Love Endures All Things

I want us to notice that little phrase all things that Paul repeats here four times in verse 7 .

James Renahan he points out that this phrase is used a good many times , not only in 1 Corinthians , but in other places in the New Testament , and so anytime you hear what theologians sometimes call echoes from other places , it's good to pay attention to those things . Oftentimes repetition is an insight into the meaning of it . Let me give you an example .

First of all , we'll just look at the examples within 1 Corinthians . If you look back at chapter 8 , in the first several verses Paul speaks of God , the Father , and he says from whom are all things and for whom we exist ? And then he goes on to say Jesus Christ , through whom are all things and through whom we exist ?

And so Paul is using this phrase all things to emphasize that God is the source of all things that exists in creation . He's pounding that home and it's through Jesus Christ , god's Son , by which all things were created and exist . So what's he saying ? He goes on to explain that the very purpose of the existence of all things is for God and His glory .

You know , once we begin to understand that in life , a lot of things begin to align Everything , all things exist for God and His glory . Well , it also comes through Jesus Christ . He says Jesus Christ , the Son of God . It comes through Him , god's Son , who's equal in power and glory .

So everything is for God and his glory , it's for Jesus Christ and his glory . So we see that in chapter 8 , how he uses all things . And then you can go to chapter 11 . Where again we're reminded all things are from God . Paul says so . He's again emphasizing that God is the source of all things .

And in that context , paul , he's discussing that all things are from God . He's trying to pound home there that God created men and women different , that there's a creational order , that this difference between men and women different , that there's a creational order , that this difference between men and women that falls under this umbrella .

Of all things , it comes from God and he is talking about in that context of chapter 11 , that within worship , these creational differences between men and women are to be acknowledged and honored . And to not honor the created order which was put there by God is to sin , even rebel against our Creator .

And then there's another example from chapter 12 , the previous chapter . There Paul , of course , is talking about spiritual gifts , and he gets to verses 4 through six of that chapter and he says this that within the body of Christ , within the church , there are varieties of gifts , that is , there's varieties of spiritual gifts but the same Spirit .

There's varieties of service but the same Lord . And there are varieties of activities , he says , but it is the same God who empowers them all in everyone . It's the same God who empowers them all in everyone . What's interesting about that is that it's literally it is the same God who empowers the all things in all .

And so he's pounding home this idea in applying that all things come from God and are empowered by God , because he's pastorally trying to teach the Corinthians there's no need for pride or competition when you're exercising your gifts . They all come from God , they're all for the common good .

And if we want to boast about anything , boast about God who gave them to us . And so the Corinthians particularly were impressed with the miraculous spiritual gift of speaking in tongues . We'll see that in chapter 14 when we get there in the near future .

But Paul's point , pastorally again , is that when we realize that all things , including spiritual gifts , come from God , whatever they are , it ought to humble us and fill us with a deep gratitude , to use our gifts in humility and to celebrate the gifts of others . For what purpose ?

All to God's glory , for he's the one who granted them to us and gave us the privilege to exercise them . One more example from 1 Corinthians , chapter 15 . If chapter 13 is the love chapter , chapter 15 is known as the resurrection chapter . The apostle Paul .

There he echoes Psalm 8 from the Old Testament when Paul says that in light of the bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ , god has put all things in subjection under his feet . In light of the bodily resurrection . And then here's where he goes to Psalm 8 with an echo God has put all things in subjection under the feet of Christ . That's victory .

Paul chose a great song to open O Victory in Jesus . Right Under his feet it's the picture of the victor whose foot's on the neck of the enemy . He's put all things in the resurrection of Christ . All things come under the feet of Christ , they're in subjection to Christ . And so you look , you go back and you say , why did he give an echo of Psalm 8 ?

Well , the apostles often would just do an echo or a short little phrase or maybe one quote from a psalm or a portion of the Old Testament , and they're assuming that we know what's around it .

So when you go back to Psalm 8 , it reminds us that there's this all-powerful , creator and sovereign Lord whose majesty and glory are evident in creation , that same sovereign Lord whose glory , his infinite power and majesty are seen in creation . He is going to one day bring about world peace .

