Remain in Love – 1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Brandon Werner - March 16, 2025

Remaining in Love

Sermon Manuscript | Pastor Brandon Werner | March 16, 2025

Together Church | Series: Love Never Fails

PRE-MESSAGE – Before dismissing the children

Last week, we challenged the church to put 1 Corinthians 13 to memory. It’s only been one week, so let’s see how we are doing.

Put text on screen so we can all recite it together
If you’re memorizing, try saying what you can without looking

Pastor Stephen, will be our pace setter.

1 Corinthians 13

13 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing.

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

8 Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.

11 When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known.

13 And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Stephen

Great job! If you haven’t already, open your Bibles to 1 Corinthians 13.

Dismiss children to the Bible Zone
Pray for preaching of God’s Word

INTRODUCTION

Last week, we saw how Paul began the love chapter by elevating love in verses 1-3.

Today, we will continue to look at the love chapter by examining verses 4-7. After elevating love in the first three verses, Paul moves to describing what characterizes love in the next four. He tells them…

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

That’s a good description of love, but it’s not the only way love could be described…

If we wanted to, couldn’t we simplify this passage by saying love is not selfish? The common theme in everything Paul said about love in this passage is that love is not self-centered. So, if we wanted to, we could simplify this passage further.
On the other hand, if we wanted to, we could significantly expand this description of love. Certainly, everything Paul said to describe love in this passage is true! But is this all there is to say about love? Certainly not! We could say much, much more.

BODY

This brings us to the first of three very important questions. First…

Why does Paul describe love in this specific way?

Why did Paul choose these particular characteristics to define love? What prompted this description?

To answer that, we need to see how this passage connects to the entire letter as a whole.

As beautiful as 1 Corinthians 13 is, it was not written to praise the Corinthians for their love; quite the opposite—this letter was written as a rebuke. Paul wasn’t celebrating their love for God and one another; he was confronting how they had drifted from love.

Each phrase in this passage is more than just poetic—it directly contradicts how the Corinthians were actually living. Paul is holding up true love as a mirror, showing them how their sinful behavior reflected the reality of their departure from love.

Just look at how every line in Paul’s description of love contrasts with the very problems he had already addressed…

Paul begins:

Love suffers long and is kind.

But the Corinthian church was not patient or kind. In chapter 11, Paul rebuked them for their impatience and lack of kindness at love feasts.

Several rich people were gathering at love feasts early and eating all the food. Later, the poor would arrive and there was nothing left for them to eat!

Paul’s telling them love does not behave this way. Love is patient and kind.

Love does not envy.

But in chapters 1 and 3, Paul points out how many of them were envious and divided over various leaders in the church! Some were pledging allegiance to Paul, others Apollos, others to Cephas, and others to Christ. They were envious of each other’s connections with various leaders in the church, creating jealous and strife. But love does not envy.

Love does not parade itself

But in chapter 1, Paul challenges them for wanting to be seen as wise and elite rather than humble in Christ. Love does not parade itself.

Love is not puffed up.

But in chapter 8, Paul reveals how many of them felt superior to others because of their knowledge about idols being nothing. That sense of superiority in understanding caused many of them to be “puffed up” and to look down on weaker believers who did not have this knowledge and were still struggling in their conscience about eating food previously sacrificed to idols. But love is not puffed up.

Love does not behave rudely.

But in chapter 11, Paul rebukes them for getting drunk at love feasts! Love does not behave rudely.

Love does not seek its own, is not provoked.

But these believers were selfish and entitled. They were also easily irritated or angered. This was evidenced in chapter 6 when Paul indicts them for dragging each other to secular courts instead of loving one another and practicing right judgements among themselves.

Love thinks no evil.

This means love does not keep a record of wrongs. When you are dragging others to court to sue them, you are keeping a record of wrongs.

Love does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth.

This means love does not delight in wrongdoing but celebrates what is right. This phrase might have been the greatest indictment on them of all. There was a serious scandal going on in the church!

A man was sleeping with his father’s wife! Instead of confronting this sin and calling this man to repentance, the Corinthian church was tolerating and even CELEBRATING this sin!

But love does not rejoice in iniquity, it rejoices in the truth.

Love bears all things.

Meaning they it covers, protects, and endures difficulties…

Love believes all things.

Meaning it trusts and assumes the best.

Love hopes all things.

Meaning it looks forward with expectation and never gives up on people.

Love endures all things.

Meaning love perseveres through hardships. It endures all things.

And in verse 8, Paul says, “Love never fails!”

Why does Paul describe love in this specific way?

Paul was showing the Corinthians that every failure in their church stemmed from a lack of love. This passage isn’t just poetic—it’s corrective. He was teaching them what real love looks like by exposing their failures.

Really, this passage is like a litmus test.

Hold your actions up to this description of love! If love defines your actions, you are operating in love. If it does not, you have a love problem.

And the Corinthians clearly had a love problem. Many were performing impressive feats! Many were filled with lots of knowledge. Many thought themselves to be mature and wise. And many might have incorrectly concluded those things meant they were living in love.

But Paul showed them otherwise. By describing love like this and holding love up in this way, Paul revealed they had a real love problem and had drifted from love in their hearts.

Application:

What about you? When you hold your actions up, do they reveal you are living in love or that you have a love problem? This applies to your relationship with…

Your spouse
Your children
Your parents
Your small group
Others in the church
People you work with
Other drivers on the road
Those in need around you

What does Paul’s litmus test teach you about your own behavior? Is your behavior characterized by love or by selfishness?

The truth is, we all battle with remaining in love to various degrees. None of us have arrived and are always operating in perfect love.

Why do we do that? Why do we tend to drift from love?

Well…

What was causing this love problem in the Corinthian church?

According to Paul, the source of the love problem in the Corinthian church was their flesh.

Ten chapters before the love chapter, in 1 Corinthians 3, Paul tells this church that the reasons they were behaving this way was because they are acting like people of the flesh…

1 Corinthians 3:1-3

1 But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. 2 I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, 3 for you are still of the flesh. For while there is jealousy and strife among you, are you not of the flesh and behaving only in a human way?

Can you see what Paul is saying? Paul was saying that the root cause for their love problem was that they were operating as people of the flesh.

If you get this next part, it will change your life.

SHARE THE WHOLE GOSPEL

What was the solution to their problem?

SPEAK FROM HEART

CONCLUSION

Listen to 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 one more time…

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

Watch the Sermon