learn. So do we. After describing what love does and does not do, Paul concludes his section by emphasizing the everlasting nature of love so as to stimulate the practice of genuine love.
One day, prophecies will no longer be necessary; we will speak only one language; and flawed human knowledge will be replaced by a brand-new knowledge of God (1 Cor. 13:12). The gifts of the Spirit will cease only when the purpose for which they exist has reached its fulfillment (1 Cor. 13:10). “But love will last forever!” (1 Cor. 13:8, NLT).
Likewise, when Christ returns, faith will give place to sight (2 Cor. 5:7), and that which we have long hoped for will be reality (Rom. 8:24). And, most of all, love will endure as an emblem of the character of our triune God. Yet, there is a sense in which faith and hope will also last forever. Faith as the experience of salvation (Rom. 4:3), and hope as the desire and expectation of new delights and knowledge in the new earth, will mark the experience of the redeemed forever. Yet love, God’s love, will eternally prevail.
Very soon, we will see our Lord face-to-face (1 Cor. 13:12). Until that day comes, we are supposed to define our lives with these three virtues: faith, hope, and love. This triad is representative of the fullness of Christian life through the Spirit. That is why it was often referred to among Christians (Rom. 5:1–5; Gal. 5:5, 6; Eph. 1:15, 18; 4:1–5). Love, however, is the greatest; after all, it is the only virtue used to describe the very nature of God Himself (1 John 4:8).
Dwell on the statement “God is love.” How are we supposed to understand exactly what that means? And though we can grasp the idea only in part, why is that phrase such good news for us?
Supplemental EGW Notes
The knowledge of the way of the Lord is increasing, and will continue to increase. Heresy and superstition are clothing the world in the sackcloth garments of rebellion and transgression. Literature and cheap fiction of every order is circulated like the leaves of autumn, and the minds of thousands are so taken up with irreligious, cheap trash that there is no place in the mind for solid reading. The Word of God and all that would elevate man from his degradation is passed by with indifference.
But the Word of God contains the truth, and all those who support the truth of God for this time are doing their work for time and for eternity. Those who bring the Word of God into mind and heart are distinctly taking their stand on the side of God and the universe of heaven. They will stand heart to heart and hand to hand in defense of the holy and the pure, that which will stand the test of ages. Those who support error by word and pen and voice, and by the oppression of those who are linked with the truth, are ranged upon the other side, with the first great apostate and the evil men who are his agents. The Word declares of these that they shall “wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived.” And on one of these two sides, men will labor to the end.
All our powers belong to God. They are His by creation, and by redemption. God has given to every one His measure of power, and He expects each to put it forth on the side of truth. Thus it is to shine forth. The Christian is to stand with undivided interest on the Lord’s side. “Now abideth faith, hope, love.” Faith looks through discouraging difficulties, and lays hold of the unseen, even Omnipotence, therefore it cannot be baffled. Faith, hope, and love are sisters, and their works blend perfectly to shine amid the moral darkness of the world. The children and the youth are to be instructed, the ignorant are to be taught by patient effort to know what is truth. It is to be given them line upon line.—This Day With God, p. 131.
“But now abideth faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). In the life of Christ this love found perfect expression. He loved us in our sin and degradation. He reached to the very depths of woe to uplift the erring sons and daughters of earth. There was no wearying of His patience, no lessening of His zeal. The waves of mercy, beaten back by proud, impenitent, unthankful hearts, ever returned in a stronger tide of love.
He who is constrained by the love of Christ goes forth among his fellow men to help the helpless and encourage the desponding, to point sinners to God’s ideal for His children, and to lead them to Him who alone can enable them to reach this ideal.—In Heavenly Places, p. 234.
The above quotations are taken from Ellen G. White Notes for the Sabbath School Lessons, published by Pacific Press Publishing Association. Used by permission.