A day's coming when God , indeed the risen Christ himself , that one that's greater than King David , he's going to put all things under his feet when , at the second coming . He's beginning to do it now as the church continues to expand into the world , but he'll do it in full at the second coming .

And so all things is used by the apostle Paul in the letter to the Corinthians to focus our attention on our total dependence upon God for all things . We're dependent upon Him for creation itself . We're dependent upon Him for the sustaining of creation . It's not like he made the creation and then just left it to its own .

No , he sustains creation at every moment . We're dependent upon Him for our spiritual gifts so that the church of Christ can be built up and encouraged and edified . And we're dependent upon him , thank God , to finally crush all evil and rebellion in the world .

One day , when he comes again and makes all things new and ushers in world peace , that'll be a great day , won't it ? I know the news likes to talk about the peace process , but it won't be over till Jesus comes back . But when he does , the Prince of Peace will institute it , he'll establish it in full .

And so everything's about God , everything's about Christ and their glory , and it's why Paul is emphasizing love here in 1 Corinthians 13 . What's he talking about ?

He's saying our very purpose as people created by God , as people sustained by God , as people who will give an account to God at the second coming , and certainly as Christians of those who have been saved through Christ and been granted spiritual gifts . We are called , in light of all this , to love one another and to love God .

That is the very heart of our purpose for living , because that's how we glorify God . Who is what A God of love . So that's how Paul is beginning to use this phrase , and this is what distinguishes Christians from the world .

There's a distinctive Christian love which is fueled by faith in God and Christ and which gives glory to God in Christ , not just outwardly but inwardly , in the heart and mind and in the motive . And God always cares about the motive and what's in our heart .

And so this holy love we're totally dependent upon God to have this kind of love , which is not natural for sinners

to have 1 Corinthians 13 is not a natural love , because when we understand it in light of Christ , we come to see that this is a supernatural love . This is the kind of love that the Holy Spirit , by His grace , empowers God's people to have , the same Spirit who gave us those gifts , the same Spirit who transformed our hearts .

So it comes from God and it's a distinctive , christ-like , cross-like , self-denying , agape love . And this is why we must know God if we're to have this kind of love . This is nothing we can work up within our natural selves . This must come from God , the God who is love .

That's why we must trust him , and as we trust him , we become united with him and then he is the vine , gives us nourishment and grace as the branch , a branch grafted into him through faith . And so this morning , with that brief introduction , I want us to focus on the fourth phrase in verse seven love endures all things .

You may remember when we started verses four through seven a long time ago , I said there were 15 descriptions , verbal descriptions that Paul gives , of what love is like , divine-like love , what it's like Christ-like love . Well , we've reached number 15 . Can you believe it ? This is the 15th out of 15 . So if you're able and I say if you're able , please stand .

I want to read to you this portion in context and then we'll dig in . This is the infallible and errant holy word of the living God . Let's receive it by faith , because he sends it in love to you and me . Paul writes verse one if I speak in the tongues of men and of angels but have not love , I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal .

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 . If I give away all I have . And if I deliver up my body to be burned but have not love , I gain nothing . Love is patient and kind . Love does not envy or boast .

It is not arrogant or rude . It does not insist on its own way . It is not irritable or resentful . It does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth . Love bears all things , believes all things , hopes all things , endures all things . Love never ends . The grass withers and the flowers fade , but the word of the Lord endures forever .

God's people said amen . Thank you , you may be seated , father , we now come to your word . We want to love you fully . We want to love those in our family fully . We want to love our friends fully . We want to love our brothers and sisters in the church fully . We want to love our neighbors , even our enemies , as Christ would love them .

Help us now , in this hour , by your spirit . Understand , Help it to bear fruit for your glory , amen . So what we're getting at is this phrase , all things it ought to trigger in us , based on how Paul has used it in 1 Corinthians , a radically God-centered view of life . And this isn't unusual in language right .

If I say to you four score and seven years , you know exactly what I'm talking about . Well , this phrase , paul knew the Corinthians would know exactly what he's talking about , which I'll flesh out in a minute .

