The Glue That
Holds Life
Together
Steve W. Reeves
stevesermons.blogspopt.com
INTRODUCTION:
A. My
Dad was a skilled carpenter. When I was young he taught me many things about working with wood. On one occasion a friend of his gave him a pickup truck load of
“distressed” plywood. Plywood is made up of thin layers of wood that have been
glued and pressed together. In this particular lot the glue had been defective and the
layers were separating. We had to re-glue each piece, clamp it in place and allow the
glue to dry for several days before it could be used. We must have used a gallon or
more of glue on that distressed wood.
1. We see a lot of distress today.
2. Families are distressed for many reasons.
3. Our national government is distressed by political turmoil.
4. International relations are distressed by competing ideologies.
B. When the apostle Paul wrote to the church in Corinth he addressed a church in
distress. He addressed marriages in distress and people whose spiritual lives were in
distress. As you read the letter in its modern form it seems that each chapter
addresses a distressing situation.
1. Divisiveness – Chapter 1.
2. Worldly thinking – Chapters 2-3.
3. Immoral behavior – Chapters 4-5.
4. Harshness toward one another – Chapter 6.
5. Misunderstanding about marriage – Chapter 7.
6. Misunderstanding about Christian liberty – Chapters 8-10.
7. Misunderstanding about the Lord’s Supper – Chapter 11.
8. Misunderstanding about spiritual gifts – Chapters 12-14.
9. Misunderstanding about the resurrection – Chapter 15.
C. What is the glue with which distressing situations can be mended?
1. In the midst of all of these difficulties it is important to notice Paul’s statement in
1 Corinthians 12:31, “But earnestly desire the greater gifts and I show you a still
more excellent way.”
2. The gift of which Paul spoke is the glue that holds life together. Love.
I. THE NECESSITY OF LOVE (vss. 1-3).
A. The words of this chapter are so beautiful that we often read them without
consideration of what comes immediately before them or after them.
1. The Corinthians were characterized by a self-centered attitude. Even in their
assemblies there was jealousy, envy and division. They were more concerned
about themselves than others.
2. In chapter 12 Paul illustrated how the body of Christ (the church) is one but, like
our physical bodies, has many members. In chapter 14 he wrote that the
spiritual gifts possessed by various members were not to be used for
selfish reasons but to edify one another in love.
B. Chapter 13 begins with three conditional clauses that refer to several spiritual gifts
that existed in the church at Corinth. “If I speak in the tongues of men or of
angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2
If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I
have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. 3
And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be
burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing.”
1. In these verses Paul was not calling into question the activities themselves.
Rather it was the motivation that accompanied them.
2. The most difficult question we face is the question of motivation. Why do we do
what we do? Why do we attend worship? Why do we give? Why do we believe
the things we believe? Why do we teach? Why do we serve?
a. Are we doing these things because of selfish reasons? Do we like to draw
attention to ourselves? Do we like the fanfare or glamour? Is there personal
profit? Does it make us feel good?
b. Are we serving from a heart of love? Love for God? Love for one another?
Love for those who need Christ?
C. Paul’s plea was for the church to understand that all of the religious activity in the
world is useless without the glue that holds it all together. Love.
II. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF LOVE (vss. 4-7).
A. How would you define love? We’re fortunate that Paul has provided us with a
divinely inspired description.
B. Paul mentions 8 things love does not do.
1. It does not envy.
2. It does not boast.
3. It is not proud. Love is not into self-glorification.
4. It does not dishonor others. It is not discourteous.
5. It is not self-seeking. “Selfishness lies at the root of a thousand evils” – Lenski.
6. It is not easily angered.
7. It keeps no record of wrongs. Benjamin Franklin wrote, “Write injuries in dust.
Benefits in marble.”
C. Paul mentions 6 things that love is.
1. Love is patient. Long tempered without a short fuse.
2. Love is kind, helpful and friendly. It is used of Christ’s yoke translated: easy.”
3. Love protects.
4. Love trusts – vs. 7.
5. Love hopes.
6. Love perseveres.
D. It is one thing to read these characteristics but quite another to see them.
The best commentary of the Bible is the Bible! The best commentary on
1 Corinthians 13 is found in John 13.
1. In verse 1 we read, “Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that
His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having
loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end.”
a. “The end,” means “the uttermost” or “the maximum.”
b. This love was perfect. It included the one who doubted Him, the one who
denied Him and the one who betrayed Him.
2. To demonstrate this love He took a basin of water, a towel and washed their
feet. Then he said, “As I have washed your feet so you should . . . “ What did He
say? Did He say, “Wash my feet?” Such would have been an honor. However,
he said, “wash one another’s feet.” Share with others the love I have shared
with you.
3. In 1967 the Chicago Bears had two powerful running backs. They were a unique
combination. They were roommates on the road. One was black, the other
white. That was a first in the NFL. Those two men had never spent any time with
someone of a different race. Over the months their friendship deepened. Their
names were Gayle Sayers and Brian Piccolo. At the end of the season Sayers
receive the prestigious George S. Halas award for his courage and
achievements. At the awards banquet he accepted it, not for himself, but for his
roommate Brian Piccolo, who had been diagnosed with cancer and was
undergoing treatment for it. Before an audience of tough men and sports
reporters Sayers said. “I love Brian Piccolo and tonight I hope that you will love
Him too.”
4. After washing the feet of the disciples Jesus went on to say in verses 34-35, “A
new commandment I give you.” What was it? “That you love one another. By
this shall all men know you are my disciples, that you love one another.”
5. How often do we tell each other at church, “I love you?” There are people sitting
here this morning who have not heard those words in weeks or even months or
years. The place where love should abound is often the place where it is the
hardest to find.
6. May I challenge you to tell someone here today, “I love you.”
III. THE ENDURING NATURE OF LOVE (vss. 8-12)
A. All of the spiritual gifts that these Corinthians were so proud of were only
temporary. All of them would cease. Notice, however, the final verse of this
chapter, “ But now, faith, hope and love abide, these three, and the greatest of
these is love.”
B. How can we communicate this enduring quality of love. I recently ran across the
following acrostic that may help you. Using the four letters L O V E.
1. L – isten. The greatest way you can demonstrate your interest in another person
is to listen to their story and hear not only with your ears but with your heart.
2. O – verlook. Everyone has faults and failures. That includes you. Love takes no
record of wrongs.
3. V – alue. Value people more than you value things. Invest yourself in
relationships with others.
4. E – xpress. It is important to tell people you love them. Love must be expressed
in other ways as well. When I fall asleep in my recliner I often wake up with my
Arkansas Razorback blanket covering me. It is an expression of love from my
wife.
CONCLUSION:
A. What is the answer to distressed situations? In 1965 Hal David and Burt Bacharach
wrote a song recorded by Jackie DeShannon. “Lord, we don’t need another
mountain, there are mountains and hillsides enough to climb. There are oceans and
rivers enough to cross, enough to last until the end of time, What the world needs
now is love, sweet love, It's the only thing that there's just too little of.”
B. Love is the glue that holds life together. The source of love is God. God is love. His
love is extended to you today. Will you come to Him and share His love for you
today?
