(Disclaimer: This transcript is auto-generated and may contain mistakes.)

Right first Corinthians 13 really famous chapter obviously and for those of you that don't know we've been going through the book of Corinthians chapter by chapter as a Bible study on a Sunday evening we're now up to obviously chapter 13 and it starts in verse 1 with though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels and have not charity I am become a sounding brass or a tinkling symbol right and we finished the last chapter didn't we the Paul saying in first Corinthians 12 31 but covet earnestly the best gifts and yet show I unto you a more excellent way and some would then call charity the best gift I've heard this before and it's never it's never called a gift it's not a gift because it's something that that we need to follow after says first Corinthians 14 1 it's a more excellent way so if you just jump forward to first Corinthians 41 it says follow after charity and desire spiritual gifts but rather that you may prophesy so it's separate to spiritual gifts isn't it because it is something that we can follow after ourselves yeah we can pray for gifts we can we can covet them but with charity we all have the ability we need to follow after charity and we will see that with a few other passages in a bit and above all else it's a more excellent way it's a more excellent way so what is charity what is charity charity in a general sense love benevolence goodwill that disposition of heart which inclines men to think favorably of their fellow men and to do them good in a theological sense it includes supreme love to God and universal goodwill to men right every single false version or false perversion renders this as love every single one and you know people love that don't they love they love you know not no pun intended here they love to use the false versions at weddings a lot of the time you you know I remember going to a wedding where the family members said they prefer to use a different version because they wanted this passage to say love in it okay and there are many there are you know many ways this is used and why why do they go for love instead well let's see what what how love is described an affection of the mind excited by beauty and worth of any kind or by the qualities of an object which communicate pleasure central or intellectual it is opposed to hatred love between the sex is a compound affection consisting of esteem benevolence and animal desire love is excited by pleasing qualities of any kind as by kindness benevolence charity and by the qualities which render social intercourse agreeable in a latter case love is ardent friendship or a strong attachment springing from goodwill and honesty and the pleasure derived from the company's civilities and kindness of others so basically love is a lot of the time more responsive isn't it and it's a lot more open to interpretation and therefore they love using love because we could just change that as in how love seems to apply in our modern day and as we know nowadays love with these sorts of passages will be used for things like mushy feelings won't it feeling good you know that the mushy feeling you get from someone that sort of lovey feeling love as well people would say well follow after love and in their mind they mean making people feel good about themselves making people feel good which a lot of the time in essence is flattery isn't it okay now just quickly on the flattery thing because we mentioned it a couple of times over the last few weeks okay giving someone genuine genuine compliments isn't flattery genuine but it's when it's not genuine it's when it's constant it's when the people that are just constantly telling you things you know basically trying to please you with things which aren't necessarily and you know when it's what I think you know deep down when it's flattering when it's not the problem with flattery is it makes you feel good and it makes you feel good and you kind of like it but you know another part of flattery is is it puffs people up so when you're around and I've noticed this over many years with people when you're around flatterers you get puffed up you get puffed up because they make you feel good and flatters around other people if you're starting to feel yourself getting a bit arrogant a bit confident and you're thinking this person's always giving me compliments there's a problem there because really they're setting you up pride goes before destruction doesn't it and hold to spit before a fall it's not a good thing to have someone constantly flattering you but let's not go off on that tangent too much okay but the love that we see today is maybe an acceptance of sin isn't it you're so unloving because you don't accept sin because you don't call sin what it is and how abused is this passage and similar by the liberal Christians massively isn't it you're so unloving you hear it a lot you know you're so full of anger you're not loving well there is a difference isn't there and obviously love can apply this there is a charity kind of love as well but preaching hard on sin is loving in the charity kind isn't it because you're getting you know that's not a nice thing and for churches and you talk to preachers around around the world it's not always it's not a nice it's not they enjoy preaching on the sin that they see and feel is going on in a church they're worried about will go on but it's it's for the good of the church isn't it and we all of us here have heard preaching obviously around mainly from the States preaching on sin and like I've said many times a lot easier when you're the other side of the ponders they call it isn't it to deal with and it could be hard sometimes and and sometimes you feel a bit oh that's a bit harsh and it's on me and you know don't get me wrong I'm not I'm not the hardest preacher out there and I don't think I preach particularly hard anyway and that'll probably come with time but but we we need to have we need to our sin to be pointed out we need we need to know about sin and we need to be given the warnings and we need it to hit home sometimes don't we and we need to show our strength of character to be able to deal with that and not just start getting annoyed grumbling start flicking through our Bibles and switching off or not you know not wanting to say