Review of Spiritual Gifts—Spiritual gifts are the supernatural abilities that the Holy Spirit empowers us to perform so that the church can be built up. How were the Corinthians perverting the use of Spiritual Gifts?

Biblical background of Love—The point of chapter 13 and the key to understanding Spiritual Gifts is Love.

“Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:8

“The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, "The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children's children, to the third and the fourth generation." Exodus 34:6-7 *also see Leviticus 19:9-18

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets." Matthew 22:37-40

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35

I. “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal.”

II. “If I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.”

III. “If I give away all I have, and if I deliver up my body to burned, but have not love, I gain nothing.” *What is your motivation in serving others?

Conclusion—Love is necessary. If we are going to genuinely follow Jesus love is necessary. If we are going to use our gifts to build one another up love is necessary. So what is love? That is the question we will answer this summer as we work through First Corinthians 13.