But it's meant to trigger in the Corinthians a radically God-centered view of all things , because God , as we just saw , is the source of all things , he's the sustainer of all things , he's the gift giver , and God is the sovereign ruler and judge of in and over all things .

And so it begs the question though , as we come to verse 7 of this chapter , why would Paul repeat this phrase in all things four times in a row like this ? Well , because I think it's pretty clear . It's one of the Corinthians' favorite phrases , and you see that earlier in Corinthians , for example chapter 6 , verse 12 .

Paul quotes them by saying all things are lawful for me . He's quoting the Corinthians . Then you go over to chapter 10 , the 23rd verse . What do we see ? Paul quotes them again All things are lawful for me . All things are lawful for me . All things are lawful for me .

That seemed to be their catchphrase , and it seems , based on the context of when Paul reminds them of sayings , that they would say they seem to be justifying their sinful behavior by throwing out this phrase In chapter 6 , it appears that they were using it to justify sexual immorality . I mean , all things are lawful for me .

Or in chapter 10 , they were using it as an excuse to ignore the conscience of their weaker brother or sister . In Christ , in the life of the church , all things are lawful for me . The truth is , all things are lawful for us as Christians Properly understood , properly understood . What has God given us in Christ ? He's given us a wonderful freedom .

In Christ , we're free from being condemned at the judgment . Aren't you glad ? We're free because what Christ has done to enjoy the smile and favor of God in this life and in the life to come . We're free to enjoy the peace that Christ has secured for us on our behalf , and so the wonderful freedom that we have in Christ .

We have the freedom to enjoy God's good creation . He gave us these things to enjoy . We have the freedom to enjoy them . We have the freedom . We're free from having our conscience bound by legalistic demands that either go beyond what God says in His Word , or having our conscience bound by things that are dismissed from God's Word .

We're free to be ruled only by God . In other words , it's a scary thing when other men rule our conscience , but what ? The Apostle Paul is trying to get the Corinthians to see these Christians there .

He's trying to get them to think about their Christian freedom , not in a self-serving way , he's trying to get them to think about their freedom in a loving way . So in chapter 6 , verse 12 , listen to what Paul says . He quotes them and then he gives the but All things are lawful for me , but not all things are helpful .

And then he says in chapter 10 , verse 23 , all things are lawful for me , but not all things build up . So imagine being a Corinthian Christian who loves to throw around . All things are lawful for me . All things are lawful for me , for me

, for me , for me , me , me , me , me . All things are lawful , my freedom's all about me , all things are lawful for me .

And then Paul gets to 1 Corinthians 13 , verse 7 , and in so many words he's saying to them well , yes , all things are lawful for you , as long as you remember this Christian and Corinth , that love bears all things , love believes all things , love hopes all things , love endures all things .

Yes , all things are lawful for you , but Christian freedom never leaves Christian love behind . You know , one of the weaknesses of our culture right now is the way that our culture is teaching you and trying to teach me what freedom is , and we've gone to what you might call libertarian type of freedom .

I live my life , you live yours , you know just , you're over there , I do my thing , you do yours . That's not a Christian freedom . Christian freedom is always anchored to love , and so when I exercise my freedom , it's not enough for me to say can I do that ? The issue is should I do it in light of what love requires ?

I may have the freedom oftentimes to do it , but should I do it right now , at this moment ? Maybe , maybe . And so even that phrase life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness how do Americans hear the pursuit of happiness now ? Well , I'm just going to do my thing , stay out of my way .

But the founders never thought of the pursuit of happiness , life , liberty and the pursuit of happiness . They never thought of that phrase disconnected from God's moral framework .

Apart from our responsibility and Paul is emphasizing here in Corinth our responsibility to love other people and to think about other people , there are many things you can do as a neighbor in Tampa , but some of those things you probably do as a neighbor in Tampa , but some of those things you probably shouldn't do .

