EMB EP28 | Clang Clang Clang

Everything Made Beautiful (01:00) Hey everybody, welcome to Everything Made Beautiful. I'm so glad you're here. It is a cold, cold, cold day in Franklin, Tennessee. And I'm excited just to spend some time talking with you today as I am recording this. Was it last week's episode with Babi Mason? So great. If you have not heard it, you need to go and listen to it. I'm so thankful for her. and for the gospel difference that she is making in this world. She is making it a better place. Well, today is our first episode of February. I cannot believe it's already February. And we are kicking off a series called A Better Way. And it's when we're gonna spend some time in the love chapter of 1 Corinthians 13. Now, let me just say, if you thought this was gonna be a warm and fuzzy Valentine vibe, then I hope you know me better than that. We are not talking about heart-shaped chocolates and overpriced dinners here. This love that Paul is setting forward in 1 Corinthians is a love that challenges you, stretches you, and maybe even makes you squirm a little. I know it does me. Because, spoiler alert, biblical love isn't about how we feel. It is about who we are becoming. And friends, Can we just talk about how far we've drifted from this as Christ followers? We're in an age where polarization feels like the norm and where love seems to have taken a backseat to proving we are right. Around election seasons especially, we have seen believers prioritize political arguments over practical love. Social media becomes a battleground, an echo chamber. Families are divided over ideological differences and we've forgotten that the world is watching. The days after the inauguration have been disheartening to watch on both sides of the political spectrum. And I'm not necessarily talking about the people in DC. I'm talking about us. We have become a fractured society. Frankly, I gotta be honest, I don't expect anything more from those who don't profess Jesus as Lord. But for those of us who have the Holy Spirit of God inside us, well, it's been disheartening to watch our behavior, frankly. Jesus said that they would know we are his disciples by our love, not by how well we can craft an argument or win a debate or shame someone who thinks differently than we do. And it's not just politics, which frankly, I'm getting tired of talking about. It's a host of hot button issues these days. We've gotten so caught up in standing our ground that we've abandoned the ground of love. Let's be honest, how often do we engage in these conversations with patience, kindness, humility? Too often we've replaced the practical outworking of love with the pursuit of being right or feeling vindicated in our position. But here's the hard truth. If we're not reflecting Christ's love and how we interact with others, we are misrepresenting him. The world is watching, I've said this before, to how we respond to conflict, to disagreement, and even to hostility. And if we're honest, some of what they see isn't pretty. We need to repent of the ways we've weaponized our words and lost sight of the people behind the issues. Biblical love calls us to a higher standard, a sacrificial standard. It's not about compromising truth. It's about embodying grace. If our love doesn't look radically different from the world's version of love, we've missed the mark entirely. So let's stop and ask ourselves, are we pointing people to Jesus with our actions and words, or are we driving them further away? Well, if you're still listening at this point, let's set the stage for 1 Corinthians. So Paul wrote this letter to Corinth. And honestly, this church was a hot mess when he wrote this letter. They were fighting over spiritual gifts, arguing about who was the most important and basically missing the point of what it means to follow Jesus. Does that sound familiar to anyone? We fall into the same traps, but here's the thing. The Corinthians, like us, had a distorted view of love. Their love often looked more transactional, kind of like I'll love you as long as I get something out of it. But biblical love, the kind Paul writes about, is radically different. It's agape love, selfless, sacrificial, and unconditional. It's not about what we can gain, but about how we can give. This kind of love is rooted in God's character, and it's the love he demonstrated perfectly through Christ. So when Paul calls the Corinthians to this better way, he's challenging them to stop measuring their lives by status or gifts and to start measuring them by their capacity to reflect God's love. Sometimes we're not that different, okay? So then Paul hits them with this mic drop moment in 1 Corinthians 12, 31. And yet I will show you the most excellent way. or in some translations, the better way. And what is this better way? Love, real, gritty, sacrificial love. The kind of love that doesn't show up for applause, but shows up when no one's watching. The kind of love that doesn't flinch when it gets hard. And let's be honest, the hard I'm talking about isn't just the surface level frustrations we face. I'm talking about the hard of theological differences that drive a wedge between friends and family members, where the chasm can feel unbridgeable. It's when someone you love chooses a path you can't support. And every conversation feels like stepping into a minefield. Love in these moments doesn't mean compromising truth, but it does mean refusing to let disagreement be the final word. Then There's the relational mistreatment that erodes trust and leaves scars. Maybe you've been deeply hurt by someone who should have loved you well, but didn't. Or maybe you're the one who's caused the hurt and now the relationship feels irreparable. Biblical love calls us to engage even in these spaces, not by minimizing the pain, but by inviting God into the brokenness to show us how to rebuild. It's a love that says, I'll choose forgiveness even if trust takes time to restore. This is the love that reflects Christ. Think of Jesus who loved Peter after his denial, goodness, who pursued Thomas in his doubt and who even forgave those actively crucifying him. That's the kind of love Paul is pointing to here. A love that doesn't quit. even when it's hard and messy and feels impossible. It's not easy, but it's the better way. So today we're diving into those first three verses of 1 Corinthians 13. Here's what Paul says. If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging symbol. 