Love and Marriage | 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

This past Sunday, Pastor Kevin Long references 1 Corinthians 13, to provide a roadmap for healthy, Christ-centered relationships. The message serves as both a conviction and an encouragement: love is not a fleeting emotion but a necessary, active, and permanent commitment that mirrors the heart of God.

Love is Necessary

Pastor Long begins by addressing the “crisis of priority” in the Corinthian church. The people were obsessed with flashy spiritual gifts such as like speaking in tongues or possessing deep knowledge. However they were using them to compete rather than to serve.

• • • • Eloquence without love is just a “clanging cymbal.” It’s annoying and disruptive rather than helpful. (v.1)
      • Paul writes that even if one has the faith to move mountains but lacks love, they are nothing. (v.2)

It doesn’t matter how well you dress, how well you speak, or how “spiritual” you seem. If the foundation of your marriage or ministry isn’t love, you’re essentially just making noise.

Love is Action

We often treat love as something we “fall into” or a feeling that sweeps us away. Pastor Kevin challenges this by pointing out that the descriptions in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 are verbs, not just adjectives.

• • • • While the early stages of a relationship might feel like a whirlwind of emotions, real love is defined by patience, kindness, humility, and endurance.
      • Just as a physical body has different parts that must work together, a marriage involves two diverse individuals who must actively choose to function as one.
      • Love is the action of putting someone else’s needs above your own. In marriage, this means practicing kindness when you’re tired and humility when you’re wrong.

Love is Permanent

Unlike spiritual gifts or worldly knowledge, love is the greatest virtue because it lasts forever. (v.8)

• • • • In verse 5 the Bible says “not resentful.”
      • The original Greek word is a bookkeeping term. It refers to calculating an entry into a ledger.
      • Love does not keep a journal or a tally of past mistakes. It chooses to forgive, mirroring how Christ’s blood fully covers our sins rather than just hiding them.
      • As we grow, we are called to put away “childish ways” (v.11)
      • A mature marriage is one that moves past the temporary “likes” and anchors itself in the permanency of God’s love.

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