1 Corinthians 13 ESV (with 1 word added, Agape)

The Way of Love

1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not Agape love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 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 Agape love, I am nothing. 3 If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to be burned, but have not Agape love, I gain nothing.

Before we see how Agape love behaves we should look at how any other kind of love acts because all forms of love have a driving force. Eros certainly does. So does Philio and most definitely Storage does.

If you are not familiar with Storage, it is the love that we share with family members and it can exist even within the family of God without being Agape. 

Gifts are given. One of those is the gift of tongues but if it is used to glorify self rather than God it is eros, selfish. The same goes for the other gifts; prophetic, discernment, knowledge and even faith itself. Faith that is given that does not begin with hearing God, believing God and obeying God is faith in self, not faith in God.

Verse 3 is the most telling of all the attributes of any kind of love that is not agape. Charity is the original definition used in the oldest translations of the bible. Charity can exist without being driven by the love of God. Charities exist all around us that are not faith based. They will even question your faith in order to get your money. If it is a true charity then why do the CEO’s make millions running them? Why are so much of the money being funneled to corrupt influencers?

Agape Love is patient and kind; Agape Love does not envy or boast; Agape Love  is not arrogant or rude. Agape love does not insist on its own way; Agape Love  is not irritable or resentful; Agape Love does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Agape Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

I have added the word Agape in the dialogue to remind us that if God does not dwell in our hearts by faith and direct all acts of love, then we have gained nothing for His Kingdom and His glory. The motivation of the heart is the telltale sign for the actions we take, either with God or without Him.

Do we glorify God or self? He who steals God’s glory is a thief.

Isaiah 47:10 You felt secure in your wickedness; you said, “No one sees me”; your wisdom and your knowledge led you astray, and you said in your heart, “I am, and there is no one besides me.”

None are so alone as those who do not know love..

Genesis 2:18 Then the Lord God said, “It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him a helper fit for him.”

Many of us understand what God intended here. Sadly some never get it.

Helper is a term that indicates there are some things you should not or cannot do alone. That covers a wide array of ideas but the basic principles are sharing and communication.

Take the greatest characteristic of God as the first principle, love. Love screams out to be shared. Love’s very nature needs an object of affection. One cannot love alone. That is unnatural, unseemly, and a waste of energy.

Secondly the word fit takes on different meanings. One use of the word can be applied here. If you want shoes you get fitted. You may like the looks of a shoe but you have to try them on to discover if they hurt or not. Comfort, proper fit is important.

God made Eve for Adam. His intentions for Adam are the same for all men, to choose a proper woman that fits and will not hurt you. She can share the love you have, giving and receiving. Anyone other than God’s choice will cause pain.

Does anyone these days ask God, “Show me your choice for me?”

I did and God did. I have never loved or been loved as I am now.

This is possible only because God set love in motion in this realm we call time.

We all seek it because we all need it and it is a powerful force in life itself.

If we don’t know God’s love, we will end up pleasing ourselves and that is not love.

Of the nine words for love in the Greek there is only one that is perfectly suited to fit.

Agape. 1 Corinthians 13 tells us how Agape acts.