If you want to be showing love to your neighbor , it's not enough to have the legal right to do it , is it a loving thing to do ? And so Christian freedom never leaves Christian love behind . You know , I remember years ago , when our kids were a lot younger , we got home in our van . It was a blue bomber and well , I guess we'd traded it out by then .

I think it was upgraded , but nevertheless , we get home , we get a call Pastor , I hate to tell you this , but your son's back here at the church . We left him behind . We'll be back in a minute . So christian parents sometimes leave their children behind , right ?

Christian freedom never , ever leaves love behind , and as christians we need that's one thing the church ought to be teaching our culture . Freedom is not about me . Real freedom is about glorifying God , who is a God of love , and so we need to understand that , biblically , satan always takes a truth and slants it a quarter turn , doesn't he ?

He slants it a quarter turn to where it's not the truth . What Paul's doing , inspired by the Holy Spirit , he's taking one of their favorite phrases and he's showing what love does with it ? That's a good question to ask next time you get a thought in your head what does love do with that ?

For example , I think a week or two ago I mentioned , when someone shows you who they are , believe them . You see , we can take that phrase and then just use it to harden our heart against somebody . Or we can say well , I believe them . But what does love now do with that ? And that's what God wants us to do .

400 years after the life of the apostle Paul , there was a man who came to be known as St Augustine , the greatest theologian of the first millennium of the church . Here's how he put it in one of his famous sermons Love and do what you will , love and do what you please . And you see , that's what he's getting at there .

He's saying do what you want's what he's getting at there . He's saying do what you want , do what you desire , as long as it's rooted and guided by love , the love of christ . That's true christian freedom . Love and do what you will . And of course , god is love .

Right , our culture is trying to teach us that love is god , because then we can take our notion of love and project it up onto God . No , god is love .

That's the proper order , and therefore God defines what love is because he is love , and he's the one that reveals what love is like most supremely in the life and sufferings and death of his son , the Lord Jesus Christ . And he reveals what love is like in his written word , including his commandments . How did Jesus summarize the commandments ?

To love God with all your heart , mind , soul and strength , and to love your neighbors yourself . We want to know how to love people . We have to obey the commandments of God . That's all Jesus was getting at . And he said if you love me , you'll obey my commandments . And so we don't define what love is .

Sometimes I see signs that are trying to justify unbiblical things , and they just put up love , not hate , but love defined by who ? God alone has the right to define what love is , and he does that in his son and in his word , and so our love must reflect the very character of our holy and loving God . That's true love .

And so love and do what you will . That's proper Christian freedom , which is never separated from love . Now , with the rest of the time we have , I want to burrow down a little bit on this .

Love endures all things . In verse 7 , the fourth one , you got to be careful getting your meaning of a word in Scripture by breaking it up according to its roots and its parts , but in this case I think it's helpful . This word endure here comes from two parts Under and to remain Under and to remain so . Love endures all things .

Here Paul's talking about love remains under . Love has this quality that its tendency and its desire , if at all possible , is to remain under the pain , the hardships , the disappointments , the offenses , the betrayals , the persecution , the slander , the hatred , the mocking , the being spit upon . Love endures all things .

And so the idea is that the quality of holy love , this divine love , this distinct Christian love , is love perseveres . Love remains under the nails that painfully pierce the hands and feet of Christ . Love remains under the floggings that turn the flesh of the back to bloody hamburger . Love remains under being stripped naked and put on public display in shame .

Love remains under a crown of thorns pressed painfully into the skull . Love remains under the pains of hell itself , as Jesus , love incarnate , god incarnate , drank the cup of God's just wrath , not for his sins but for our sins . Why ?

That we might be saved from the penalty of our sins , that we might be saved from the just wrath of God for our sins , that we might have the free gift of eternal life for our sins .

That we might have the free gift of eternal life , and he saved us not just from those things , so that we could be in union and communion with God and relationship now , in this life and in the life to come . Jesus did everything I think John Piper was the one that said this .

Jesus did everything on the cross to get everything out of the way between us and God , that we'd have a relationship with us and God .

Not that we just go to this great , abstract place like heaven , as if it was some celestial Disney world or something that we just have but that we could get to God or something that we just have , but that we could get to God . That we could get to God himself .

