1 Corinthians 13:1-3 Now Available feat. Joel Limpic
1 Corinthians 13:1-3 is now available on all streaming platforms!
THE VERSE
[1] If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. [2] And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. [3] If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.
When Paul wrote his first letter to the church in Corinth, they were a mess. In a busy and thriving metropolis known for its trade and vibrancy, the church there too was overflowing with noisy spiritual gifts and exuberant charismatic flourishes. The only problem? They were sadly underflowing in love. The mystical river was rushing, but the love river was dry. In 1 Corinthians 13, Paul sought to ground their gatherings and powerful expressions of the Spirit in the soil of love. He gave them 3 different scenarios that ultimately showed them and us today how essential love is to everything we do! Without love, we are nothing and gain nothing. Another way of wording it:
You could get every impressive activity done in the world, but without love, that everything ultimately means nothing.
Nada. Zilch. Zero. I’m curious if we really believe this… That the “how” of our activities matters more than the “what” of our activities. That activities unaccompanied by love are akin to someone walking up to us with a huge pair of cymbals and crashing them together in our faces. We could do the most seemingly pietistic, selfless activities like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3, but even these bear within them the possibility of being motivated by the wrong things. If that’s the case, what hope do we have?
1 John 4:8 tells us God is love. Not just occasional signs or spurts of love, but He is love defined. We humans can show flashes of love, but also know our own limitations. The love we show has a timestamp and expiration date. We’re loving on some days, but unloving on others. Ultimately, God alone possesses it as an attribute; when He acts, He always acts out of His love toward us! This is great news. As we learn to do the same, we learn to follow Him in His loving footsteps. So much so, Jesus told us that the way the world would know we’re His disciples is by what? Our love for one another (John 13:35), not our flurry of activities and full calendars.
We remember that Jesus came in weakness and in love, and will come again in power and love as King and Judge. Until He does, we want to be marked by a similar God-love and neighbor-love. Take a look at your life and the ways you interact with God and others. Is it full of loveless or love-full activities? If you’re lacking in love or going through the motions in some areas, what might it look like to ask the Spirit of God to fill your everyday activities with His lavish love? What might it look like to seek opportunities as the church gathers to serve the other in love or lovingly be generous toward someone in need or exercise a spiritual gift that’s more about the other person than about you or showing off your spiritual prowess?
Want to keep digging into this? Read and listen to the devotional and song for 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 here. You can also watch the lyric video here.
THE SONG + THE ARTIST
Written and performed by Joel Limpic. She shared a few thoughts with us about the process of working on this song:
Joel Limpic - Vocals, guitar
Dave Wilton - Vocals, drums, bass, synths, piano, baritone guitar, electric guitar
Produced, recorded, mixed and mastered by Dave Wilton at Coalesce Studios in Lafayette, CO.
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