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1 Corinthians 13 chapter Precept ausin lesson

Paul says, here, that three very important gifts are going to cease--prophecy, tongues, and knowledge. They exist for a limited time, in contrast to the eternal nature of love. And though love is indispensable in the use of the gifts, it's going to outlast them.

1. The Context of the Gifts

Paul uses spiritual gifts to contrast love because gifts were highly prized in the Corinthian church. The Corinthians were proud, self-seeking, and self-centered. They were spiritual show-offs--desiring to be in an up-front position. So to them, the gifts were a big deal. They showed off their spirituality by demonstrating their gift. Well, as it turned out, the gifts that they were demonstrating were, for the most part, fleshly or satanic counterfeits. Nevertheless, this is where they put the emphasis.

It's interesting to realize that in the entire letter of 1 Corinthians (sixteen chapters), there is not a single mention of an elder or a leader of that church. Apparently, no one was leading. In fact, they had come to the place where their whole view of church worship was, "We'll just come together and let the Holy Spirit do His thing and let it all happen." Finally, in 14:32, the Apostle Paul cries out, "...the spirits of the prophets are subject to the prophets." Then in 14:40, he says, "Let all things be done decently and in order." A church can't operate without leaders. God never intended for the church to be a group of people who get together and do whatever they feel. The church is to have structure and order. Why? Because God is a God of order.

The Corinthian church had no leadership or order. Instead, they had decided to come in each week and fight to see who could be the most prominent. So Paul says, "These gifts that you have exalted, these independent expressions of so-called spirituality are all just temporary--even the true ones...to say nothing of those that are false and counterfeit. However, love will go on...