anything to the preacher afterwards or anything else and you know and that happens and that happens around churches but preaching hard telling people the truth is charitable that is charitable it's not for any other reason than to help people and we're gonna see in a minute about preaching without that and people like to hide behind the word love I was at a church and I'm not just talking about this sort of TV preacher liberal preacher I'm talking about the the so-called independent fundamental Baptist Church pastor who says constantly talks about how loving they are and we you know we just want to show love it's all love but really they only love themselves really they're trying to show themselves to be basically more loving than God more loving than Jesus Christ they laid well we wouldn't say that because we're too loving what are you talking about because the Bible says that and it's something we have to be aware of isn't it so in verse 1 it says though I speak with the tongues of men of angels and have not charity I am become a sounding brass for tinkling symbol so remember here the charity is a giving isn't it it's it's goodwill it's thinking of others it's a giving out to others not trying to tickle tickle there there there is not trying to make them feel good sometimes it will make someone feel sometimes people need to feel good don't they sometimes people need to be exalted but not all the time okay and charity is is about what's best for them okay he says here and speak with the tongues of men and of angels so obviously we looked at this last week that's the languages of men but what about and of angels so again you might have the the charismatic pointing to this talking about the tongues of angels that's what they're talking about here well angels means messengers doesn't it so it could be heavenly or not so basically tongues of angels is basically the language of God and what's the language of God this isn't it you can speak with the tongues of men you can speak with the tongues of God and if you have not charity if you're preaching this Bible if you're talking this Bible and it's not for the good of anyone else you're like sounding brass or a tinkling symbol okay sounding brass a tinkling symbol is basically I think a loud dull noise or a quiet repetitive sound and you could be speaking like we say the languages of the world you know the Word of God but without charity it's profit it's profitless isn't it and just on that there is nowhere in the Bible by the way where angels from heaven speak with another language okay some sort of new language that's some heavenly thing again I don't think anyone here is probably gonna be conned by that sort of doctrine right verse 2 and though I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains and have not charity I am nothing okay so even if you were the best preacher you understand understood every mystery and knowledge in the Bible without that charity without it being for the edifying of the church without that thinking of other people is saying here you're nothing absolutely nothing and you might think well that's a bit extreme you know the best person he said the gift of prophecy understand all mysteries and all knowledge and though I have all faith and he's giving an extreme here but regardless there are there are people that are articulate there are people that they could probably write a lovely beginning middle end to a sermon and there are there are preachers we know aren't there out there and they don't really have charity do you think some of the TV preachers the most famous ones do you think they really have charity no way do they but they sound good and they tickle some ears and people think wow that guy can preach he can really preach but he doesn't have check he's not preaching for others he's preaching for his own business he's preached for himself he's preached for money and he's preaching lies okay but you could be a safe Christian and you could preach well but without charity you're nothing he says here as well he says and though I have all faith so that I could remove mountains and have not charity I am nothing and we spoke about last week I think it was about people with great faith and there are aren't there there are people with great faith that can really make a difference around you difference to your lives a difference to the church he's talking about removing mountains turn to mark 11 and in Matthew 17 20 he says and Jesus said unto them because of your unbelief a verily I sent you if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed you shall say unto this mountain remove hence to yonder place and it shall remove and nothing shall be impossible unto you and in mark 11 23 mark 11 23 we see for very I sound to you that whosoever shall sound to this mountain be thou removed and be thou cast into the sea and shall not doubt in his heart but shall believe that those things which he says shall come to pass he shall have whatsoever he saith therefore I sound to you what things so ever you desire when you pray believe that you receive them and you shall have them and when you stand praying forgive if he have alt against any that your father also which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses but if you do not forgive neither will your father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses so you can have a lot of faith can't you but when you pray and it says here to have that lot of praise it's saying you know when you pray believe that you receive them and you shall have them and there are people that are like that people that just have great faith but without charity and notice there the reason I read the rest of that is because you could see that with forgiveness can't you there's a certain amount of charity that comes with forgiveness isn't there and again if you have alt against any you know you need to basically forgive so that your father which is in heaven may forgive you your trespasses but if you do not forgive neither will your father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses I think that's going to be a block with your prayer life and that's just an obvious example there but but again there are people with faith and it's it's they've got their own personal faith but they're not helping other people they're not doing anything for other