That we could know God , the source of all things , which means the source of all joy , love , peace and happiness . We need to be in relationship with him and that only comes through faith in Jesus Christ . We get to God through Jesus . He is the mediator between God and man . So love endures all things and we see that so clearly in Christ .

It endures the cross and Christ , look what he endured for you and for me . He remained under it . He could have called legions of angels down to destroy his enemies and he willfully remained under the pain and the hardships for us . Song of Solomon reminds us love is stronger than death , and that's what we see in the resurrection of Jesus Christ .

His love is so strong the bonds of death can't even hold Him . Love when it bears all things . It's talking about love being very patient . But love also endures all things , and this is emphasizing that we're actively loving others . We're going to remain in difficult situations . We're going to do it why ?

For the good of the other person , for the sake of another person , we're going to sacrifice much of ourselves for the other person rather than seeking our own comfort , our own ease , our own pleasure through escape . Now , as soon as I say that , I just want to hit the pause .

I know that there's exceptions when you have sexual and physical abuse , where you have severe emotional abuse . Love actually requires boundaries and separation and discipline and things of that nature . We'll handle that in another sermon . Just know that . I'm aware of that .

But Paul wants us to lean hard against our natural inclination that when things get hard , we bail , we want to run , we want to get out , and aren't you glad Jesus didn't get down off that cross ? And we have to come to grips with that Before we get to the exceptions . Let's let the weight of that come upon us in our life .

And you know , even when we do have to give separation or have discipline brought to somebody or let them bear the consequences or draw boundaries , we're doing it not just for ourself but also for the good of the abuser . It is not loving to them to let them continue to do that , let alone loving to other people . And so love is .

It's a marathon , it's not a sprint . Picture a Kenyan . That's a good long distance runner . That's love . They can just run and run and run and run . And when they hit that wall , the marathon . There's some marathon runners in here , probably . When you hit that wall around mile 18 or 20 , what does a marathon runner have to do ?

They got to push through the wall . Their body is screaming at them to stop , but they go on through , and that's what love is like . It's a marathon , it's not a sprint . They go on through and that's what love is like . It's a marathon , it's not a sprint . John says Jesus loved them to the end .

He loved the apostles to the end , including Judas , and so Jesus loves us to the end too . That's what his love is like for us . And to the best of our ability we want to reflect that to other people , and that's not natural for us . And to the best of our ability we want to reflect that to other people and that's not natural for us .

But by the grace of God we can do that and we can persevere in love . Love is not sentimental . Love is not cheap . Love is more like a soldier on a bloody battlefield . If the cross of Christ is to mean anything and it's the supreme picture of the love of God then we have to see that love . It operates in war .

Why does a mother stay up night after night after night after night after night and all she wants is just a good night's rest ? Why does she do that for her baby ? Love endures all things . What about a father who just goes to a job frankly he hates ? I know there's a PCA pastor out there .

I read in one of his commentaries once I can't remember where it is , but I know it's there he said his grandfather worked in the coal mines for years and his grandfather , for many , many months out of the year , would go down into that coal mine when it was dark , and when he came back up at the end of the day it was dark .

And he did that for decades . And this pastor said to his grandpa one time why did you do that , grandpa ? He did it for the love of his family . Love endures all things . What about a husband and wife that persevere in marriage for better , for worse , for richer , for poorer , in sickness and in health , to death ? Do us part .

Love fulfills those marriage vows . Why does a child continue to honor their parents when they disappoint or hurt them , or disappoint and discourage them ? Love endures all things . Why does a Christian stay in a church that's disappointed them or hurt them or discourage them ? Well , love endures all things . Sinful people always give us a reason to leave .

Why does an elder , a deacon , a pastor , continue in ministry when things are rough ? Love endures all things . I really want to explain through an illustration what love looks like .

In 1839 , there were two missionaries , john Williams and James Harris , and they went to the New Hebrides Islands in the South Pacific . They were from London and they went to minister to cannibals and their fate was met by with what cannibals do . They're part of Christ's martyrs in glory today .

