The Apostle Paul speaks of love in the 13th chapter of his first letter to the Corinthians, at the end of the previous chapter he writes:

Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way. 

1 Corinthians 12:31 NIV

Love, as demonstrated by our Lord Jesus, is the driving force behind what we believe and how we act as Christians. As Paul puts it, without love “I have nothing”:

(1)  If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
(2)  If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.
(3)  If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

1 Corinthians 13:1-3 NIV

The focus here is on our motives, the Lord told Samuel that He “examines the heart”, He knows the hearts of men better than we even know ourselves. Without love as our driving force we cannot:

• Obey our Lord (“If you love me you will obey my commandments.”).
• Be humble enough to serve others in the same way our Lord served (Washing the disciple’s feet, for example.).

Paul goes on to describe the attributes of love:

(4)  Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
(5)  It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.
(6)  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
(7)  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
(8)  Love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8a NIV

Love:

• Is patient: It is prepared to wait, doesn’t hurry to satisfy our pride or other fleshly lusts.
• Is kind: It exhibits compassion and is driven to action by it.
• Does not envy: Being envious of other’s possessions, positions or gifts opens us up to the influence of Satan.
• Does not boast: It doesn’t seek to glorify self, but to glorify God!
• Is not proud: It sees itself as nothing, only capable of achieving its ends through God’s guidance, power and provision.
• Does not dishonor others: It doesn’t tear others down, it builds them up!
• Is not self-seeking: Nothing love does is driven by the possibility of benefit to itself.
• Is not easily angered: It keeps its anger in check, the anger of man does not produce the righteousness that God desires. When our actions, even if good, are driven by human anger our focus will not be on the advancement of the Kingdom of God.
• Keeps no record of wrongs: It exhibits forgiveness.
• Does not delight in evil, but rejoices in the truth: It always seeks to expose the truth, even to the detriment of itself.
• It always protects: It is always concerned with the godly benefit of others.
• It always trusts: It isn’t naive and trusts where trust has been proven to be dangerous, but it always looks for the possibility of good in others. The Lord can change hearts.
• It always hopes: It won’t consider any cause a lost one, the Lord can change people.
• It always perseveres: Another form of patience, never giving up.
• It never fails: True love never strays from these attributes.

But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.

1 Corinthians 13:8b NIV

Here is a point where the Cessationists (those that believe that the sign gifts no longer operate) differ from the view of the Continuationists (those that believe the sign gifts still operate). In this verse, Paul stated that there would be a time when prophecies, tongues and knowledge would stop. Before we dig deeper into this and the following verses, let’s just review these three things to ensure that we understand what they refer to:

Prophecies: In this verse the Greek word “prophēteia” is used, which according to Strongs means “prediction”. In a scriptural context, this is God revealing future events to His people through the Holy Spirit. Some New Testament examples of this can be found in Acts 11:27-28 & Acts 21:10-11.

Tongues: The Greek word used here is “glōssa”, “Of uncertain affinity; the tongue; by implication a language (specifically one naturally unacquired): – tongue.” according to Strongs. Scripturally, someone speaking in a language that they do not know. Acts 2 details an example of this gift via the Apostles on the Day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was given.

Knowledge: Here, in the Greek, the word “gnōsis” listed in Strongs as “knowing (the act), that is, (by implication) knowledge: – knowledge, science.”. Paul may have been speaking here of either our knowledge of the things of God or the Spiritual Gift of Knowledge. What is the Spiritual Gift of Knowledge? This is the passing of information to us by the Holy Spirit, Jesus showed this gift when He saw Nathanael approaching and declared him as “an Israelite in whom there is no deceit” in John 1:47-48. Which do I believe this refers to? In the context of the following verses, both.

(9)  For we know in part and we prophesy in part,
(10)  but when completeness comes, what is in part disappears.

1 Corinthians 13:9-10 NIV

“We know in part” – We simply do not know, and are not capable of understanding, everything about God. Here on this earth we see the Lord “through a glass, darkly” (KJV) or “a reflection as in a mirror” (NIV) as it is put in verse 12. We only see an incomplete picture of what and who the Lord is (for want of a better way of describing this!). We do not fully understand the things of God. Romans 11:33, Job 11:7, Job 36:26 and Proverbs 25:2.