people they're nothing it's pointless it's not what you know like we said last week it's all about the body isn't it's about the church okay verse 3 says and though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor and though I give my body to be burned and have not charity it profiteth me nothing what a great verse because bestowing all your goods which basically giving away your goods all your goods to feed the poor is that not charity that's apparently charity by the world standards isn't it giving your body to be burned wow that's an extreme version of charity isn't it but giving away all your goods to feed the poor there are actually could be many motivations can there for that there could be many motivations we've all seen anyone that's been on Facebook seen the old Facebook charity giving the pictures and videos when you're giving money to the homeless person and I really angered me today you know story on someone's profile because just when I was giving that homeless guy a hundred quid you know someone came along and tripped up on the floor and no one helped him up or you know something like that I was walking this old lady across the road this car didn't nearly start just come on you so obvious but anyway stuff like that's really annoying but there are there are many motivations aren't there giving to be seen to give giving to be seen to give is a big motivation to tell others some people will give and it might not be to tell them in some state you know status on whatever it is but it might be just be able to go home and tell her at whatever friend and be able to tell people about what they've done how great they are giving to be seen as we said might just be to be seen by the passerby in the street might be that you don't even sound the trumpet you know in the modern version of that on some form of social media it might be just that that person in the street sees you giving if it's in the street that is it might be to to embarrass someone else maybe to embarrass the person you're with embarrass the other passerby or whatever it is there could be another motivation to giving maybe it's just that you really like that hobo maybe you're just looking at that guy you're thinking I you know I'd really like to be friends with that guy he's gonna really like me when I give him some money we'll have a little chat and and there are not there there are many and I'm sure there are many other many other versions and and that doesn't mean you have charity because you give money to feed the poor because you do things for people as well and and again it's might not be giving away all your goods but there are many motivations for doing stuff people look at people doing things helping giving and just saying what a charitable person but there are many motivations there are many motivations for that and again I'm sure you could think of a hundred different motivations now what about giving my body to be burned how do you do that without charity hey well what about so we call it martyrdom don't we what about to be a name I bet they'll probably be martyrs for that history that wanted to make a name for themselves now bear in mind as a saved Christian you know where you're going don't you you know where you're going is it that much of a ordeal to die early and go to heaven okay I'm not saying I'm just about to jump into the fire myself but what I am saying is that for some maybe they have a strong faith and maybe maybe it's not about doing it for others to fight for a cause some people can get really obsessed with the cause it's got nothing to do with the Word of God as well can't they you can get get really into a certain cause and right now there are people that could have been tempted to really go on into that cause of the you know with the COVID stuff and anti this and it's easy to get pulled into that but it's not really of God is it that's not the fight we're pulled towards or called towards sorry like I said to go to heaven early stubbornness there are people that just refuse to back there some people aren't there I mean I don't know I've had some stubborn children as well and you know that you got to break them because there are people that I think even with the risk of getting burned alive maybe just really don't I'm not gonna say it you know I'm not gonna say you know say whatever it is and I don't know there's just some motivations that you could probably think of a lot more but without the goodwill to others again it doesn't profit you anything being a martyr doesn't profit you anything if it's not for the good of other people yeah be being bestowing all your goods to feed the poor if it's just to be able to tell everyone you've done that what's it profited and as we know a lot of the time with homeless people it's not profiting them anything when you're giving them a load of money and I'm not just talking about homeless so our poor people they're genuinely poor people that can do with help but a lot of the time you know you start thinking of not if a man does not work neither shall he eat and and a lot of the time it's going on drugs and alcohol but that's another topic okay verse four charity suffereth long and is kind charity envieth not charity vaunteth not itself is not puffed up so genuine goodwill that charitable goodwill to others should result in you being more patient shouldn't it should result in you being more patient what about kind so you suffer with long that's being patient with people kind now again you know we can look at kindness and think yeah I'm pretty kind to people I got so winning I'm kind at church but I actually so some of this a while back when the church we were at they stopped singing and all the COVID stuff and and I just said to my family I'm just going to preach a sermon at home because there's no way you could you know it's like online I think at the time and and it was something that I really wanted to get on to was my point with my family it was actually I think it's second Peter isn't it but it was actually about the brotherly kindness and what I was saying to my family was was and it was specially to my kids was if you can't be kind to each other if you can't be kind to yourselves at home then are you really going to have that charity that real charity towards others because again like we're seeing here their motivations