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. If I give away all I have and if I deliver up my body to be burned but have not love, I gain nothing. Okay, let's break this down. So, pulse starts with the spiritual heavy hitters, okay? tongues, prophecy, faith, and knowledge. These were the gifts the Corinthians were obsessed with, okay? It's like they were trying to outdo each other in a spiritual talent show. But Paul says, great, you can speak in angelic tongues, cool party trick, but without love, you're just noise. You are a clanging symbol. You know what a clanging symbol sounds like? Yeah, that kid in the marching band who's just banging away with no rhythm or purpose. It's annoying, right? But Paul says that's what our lives sound like when we're full of gifts, but empty of love. My goodness. I have been so convicted by this. I have been so convicted by the spirit of God that it does not matter if I can get on a platform and Orate scripture and string words together and make catchy application phrases if I have not love I have had to sit before I go on stage and repent before teaching God's Word and that's not a point of pride That's not me saying. look how spiritual I am. That's me saying look how weak I am look how much I need the spirit to cleanse me from the inside out to be able to deliver the word of God. And honestly, doesn't this describe a lot of what we have unfortunately seen in contemporary Christianity? It's the preacher who delivers a powerful, theologically rich sermon, but cuts people down with harsh words off stage. It's the worship leader whose voice moves the congregation, but whose heart is full of pride and self-promotion. It's the person who volunteers tirelessly. They are there from sun up to sun down at church, but treats their family with impatience and resentment. In fact, we've become so focused on performance on the outward expression of our gifts that we've forgotten that love is supposed to be the heartbeat behind it all. When our spiritual gifts are disconnected from love, they can actually do harm. They become tools for self-promotion rather than instruments of grace. And when people experience that kind of quote giftedness without love, they don't walk away saying, wow, God is good. They walk away feeling used, overlooked, or worse, wounded. Here's the warning. If we're full of gifts but empty of love, we may impress people, but we will not be part of transforming them. The goal isn't applause, it's impact. And true impact only happens when the power of God's love is flowing through us. So let's not ask, what can I do for God? Let's ask, who am I becoming as I do it? because without love, we're just making noise. So let's ask ourselves, you ask yourself and I'll ask myself, are we using our gifts to glorify God or to glorify ourselves? Because if love isn't the motive, we're just making noise. Well then Paul goes for the jugular as if that wasn't hard enough. He goes for sacrifice. He says, if I give away all I have, And if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not love, I gain nothing. Let's just stop for a minute. If I give away all I have, I mean, you are the most generous person on earth. If you give away everything you have and become poor financially, possessions, everything, giftedness, everything you have and can give away, you do. But then he goes a step further. And if I deliver up my body to be burned, that is martyrdom. That is the ultimate sacrifice. But I have not love, he says. I gain how much? Nothing. That is tough, right? You mean I could. give to charity, volunteer every weekend, even lay down my life for a cause and it could still mean nothing? Yep. Because love isn't just about what we do, it's about why we do it. Without love, even the most selfless acts can become self-serving and this is a reality we all need to face, isn't it? It's possible to give with a hand stretched out while the heart is secretly reaching for applause. Think about it when we serve at church, give generously or volunteer our time. it really for God's glory or are we subtly hoping someone notices, praises us or acknowledges our quote sacrifice? This happens because without love is the motive. Our actions often become about Well, us, our image, our reputation, our sense of worth, our brand. Instead of being a reflection of Christ's selfless love, the sacrifices turn into a way to satisfy our own desires. We've all been there. Maybe you've helped someone in need, but secretly expected gratitude in return. Or maybe you gave something up, but made sure everyone around you knew just how much it cost you. That's not love. It's self-promotion wrapped in a thin layer of good intentions. But true biblical love calls us to step beyond ourselves. It says, this isn't about me. This is about glorifying God and serving others, period. Paul reminds us that even the most sacrificial acts, giving away everything or laying down our lives, amount to nothing if love isn't the driving force. Love shifts the focus from what we do to why we do it. It transforms our actions into offerings, not performances, and it points people to Jesus instead of ourselves. This kind of love, make no mistake, well, it costs something. Our pride, our need for validation, and our desire for recognition, but it's worth it because it aligns our hearts with God's. How often do we see this play out in real life? It's when my generosity becomes a way to boost my ego rather than a reflection of Christ's love. Maybe I