“We prophesy in part” – We foretell future events through the Holy Spirit via the gift of Prophecy, but the Lord does not reveal everything to us. He uses this gift to share future knowledge that He deems prudent to us to know, through His infinite wisdom.

“But when completeness comes, what is in part disappears” – All the above things that are “in part” will be gone, no longer necessary, when “completeness comes”. What is “completeness”? I believe that verses 11 and 12 answer this question:

(11)  When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.
(12)  For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.

1 Corinthians 13:11-12 NIV

Verse 11 states an analogy, it describes a process of moving from one state, childhood, to another, manhood. Manhood implies maturity. “Completeness” (NIV) or “that which is perfect” (KJV) removes the need for the partial things mentioned.

So, we must answer the question: What is “completeness” or “that which is perfect”? Verse 12, I believe, answers this question, “then we shall see face to face”. When and what shall we see “face to face”? Our Lord, when we get to heaven. At that time, we will “know fully, even as I am fully known”, we shall know our Lord as completely as He already knows us. When we leave this world and join our Lord in Heaven, our sanctification will be complete.

Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

1 John 3:2 NIV

As I mentioned earlier, there is disagreement as to the meaning of these verses between the camps of the Cessationists and the Continuationists. Why am I so sure that these verses mean that which I have shared in this article? Let me share my testimony to this:

If we will listen, the Holy Spirit speaks to us as we read scripture. It is not interpreted by the human brain but by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 2:9-16). The above things are the meanings that the Spirit has shared with me as I’ve studied this chapter.

I have prayed extensively in the past (and continue to do so) that the Lord would show me the truth about this topic and the rest of His Word. This prayer was answered:

A few years ago, a dear Christian friend was praying over me, asking the Lord to reveal and work out His purpose for my life. As he was praying, he switched from speaking English to Hebrew. How do I know it was Hebrew? I recognized a number of the words from studying the Old Testament and examining the original Hebrew text with the help of Strongs references. I know for a fact that my friend is not fluent in Hebrew! The gift of tongues is not one that I, personally, have. It has never happened to me, however, other Christians that are very close and dear to me have testified to this gift being used through them. These are people that I know love the Lord and fully trust.

What about prophecy? Prophecy can simply mean “to speak the Lord’s words”, although in this case it refers to sharing knowledge of future events. There have been many times throughout my Christian life where the Spirit has told me the outcome of events before I’ve encountered them. This has for me, for example, brought comfort or forewarned me. About 13 years ago, the Spirit told me that my wife (who had suffered from infertility and was only able to have our older son by taking fertility drugs) was going to have a son. About 6 months or so later, she woke me in the middle of the night and said “How do you feel about being a daddy again?”. I have had many experiences like this. Prophecy does not always have to be pivotal events in history, such as the coming of our Lord and Savior, but can simply be the guidance, comfort and forewarning of a loving and generous God towards His people.

Knowledge, as in knowledge about our God, is imparted to us as we read scripture and learn about our God. As for the Spiritual Gift of Knowledge, there have been situations where the Spirit has warned me about the intentions or spirit of others. Warnings or encouragement as to another person’s character are another sign of a loving and caring God.

Some might ask “Why then do we not see these things today?”. I would argue that we do, but they are often dismissed because of doctrinal beliefs or explained as the work of Satan (Mark 3:22-30 – be careful about blaspheming the Holy Spirit!). A personal opinion: maybe the Lord chooses not to work these things around those that place him “in a box” and insist that “The Lord does not do this anymore!”.

The Spiritual Gift of Tongues is also given a bad reputation by some denominations that insist that tongues is evidence of salvation and that a person is not saved until they speak in tongues. This is unscriptural and leads people to “fake it” (1 Corinthians 12:8-11).

Accept the one whose faith is weak, without quarreling over disputable matters.

Romans 14:1 NIV

A Christian who does not hold to the doctrines of continuation does not necessarily have weak faith, but Paul’s advice here is sound. These differences in doctrine should not cause a divide between us, we should all strive for unity in the faith. I have dear brothers and sisters in Christ who hold to the doctrine of Cessation, but we don’t let our differences cause arguments or restrict us from ministry together. We are all children of God who hold, firmly, to the doctrines of salvation and others that are clearly laid out in scripture. This is where our unity should be found.