people can appear to be really charitable but it's just to be seen to be charitable at church so if you can't to your own brothers and sisters if you can't your own wife or your wife to your own husband or to your own kids or whatever it is then you get it's not real I know it's not real charity in public is it it's not it can't be so with that that's something we need to get in our heads I think if we really want to be that that that kind that charity should produce that giving to others that kindness if we're not doing it at home I I call it a fake so if you're not being kind to your spouse if you're not being kind to your kids if kids you're not being kind to your brothers and sisters if you're not doing that home and then you're coming to church trying to show our charitable you are you a fake 100% you're faking it be like it starts surely it starts with your actual brothers sisters husbands wives and and and it is something that that that I think can be a problem it can be a problem for us all got it because they're the people that know you most they're the people you're most at home with you yourself you know and you don't the act comes off a bit but if I think that's a good benchmark don't you think that's a good rather than the public face we all have a public face what you're doing at home are you kind to the people you're meant to be calm with are you kind to you to your family and then obviously your brothers and sisters in Christ if you can't show kindness to them that was my point is if you can't show brotherly kindness how on earth you really going to show that charity to others and then he says charity envieth not if you really want the best for people you're not going to envy them are you if you really want the best for people how on earth you know how on earth you ever being them and and envy is a it's a big deal I think because there's a bit of a crossover with you know again I think our society I don't want to blame on society but again it does encourage it to a degree doesn't it a lot of covetousness we're encouraged to cover what people have and to envy them for what they have and people I just think with that you may be a bit more desensitized to it of how wicked it really is but we can I'm sure we can all do it Proverbs 14 30 says a sound heart is a life of the flesh but envy the rottenness of of the bones the rottenness of the bones and and it's this I think it's a serious deal because it just eats you up I've known really envious people over over years and and I've had some old friends that were they just couldn't get away why does he have that this the anger it builds in them it's just and it just wrecks their lives you know it really does just wrecks people's lives and that envy we just need to get rid of that and and and you get rid of that by having real charity don't you why are you envying someone you want them to be you want them to do well you want them to have things and again if it starts it starts at home and brothers and sisters kids here that starts at home if you're why does he get that why does she get that you know that that's envy and that will ruin you that will ruin you over years just cut that out want your brothers and sisters to enjoy things want your husbands your wives to have good things to be happy want your brothers and sisters in Christ to be successful to do well and and yeah then you're not gonna have that rottenness of the bones okay so he says vaunteth not itself vaunteth is boasting and I was thinking about this earlier so here's the thing yeah because a lot of people do boast and if you want to be thought of as the most charitable maybe this is a good incentive don't boast yeah if you want to boast of yourself as the most charitable person then don't boast yeah and people might look at because again it's not charity when you're constantly vaunting yourself up and again it's there's a tendency for many people can do this can't know we can all do that we can all try and just lift ourselves up a little bit and and that's you're out of charity and the truth is you're trying to lift yourself up but someone who's got who's spiritually aware and there's maybe read this chapter is looking at you thinking not much charity there because you lifted yourself up that's the truth and he's not puffed up what's puffed up full of yourself you know big-headed is the image you see there and again you know you're not going to be full of it full of yourself if you're full of charity for other people okay so verse 5 does not behave itself unseemly sinketh not seeketh not her own is not easily provoked thinketh no evil so unseemly is indecently or unbecomingly okay so we shouldn't behave indecently and unbecomingly again if we if if we're if we want to if we want to be in that charity we want to be in that goodwill to others and and again I would say think how you really are at home yeah so the public face the church face you know we all very perfect at church aren't we if only all our kids were but you know we all try our best but what about when you're at home are you behaving yourself unseemly towards your spouses towards your kids kids towards your parents even it when you're on your own you can you can do that can't you people that live on their own seeketh not her own okay so basically selfish and you know again there are many selfish people we can all be selfish can't we we can all be selfish but we should you know that's not the sign of someone that said what the Bible calls a charitable person that's not someone full of charity the selfishness we should be thinking of others everything should be about others not so sorry here it says is not easily provoked so that's not incited or made angry and sensed easily so when you're full of that giving to others full of love for others that charity for others then you shouldn't be easily provoked should you flying off the handle at anything you know live it again starts at home doesn't it or maybe at work places where you're comfortable around other people you shouldn't be easily provoked and and again this is a benchmark that we're looking to get towards and thinketh no evil and and I think that's I think that's just having evil intentions because we are still we are still capable of that aren't we and I think if you're really thinking about other people and you've got that charity