When we think of love, we often think of it as a feeling or emotion that comes and goes. But in 1 Corinthians 13:10-11, we are reminded that love is so much more than that. It is a force that endures, a characteristic that defines us, and a reflection of the perfection that is yet to come.
Verse 10 states, "But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away."
Many interpret this as referring to the ultimate completion or perfection of knowledge and understanding that will come with the return of Jesus Christ or the end of time. In other words, when the fullness of God's love is revealed to us, our current understanding and knowledge will be done away with.
This can be difficult to understand in our day-to-day lives, but it's important to remember that we have a glimpse of that perfection in the love that we experience every day. For example, when we see a mother's love for her child, we see a reflection of the selfless love that God has for us. When we see a couple who have been married for decades, still deeply in love and committed to each other, we see a reflection of the eternal love that God has for us. When we see a friend sacrifice their own needs to help another, we see a reflection of the sacrificial love that God has for us.
Verse 11 states, "When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man, I put away childish things."
This verse speaks to the idea that as we grow and mature, our understanding of love changes and deepens.
For example, as children, we might have thought that love was all about getting what we want and being happy. But as we grow older, we realize that love is about sacrifice and putting others' needs before our own. As teenagers, we might have thought that love was all about attraction and passion, but as we grow older, we realize that love is about commitment and loyalty.
Throughout church history, this verse has been understood in different ways. For example, in the early church, some believed that the "perfect" referred to the return of Jesus Christ and the end of the age. Others believed that it referred to the completion of the canon of scripture. Still, others believed that it referred to the coming of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.
For example, during the Patristic period, the early Church Fathers emphasized the importance of spiritual maturity, and they understood this verse to be a call to put away "childish" ways of thinking and understanding the faith. In the Middle Ages, the emphasis was on the role of reason and intellect in understanding the faith. During the Reformation, emphasis was placed on the role of faith in understanding the faith. In all these periods, the emphasis was on understanding the Faith better.
Therefore, this portion of scripture reminds us that our current understanding and knowledge of love is imperfect and temporary. But the perfection of love is yet to come, and it can be seen in the love that we experience in our day-to-day lives. Love is eternal, it is selfless, it is sacrificial, and it is a reflection of the perfection that is yet to come.
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