give to be seen or I volunteer to feel important or I even sacrifice in ways that allow me to subtly control or manipulate others. These acts may look noble on the outside, But if they are driven by pride, insecurity, or the need for recognition, they are empty in God's eyes. Biblical love is radically different because it shifts the focus off of me and onto God and others. Even if it costs me something, even if no one ever notices, this is about glorifying God and serving Him. Love isn't a transaction where we get to give something back, it's an offering. And when love drives our actions, they carry eternal weight because they reflect God's character. Goodness, Paul's warning is clear. Without love, the most heroic sacrifices become hollow. This is a sobering reminder for all of us to examine not just what we're doing, but why we're doing it. Are we giving because we want to be seen as good or because we want God to be seen as good? Are we sacrificing for applause or out of a deep selfless love that mirrors Christ's sacrifice on the cross? These are the questions we really have to wrestle with if we want our lives to reflect the heart of God. It's like baking cookies for your neighbor, but secretly hoping they'll tell everyone in the neighborhood how amazing you are. or doing something nice for someone else so you can casually drop it with false humility in a conversation knowing others will marvel at how generous you are. That's not love. That's PR. Paul's point here is that love isn't optional. It's the essence of who we are as followers of Christ, which is why when it's absent, everything we do is meaningless. Jesus said, by this, everyone will know. You're my disciples if you love one another. Not by how much scripture you've memorized or how impressive your Instagram Bible quotes are, but by love. Not by how many podcasts you've listened to, even though I hope you listen to this one, or how many books on theology line your shelves. Not by how eloquently you can argue your stance on the latest cultural issue. Not even by how many hours you spend serving in ministry. All these things while good mean nothing if we don't have love. We can create the appearance of spiritual maturity with our knowledge, gifts, and public displays of faith, but if those things aren't undergirded by genuine love, they fall flat. Love isn't about building a resume of righteous acts, it's about reflecting the heart of Christ in how we live and how we interact with others. If people leave an encounter with us feeling judged, dismissed, or invisible, we've missed the mark entirely. Love calls us to something higher, a way of being that puts others above ourselves and prioritizes grace, humility, and kindness in every interaction. Love is one of the fruits of the spirit in Galatians 5, and fruit doesn't grow overnight. It is cultivated through daily obedience, through small, often unseen yeses to God like we talked about before. And it's tested in the hard places when patience runs out, when forgiveness feels impossible, and when kindness costs you something. Okay, so what do we do with this? Like Shannon, thank you for all that, and thank you for the exegesis and the whatever. What do we do about this? And how do we do this? Well, one guiding question that has deeply shaped my own understanding of love in action, biblical love. It comes from Andy Stanley who was my first youth pastor and then the pastor of my church for many years. And the question he always encourages us to ask is, what does love require of me? This question is not about grand gestures or surface level niceties. It's a deeply convicting call to reflect on the practical outworking of love in every situation. Andy often teaches that this question refrains how we approach relationships, conflicts and decisions. It strips away excuses and gets to the heart of the matter. What does love require of me when someone cuts me off in traffic? And what does love require of me when a friend betrays me? What does love require of me when I'm exhausted and still called to serve? It's a question that challenges our motives and confronts our selfishness. Yay. But when we ask this question, honestly, it leads us to actions that align with the sacrificial love of Christ. Love may require patience when we want to snap, forgiveness when we'd rather hold a grudge, or humility when our pride feels bruised. It is not always comfortable. In fact, I would say it's almost never comfortable, but it's always Christ-like. So here's the challenge. Start asking yourself, what does love require of me in the everyday moments? Let it shape how you respond to interruptions, disagreements, and even opportunities to serve. This question is a lens through which we can examine our hearts and align our actions with the love described in 1 Corinthians 13. Let's take a hard look at our hearts. Is love the foundation of our actions? When we serve, are we doing it to be seen or to reflect Christ? When we're patient, is it because we're just gritting our teeth or because we're choosing to honor the person in front of us? So start small. Start with the people closest to you. And remember, love isn't about perfection, it's about direction. Keep moving toward Christ and let him shape your heart. And just as a tip, I have found that when I authentically ask, what does love require of me and I really want to hear from the spirit on it, it will often be the thing I think of that feels least like what I might naturally want. to do because the requirements of love are hard. They are ripe opportunities for sanctification. Friends, love is the priority. Without it, everything else we do is just noise. But with it, well, it's the better way. Next week, we'll be diving into verses four through eight to unpack what love looks like in action. You don't want to miss it. Until then, let's be people who don't just talk about love, let's live it. Thanks for joining me today on Everything Made Beautiful. I'll see you next week.