towards other people those little flashes that do go in people's minds and evil thoughts and everything else you would hope wouldn't be wouldn't be going in your head would they verse 6 is rejoiceth not in iniquity but rejoiceth in the truth okay so obviously someone with charity shouldn't rejoice in injustice yeah unrighteousness crime I think that's pretty obvious but here's how many people can can't they through TV YouTube clips rejoicing in iniquity rejoicing in in sin on in certain TV or whatever series and violent stuff and enjoying it and loving it and and loving the kind of even even like some of the stuff it's just that people's expense a wind-up stuff yeah there could be a music stuff that's harmless but love it isn't you just rejoicing in sin aren't you rejoicing in iniquity and you do feel a bit I know I feel guilty you feel a bit dirty when you watch that sort of stuff and and and we shouldn't be we should be rejoicing in it and if you're not rejoicing it while you're watching it but rejoices rejoiceth in the truth what's the truth well first see this isn't it this is the truth this word of God and we should be rejoicing in the Bible shouldn't we rejoicing in it but that's in the whole Bible do we rejoice in the whole Bible yeah to men men rejoicing for example in this chapter right now or are we women rejoicing in maybe the bits we're reading earlier about you know why wives keep silence in the church didn't him I didn't see many women yeah I didn't see much rejoicing there but we should shouldn't we we should just rejoice at every bit of that truth and of course there Christians around the world that don't want to rejoice in the obvious stuff the Leviticus 2013 and do we rejoice in the truth yeah I'm not saying you should be cheering at every single verse and every single hard truth in the Bible we should have joined that and there are husbands rejoicing rejoicing in husbands love your wives the command to love your wives are we rejoicing in that or sometimes are we finding that hard a wives rejoicing in submitting to their husbands and that's something you know and that's the truth isn't it because it's all the truth it's a word of truth we should be rejoicing in that rejoicing in the whole Bible not just the bits that suit us not just our favorite verse that make us feel good verse 7 says bear with all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things I think it's probably likely linked closely to the verse above so but rejoices rejoiceth in the truth and then bear with all things believeth all things hopeth all things endureth all things I think they're all things in the Word of God but I might be I might be reading that wrong but you know if you're rejoicing in the truth then you're gonna put up so bear with all things you get to put up with the hard parts of the Christian life aren't you you're gonna you're gonna you're gonna believe the truth you're gonna believe all things aren't you and that's not everything in the world every little lie someone tells you I think it's from the Word of God hoping in the truth you're gonna hope all things the promises of the Word of God endureth all things enduring the tribulations that promise they're going to come when you live righteously in Christ Jesus yeah verse 8 says charity never faileth but whether there be prophecies they shall fail whether there be tongues they shall cease whether there be knowledge it shall vanish away right so turn a second Peter chapter 1 and this is what the passage I was I was looking at before but and we went through this the other day as well with a natural progression in second Peter chapter 1 and from from verse 5 it says and beside this giving all diligence so obviously working hard for this and I won't really preach that whole sermon but just quickly add to your faith virtue and we're saying that's basically a the morality of God so you get saved you add to your faith virtue add to virtue knowledge and the knowledge comes from the Word of God and like we said without without having that that right the right moral values of God it's really you're not going to get the knowledge from the Word of God aren't you because you'd end up giving up within within a few pages especially some of those hard bits and and to knowledge temperance and we said that was a self-control and you can't have the self-control without the knowledge of what to be self-controlled with and a temperance patience and you can't have the patience without the self-control and a patience godliness and that was then you know you start to behave like you should with the patience and then from godliness after the godliness comes a brotherly kindness but the brotherly kindness comes before the charity like I was just saying earlier so from the godliness comes a brotherly kindness and to brotherly kindness charity and that charity is the icing on the cake charity is the icing on the cake 1st Peter 4 8 you don't have to turn there you can if you like it says and above all things have fervent charity among yourselves for charity shall cover the multitude of sins and like I said before it's not soul winning shall cover the multitude of sins charity shall cover the multitude of sins okay and and it's because once you have that charity again it almost it will help you with so much of that sinful life but but you know at the end of the day if you have someone here they got some sin in you know obviously not blatant horrific sin but they might we're all sinful we have sin in our lives but when there's charity it just it just makes up for so much of that yeah because you're giving to others you you're doing things for other people right so the next part from there so charity never faileth and as we see it's the icing on the cake it's the end of that list of first first Peter sorry second Peter chapter 1 verse 5 to 8 but the next part of this verse first Corinthians verse 8 says but whether there be prophecies they shall fail whether they be tongues they shall cease whether there be knowledge it shall vanish away and it goes on to say for we know in part and we prophesy in part but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away now many people believe that this was basically talking about the writing of the Bible anyone heard that before yeah a couple not many yeah one or two so I've heard this preach