More missionaries were sent over the next 20 years or so so that by 1857 , 3,500 cannibals had come to Christ on that island . In 1858 , the very next year there's a 33-year-old Scotsman . His name was John Payton . The very next year , there's a 33 old Scotsman . His name is John Payton .

He arrived on the island with his wife , mary , and they had a newborn son . And within five months both Mary , his wife , and the newborn son died and he would sleep on their graves so the cannibals wouldn't dig them up and do what cannibals do . And he labored on that island among these cannibals by himself for four years . You ever had a lonely night .

I don't know how he did it . He was eventually driven off the island . He got remarried to a woman named Margaret . They came back for 41 years and Peyton says in his biography , which I have and have read it's remarkable .

He came back to people who cannibalized , their enemies , practiced infanticide , they practiced widow sacrifice and they would take the life of the widows so that they could serve their husbands in the next world . He said their whole worship was oriented toward fear . All of it was fear driven because they were trying to appease these evil spirits .

These evil spirits who were supposedly in charge of war and peace and famine and plenty and health , and sickness and destruction and prosperity and life and death . All these different spirits . They lived their whole life , peyton says , in slave-like fear . And he says , and so far as I could learn , they had no idea of a God of mercy or grace .

Everything was rooted in fear . Well , what did John Peyton and his wife Margaret do ? For 41 years they took the long , patient effort to learn the language and translate the New Testament into the language of those cannibals . They opened orphanages to care for the island orphans . Margaret took time with many women .

She taught them how to sew , make hats , sing , read , and the Paytons would then train other teachers who would come in to work with the next generation . They set up a system of medicine in a place where there was no system of medicine they didn't even have medicine and they would help the sick and dying .

After 15 years , for all practical purposes , the whole island had come to Christ . Practical purposes , the whole island had come to Christ , john Payton . He took a massive gut punch when his first wife , mary , died and his son . And he says in his biography , his autobiography , that he could not put sorrow into words . But he pressed on in this place .

And he pressed on in a place that had no modern medicine . And that's important because when he would get sick , 14 different times he ran a high fever and had disease and he was never sure if it was going to take his life like it did , marry his first wife and his son .

But he pressed on through and he had the echoes of criticism of elders where he had served back in Scotland , criticizing him for going to work amongst these cannibals . And at one point young John Payton replied Mr Dixon , one of the elderly elders , you're advanced in years now and your own prospect is soon to be laid in the grave there to be eaten by worms .

I confess to you that if I can but live and die serving and honoring the Lord Jesus , it will make no difference to me whether I'm eaten by cannibals or by worms , and in the great day my resurrection body will rise as fair as yours in the likeness of our risen Redeemer . That is massive faith . And then one of the converted chiefs of the tribe , cowia .

He was dying . He came to see John Payton and here's what it says in Payton's autobiography Farewell , missy , a missionary , missy . Farewell Missy , I'm very near death . Now we will meet again in Jesus and with Jesus . There's another convicted cannibal , abraham sustained him , it says , sustained Cahuilla , tottering to the place of graves .

There he lay down and he slept in Jesus . And there the faithful Abraham , this other converted cannibal , buried Cahuilla beside his wife and children and thus died . A man who had been a cannibal chief but by the grace of God and the love of Jesus changed , transfigured into the character of light and beauty .

Peyton says what think ye of this , ye skeptics , as to the reality of conversion ? I knew that day and I know now that there is one soul , at least from Tanna , to sing the glories of Jesus in heaven . And oh , the rapture when I meet him there . What's the point ?

God put in John Payton this enduring love for cannibals , and God used him in a marvelous way . And here's the point . Don't say to yourself , oh , I've done nothing for Christ . No , you remember this , dear Christian .

That same spirit of love that raised Jesus from the dead and that God put in John Payton's heart is in you , and that same spirit in you that comes when we have faith in Christ can transform your heart and your life , and you and me , and make us greater lovers , make us stronger lovers , help our love endure .

Christ came to die for us , not just to get us to heaven , but that we would powerfully love other people in the church and out , to show them what our great God is like .