THE KING’S BUSINESS
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have true faith we shall have love. We might as well say that it would Jae better to have a tree without any roots, that bears good apples every year, than to have a tree with good roots that bears no fruit. But the tree that had no roots would bear no fruit. Fruit is better than roots, but roots are necessary if you are to get fruit. But let us be sure that the roots we have are living, roots and let us be sure that the faith we have is real living faith. The only proof of having real roots is that we bear fruit, that is love (Gal. 5:22), Have you love? Tuesday, December II. i Corinthians 14:1-4. Chapter thirteen is a parenthesis in Paul’s discussion of spiritual gifts. Paul is stop ping to show that there is a more excel lent way than any gifts. With the- opening of the fourteenth chapter he returns to his discussion of the use and abuse of spirit ual gifts, but in doing so he has one more word to say about love: he urges them to, “follow after love.” The word translated “follow after” means-“pursue.” Paul urges them to make love the great object of their pursuit, to exalt it above all gifts. But while the great object of their pursuit should be love, the grace of the Spirit, rather than the gifts of the Spirit; still they should not be indifferent to the gifts: should “desire earnestly spiritual gifts.” The word translated “desire earnestly” is a very strong word. A great many today, altogether too many, are indifferent to the possession of spiritual gifts. Among spir itual gifts, Paul emphasizes one that" they should especially desire, viz., “that ye may prophecy.” Among spiritual gifts, prophecy is more to be desired than the gift of tongues. The gift of tongues is more showy, prophecy the more useful. By prophecy is not meant merely prediction. That is/only one form of prophecy, The speaking of the truth of God under the impulse of the Holy Spirit is “prophecy” in the Bible sense. He that speaketh in some strange tongue speaks unto God for He alone understands what is said. His speaking does not profit man, “for no man
dren; but a day is coming when we shall be “m en," knowing all things. In a compara- tive'sense we are some of us men now, i.e., we are mature compared with "babes in Christ.” If we are men, even though only in a comparative sense, we should have put away childish things. We should not speak; as children, we should not feel as children; we should not think as children. We should “put away childish things.” But have we done it? O, how many of us, even those of us that are mature, we that are men and women, act like children. We speak as children; we feel as children; we think as children. Our clearest vision now is as “in a mirror, in a riddle,” ( in a riddle, is the force of the words translated “darkly” in "both the Authorized and Revised Ver sions). But the time is coming when we are going to see “face to face” (cf. 1 John 3 :2). We now “know in part,” but the time Is coming when we shall “know fully even as also” we “ have been know n.” This means that-we .shall know God as perfectly as God now knows us. . This' is one of the most amazing, most astounding state ments in the whole Bible. But as amazing and astounding as it is, let us believe it, because God says it. Brit while we are still in the present, partial period, is there any thing that we can- have now that is per-, feet? There is just one thing that we can have even now that is perfect, and that one thing is " love ;" -Amid all that is so fast passing away there are three things that abide (or, continue). These three things are “faith, hope, love” ; but even of these three continuing things there is one that is- greater than the other two and that is love; “the greatest of these is love.” Love stands absolutely alone. It has no peer. It is the one divine thing (I John 4:7, 8 ); It is the “fulfilling of the law” (Rom. 13:10). If love be present every good deed will fol low. But while love is greater than faith, it springs'from faith (Gal. 5:6; 1 John 4:19). It is foolish to talk about its being “better to have love without faith than to have faith without love,” for we cannot have love unless we have faith, and if we
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