quite a bit and I kind of just took this as to be true until I really studied this out that that basically suddenly in the middle of this chapter like the charity chapter as some would call the love chapter then suddenly just slap bang in the middle there's this sort of sudden oh by the way it's all about the the Word of God here these for this few section just shoved in there and when that which is perfect it's talking about the completion of the New Testament and then the spiritual gifts end and they try and use this as a proof of cessationism and I've heard that preach okay but the content it's not that's completely out of context isn't it so it's in the middle of a chapter obviously about charity and where it says here charity never faileth but whether there be prophecies they shall fail whether there be tongues they shall cease whether they be knowledge it shall vanish away and they try and use that to say those spiritual gifts now cease and then they talk about the part being what we know in part is a not fully completed you know group of scriptures to make a New Testament but it's a load of nonsense because it it's just it's just in contrast to charity so if the prophecies were talking about specific work of the Holy Spirit why would they fail what the Holy Spirit failed that doesn't make any sense but notice the word whether whether meaning which of the two so here it's saying charity never faileth but whether so which of the two about charity or prophecies whether there be prophecies which of the two so without charity the prophecy will fail the tongues will cease and the knowledge will vanish away it's without charity well how yeah so for example if I'm preaching but I'm not thinking about benefiting the church could I not preach a sermon that fails surely I could preach it so even with the Word of God it's going out sure I mean I do I'm sure I have already preached sermons that fail and whether with or without the charity but especially without the charity okay the whole point of the preaching the whole point of the prophecy is to edify the church isn't it and without charity without without that wanting to edify the church is it really going to because that make it there must be a temptation with many preachers around the world I'm talking about saved men of God to start preaching to edify themselves and preaching topics as subjects to make themselves sound good to make themselves sound clever or to make themselves you know sound a certain way maybe to mimic whatever their favorite preacher is or whatever else and people can do that can't there there be some charlatans as well that managed to basically just copy their favorite preacher come and then eventually they've been exposed haven't they because they basically just parroted something someone else has said and it can be for years people get away with that but without the charity the prophecy will fail won't it same with the languages so I could be fluent in a load of languages or fluent in a few languages but but without the charity I'm probably likely to stop using them aren't I if you know if it's in terms of for the church and eventually I'll probably lose the ability because if you don't speak them yeah it's different when it's your native language when you learn languages when you you might have a gift and a knack for learning languages but I know I've learned to a degree certain languages and now you know it's be hard for me to pick up yeah I'll pick it up much quicker than I had from scratch but without it without the charity without the giving to others because if you have that gift it should be for others and one obvious way is to preach the gospel isn't it to people of other languages okay knowledge without charity vanishes away it's a kind of use it or lose it it's no good sitting at home having a load of knowledge if you're not using it and how many of us how many of us have learned something gone out soul-winning and used it I know I have anyone else had that before when you learn some sort of you know doctor or some sort of false doctrine and just a good way of answering it and it's like the next week you've got someone asked you that question Wow and and that's that's using the knowledge because you use it with charity you're going out and soul winning aren't you and you're going out and trying to get people saved and then it's useful and then that a lot of the time when you've had to use it it kind of cements it doesn't it but if you're you could learn all sorts of things if you never use it you're just learning information it's not gonna stay is it and it's gonna probably vanish away and it does does it could be quite frustrating sometimes you could have studied out a chapter in the Bible and then someone asks you about it and unless you've really got that gift for just you know for being able to just go straight to it sometimes I can't remember what that was I can't remember what what conclusion I came up with that and that does happen but yeah useless knowledge goes doesn't it okay verse 9 says for we know in part and we prophesy in part but then when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away okay so I think he's saying here Paul saying that we have some knowledge and some and some preaching but when charity comes and it will be complete yeah and he's not necessarily saying he doesn't have any charity but he's basically giving giving the the illustration of someone without well we know in part we prophesy in part but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part should be done away now turn to Colossians chapter 3 and verse 14 and above all these things put on charity which is the bond of perfectness so Colossians 3 14 and above all these things put on charity which is a bond of perfectness and he said but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part should be done away I think he's just talking about the charity here and again here it's the icing on the cake isn't it but it does make the cake you know you probably all had had cakes and they're meant to have icing on them you have it without the icing it's not the same cake is it I'm dry old nasty cake shove the icing on and it's lovely it all works well together and in the same way it's the same with charity doesn't it just it's like that icing on the cake with your with your outward