You might have noticed that we covered chapters 12 and 14, but we skipped over chapter 13. We did that on purpose. That’s because we often take chapter 13 out of the context of its surrounding chapters. We read it at weddings or during a marriage series, which can make us think chapter 13 is all about romantic love.
But that’s not really what it’s about.
As we’ve explored these three chapters this week, we’ve seen that the love described in 1 Corinthians 13 is actually about how we treat other Christians in the context of the local church. It’s the sacrificial, selfless love of Jesus.
We’ve already put some spiritual disciplines into practice during this study. This week, we’re going to try one called Lectio Divina, which is just a fancy Latin way of saying “prayerful reading.”
We’re going to take you through the four steps of Lectio Divina, which will help you pray and think deeply about 1 Corinthians 13. While you go through this exercise, remember the message of chapters 12 and 14. How does this description of love help us better understand those two chapters?
Step 1: Lectio (Read): Remove all distractions and quiet your mind before God.
Now read 1 Corinthians 13 three times slowly. If you can, read it out loud to yourself. Let the message hit you. After reading it three times, find one verse or phrase that stands out to you the most. Re-read it a couple more times and place emphasis on different words as you read.
1If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.
4Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5or rude. It does not demand its own way. It is not irritable, and it keeps no record of being wronged. 6It does not rejoice about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance.
8Prophecy and speaking in unknown languages and special knowledge will become useless. But love will last forever! 9Now our knowledge is partial and incomplete, and even the gift of prophecy reveals only part of the whole picture! 10But when the time of perfection comes, these partial things will become useless.
11When I was a child, I spoke and thought and reasoned as a child. But when I grew up, I put away childish things. 12Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely. 13Three things will last forever—faith, hope, and love—and the greatest of these is love.
1 Corinthians 13 (NLT)
Step 2: Meditatio (Meditate): Think about the phrase or verse that stood out to you. What does it mean? What does it say about God? Humans? How does it contribute to the big idea we’ve talked about in 1 Corinthians?
Step 3: Oratio (Pray): Pray through your verse or phrase. Ask God to show you what he’s saying through this verse. Take your verse and turn it into a prayer. For example, if you chose the verse in 1 Cor. 13:4, you could pray, “Teach me to be patient and kind,” or, “Thank you for being patient and kind with me.”
Step 4: Contemplatio (Contemplate): Now that you’ve read, thought, and prayed through the text, finish off your time in silence. Ask God to speak to you. Pray He’d show you one practical thing you could apply to your life from this passage.
Then listen.
Write down what He says and then do it.
You have the whole weekend to do this Lectio Divina exercise. Please share your experience before Sunday night.
Text your response to the above prompting questions to your group and/or share it as a comment below
The verse that spoke up to me was verse 7 “love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance”. This just showed me the grace God shows that no matter how much we mess up he still loves us. Also as believers it just shows me the love we should have to others.
Dear God please help me to know what your love is constantly and how to love. Help me especially when I have a short fuse and when I’m angry and teach me how to do everything in love. Amen.
The verse that stood out to me was verse 12. I can understand because I know also that I see things imperfectly and I understand where Paul is coming from in terms of having faith in God that He will reveal everything to us. Ultimately, we know that God loves us and He has a plan for us. Sometimes we may not understand or even if we think we do, we do not see things as God does. God, I pray that I would not trust in what I know but understand that you are the one who knows all and that I must have faith to trust you. I pray that I will be patient until you reveal everything to us so that we will understand everything that you have done for us. I think the one practical thing that I can pull from this verse is to continue seeking God and his Word so that I can continue to grow in my faith and my relationship with God. I know that this will help me to trust God and to always put my faith in God even when things may be difficult or I may not understand something.