How can you be sure that while you’re working, you’re at the same time motivated by divine love? Paul here unveils the nature of divine love. Seeing the evidences of such things in your life will give proof that the Spirit of God is living out His life through you. How do you see it? You recognize it because love is patient, kind, generous, humble, courteous, unselfish, good-natured, and credits people with the highest motives. In verse 8 of I Corinthians 13 there are spiritual gifts cited of prophecy, tongues, and knowledge. Paul says they are definitely tem porary. It doesn’t say that these things were of no value, for they You can best measure what you would do for the Lord by what you actually do. Forget thyself; console the sadness near thee; Thine own shall then depart.
had a place in the purpose of God. But now that this has been realized, God sets them to one side. He puts an end to the bestowal and opera tions of certain gifts. Verses 10 to 12, on the other hand, contrast the partial with the perfect. Those spe cial gifts were valuable for the apos tolic period. That was the time be fore there was a complete revelation of the New Testament. Paul said that the time would come when the completed, or the full, New Testa ment would be at hand. With that arrival, that which was partial or incomplete in its ministry (special gifts or revelations) would be done away. These things ran their course and served their purpose. Now we have the written Word of God for all that we need. We should learn that the revelation of God in His Word is final. Nothing needs to be added; indeed, nothing dares to be added. God has nothing more to say in dreams and visions and ecstatic utterances. Everything He wants us to know is given in the Word of God. It’s complete from Genesis to the book of Revelation. The Lord has spoken with finality. Ours is to obey without any question. Faith, hope, and love abide. This is a precious trinity of excellencies (I Cor. 13:13). Love never fails be cause it’s eternal. Love is the life principle of faith and hope. In the day of confusing lowering standards of conduct, even among believers, men and women of God need to learn what love really is. The world may not respond to our code of the ology or morals; nevertheless, men are often touched by our laws. Love can provide the platform upon which to stand and declare the message of God to their hearts. We need to walk in Christian love for love is the greatest of all the excellencies of God. Remember, God would love men through us, as vessels of His own wonderfully good pleasure. 27
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