Christian life and be able to help other people and do things for others and like we said same as knowledge or preaching without the charity so without the charity you could preach it all well but if it's not really to edify it's not you're not looking for other people it's not the same is it and that's the same amongst each other obviously so if you're you know again it's easy to say that and I'm standing up here you know behind a pulpit bit but we all preach we all preach the Word of God we pretty like we said before with the gospel you preach to each other you preach to your families preach to friends you preach amongst each other you're preaching that Word of God and if it's not to uplift other people if it's just to make yourself look clever if it's just to make yourself sound knowledgeable if it's just to show the latest thing that you've learned or you're pretending you learned because you actually heard it in a sermon somewhere that you hoping no one else has listened to if you and I'm not saying anyone does that but I reckon I would be surprised you know we all sinners and we all do crazy stuff and the truth is if people if you're doing that then then it's it's profitless isn't it and and and it's you know that's not that's that's what is in part without that that perfection of the charity okay turn of 1st Timothy chapter 1 1st Timothy chapter 1 and verse 5 says now the end of the commandment is charity out of a pure heart and of a good conscience and of faith unfeigned from which some having swerved have turned aside unto vain jangling desiring to be teachers of the law understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm okay so the end of the commandment is charity and I think it's in a way which comes out of a pure heart and of a good conscience and of faith unfeigned I think the end of the commandment is charity and so it's the end of the commandment it's the icing on the cake and then what do these people do here from which some having swerved so they swerve the charity and have turned aside unto vain jangling and vain jangling sort of empty noise yeah this is sort of empty noise and it says in verse 7 desiring to be teachers of the law understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm and people could do that can't they that's something that that you know again when you're preaching you want to make sure that you don't you don't get tempted to do that sort of thing swerving the charity and we all need to make sure we don't do that as well swerve the charity and then turn aside to basically the empty noise trying to sound clever trying to come up with the cleverest little or the most obscure verse or anything else well what was the point the pointless discussions and disputings the pointless you know debates with each other or even on the door you can vain vainly jangle on the door can't you when you're trying to get people saved and you're with your soul winning partner and it comes up and if you should have just not let it derail but instead time to show some knowledge it happens doesn't it people do that and and we want to make sure we don't do that we don't want to swerve swerve the charity the chat it's all about the other people that's how it should be shouldn't it should all be about what we could do for others it's all about how we profit someone else and the sad thing is there are people that want to be here it's saying they desire to be teachers of the law they want to be teachers they want to teach people but they don't understand what they say in that nor whereof they affirm because they don't have the charity so yeah they can preach a little bit yeah they could copy the sermon yeah they can listen to some stuff and rehash what someone else has said but it's very different isn't it and it's got to be and and you know that's that's you know that for me that that is it should be constantly my prayer when preach it should be anyone else that ever preaches from behind this pulpit in this church is is how can this benefit how's this going to edify and obviously preaching the whole counsel of God but that's what it's got to be about not about yourself but without the charity so without the charity what happens well they don't understand what they say or affirm do they they don't really understand it according to here understanding neither what they say nor whereof they affirm and to affirm is basically to assert positively to tell with confidence so there are people that assert potlights positively they're basically saying this is truth but they don't actually understand and a lot of people do that don't they I it's been one of my pet hates for years people that pretend to know something a hundred percent when they don't it's really annoying and because I've been lured into it I've talked about this before people that are just a hundred percent they're right there's no doubt they're wrong and then I start to believe them and trust them when they're telling me to do this a certain way telling me to do this on a job or something else and they actually don't have a clue what they're talking about that's really annoying okay okay he said he said here as well and he obviously he said in verse 4 that charity vaunteth not herself is not puffed up and that obviously goes hand in hand with that doesn't it okay back to verse 11 of 1st Corinthians he says when I was a child I spake as a child I understood as a child I thought as a child but when I became a man I put away childish things okay so he's obviously expanding on verse 10 so we saw in verse 10 he said but when that which is perfect is come then that which is in part shall be done away and this is an illustration and because we do we become complete as an adult in fact that's what you're training a child towards is adulthood isn't it and it's something we need to remember a lot of the time as parents because often we're kind of training our kids as kids and really eventually you're training them to be a successful adult so when we were children we spoke differently didn't we we all spoke differently understood differently thought differently I think most of us can remember back to that as children you're not always going to think and speak and act the same way if a man speaks like a little boy it's a bit odd isn't it a little bit odd same if a woman still understood like a child