Love Never Fails (1 Corinthians 13)

Scripture reading – 1 Corinthians 13 

Click here to translate this Bible study into Hebrew, Russian, Chinese, Arabic, German, Spanish, Portuguese, Urdu, or French.

* Please note that words and phrases in brackets are the author’s amplification.

1 Corinthians 13 is widely known as the “Love” chapter, but what is “love”? The world offers many ideas, attitudes, and definitions of love. The Greek philosopher Plato suggested, “Love is a serious mental disease,”and the celebrated American poet Robert Frost wrote, “Love is an irresistible desire to be irresistibly desired.”E. Joseph Cossman, inventor, entrepreneur, and author, defined love as “a friendship set to music.”

We find three principal words for love in Greek. There is “Eros,” the word for sexual desire, from which our English word “erotic” is derived. “Phileo” denotes affection between friends, a “give-and-take” love rooted in a mutually beneficial relationship. The third word for love is “Agape.” Agape, often described as “divine love,” is selfless and sacrificial. Rather than focusing on what one can receive from a relationship, it seeks to give.

In the Scriptures, God’s love is defined as self-sacrificing Agape love. For instance, “God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Christ’s sacrificial death demonstrates God’s love for sinners. We read in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

The Character of Agape Love (1 Corinthians 13:4–8)

1 Corinthians 13:4–8 presents the biblical definition of charity—a divine, active love. [Please note that the words in brackets are the author’s amplification.] 

1 Corinthians 13:4–8 – “⁴Charity suffereth long [patient], and is kind [willing to help]; charity envieth not [not jealous]; charity vaunteth not itself [not boastful], is not puffed up [proud; haughty],

⁵Doth not behave itself unseemly [rude; disgraceful], seeketh not her own [self-seeking], is not easily provoked [or angered], thinketh no evil [does not keep accounts of another’s wrongdoing];

⁶Rejoiceth not in iniquity [unhappy with injustices], but rejoiceth in the truth [rejoices in God’s Truth, or when truth prevails];

⁷Beareth all things [suffers patiently], believeth all things [trusts; believes the best], hopeth all things [never stops hoping], endureth all things [never gives up].

⁸Charity never faileth [never stops loving].”

Closing thoughts –

We should cultivate life-giving relationships shaped by the enduring qualities of Agape love. Such love is practical and attainable, yet it demands sacrifice—the kind that reaches into a person’s heart and prompts a deliberate choice to love, even at one’s own expense. Love is an act of the will that cannot be equated with or replaced. 

Agape love cannot be earned or merited. It is freely given. Biblically, love is first among the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23) and the foundation of the law and the prophets (Matthew 22:37–40).

Lastly, love is the most excellent (1 Corinthians 12:31), the most enduring (1 Corinthians 13:8a), and the indispensable quality a believer can express (1 Corinthians 13:13).

With the love and heart of a shepherd…

Study Questions

1. How does Agape love, as shown in Romans 5:8 and John 3:16, differ from the world’s concept of love? Why is sacrifice central to Agape love?

2. Which of the following qualities of charity do you find hardest to practice (1 Corinthians 13:4–7): patience, not being easily provoked, keeping no record of wrongs, or another quality?