she would find life pretty difficult wouldn't she and if I thought like my son's I don't know if I thought my like my son well firstly we probably would have had a snack break in the middle of this sermon at least one and then probably during that snack break we probably would have started doing cartwheels and playing top Trump's and stuff and completely forgotten the service of what I was meant to be doing so obviously we have to progress on from that don't we and we as adults need to put away childish things yeah there's a you know obviously a secondary thing there he's obviously given that example about charity and but he say about being complete with charity but he's saying I put away childish things so we need to be moving on and we should be progressing and obviously as as you know you know this is this account spiritually as well as a spiritual babe in Christ that's what we all have been and some maybe are you know and again it depends and it's not an insult is it if you're if you're new to faith or or maybe not new to faith but really new to read your Bible and living the Christian life as a Bible says then you're a spiritual babe that's not an insult that's just the way things are now we when we were first saved those of you that don't consider yourself spiritual babes we spoke differently didn't we didn't we we understood differently didn't we and we thought differently but charity should be the sign of spiritual maturity so we could think we've got it right yeah we're on our soul win I read my Bible you know I do I go to church regularly it's a charity that I think is a sign of spiritual maturity or that at least is the icing on the cake that's when you know you've matured and I'm not saying you're gonna have it all the time but we shall follow after it desire it seek it because we want to be mature don't risk Christians we want to put away the childish things put away the way we were before and and yeah in the same way like we say as adults as adults we need to do that anyway and we you know it and I'm not saying you can't have you know obviously we all want to have fun in life but we shouldn't be coming across childish should we we shouldn't be as adults coming across as childish and people thinking how immature and everything else and and of course people call you that if you're just having fun as well and I'm not saying that but we should we should put away childish things because we should be maturing in the same way you know Christian walk we should be putting away childish things yeah we should be maturing second Timothy 2 22 says flee also youthful lusts but follow righteousness faith charity peace with them that call on the Lord out of the pure heart so in second Timothy 2 22 he's confirming that isn't he to flee the youthful lust it's not just I think the sinful things either he's still gonna Timothy here flee youthful lusts that's a desires that come with with being young but follow righteousness faith charity peace with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart right verse 12 for now we see through a glass darkly but then face to face now I know in part but then shall I know even as also I am known so without charity it's like looking in a dull mirror okay it's like looking a dull mirror and face to face is is point blank isn't it and that's as clear as you're going to be as clearly as you can get now he says here he says basically so he said for now we see through a glass darkly but then face to face now I know in part but then shall I know even as also I am known so without charity the knowledge is in part yeah we've seen that I think that's pretty clear with charity I think you really start to see clearly perhaps also yourself too when you really have that charity that icing on the cake that that maturity spiritually you kind of see who you really are don't you because there are many less mature Christians that maybe think that they're really sinless or think that they're you know that something they're not and with the charity I think we really see clearly we see a lot more clearly we see ourselves more clearly too that's how I see that verse 13 says and now abide of faith hope charity these three but the greatest of these is charity so when we're complete we have faith hope charity the greatest is charity now turn a second Thessalonians chapter 1 okay I'm from verse 1 Paul and Sylvanus and Timotheus unto the Church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ grace unto you a peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ we are bound to thank God always for you brethren as it is meet because that your faith groweth exceedingly and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth so that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that ye endure so have a look at verse three again there he says we are bound to thank God always for you brethren as it is meet because at your faith growth exceedingly and the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth so they're thanking God for them because their faith has grown and the faith has growed exceedingly and then with that the charity abounds doesn't it so as we grow our charity should abound and I mean that you know they're thanking for that because then then look what the result is so the charity of every one of you all toward each other aboundeth in verse four so that we ourselves glory in you in the Church of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and tribulations that you endure so when I when the charity aboundeth okay then it results in them glorying to the other churches for their patience and faith in persecution and tribulation so basically growing in faith coincides with charity the result is patience and faith in hard times that's not a bad bad goal is it because we're all gonna have if you you want to grow as a Christian you're gonna have hard times you're gonna have tribulations you're gonna have hard times you're gonna have persecutions you have problems and if you can grow and you can end up and you can put put that charity put that charity onto your faith and genuine charity and like I said you can test that at home if you're showing charity to those at home you're sure you've got charity in your mind when you're alone at home because I'm not saying everyone lives in with families and other things then the the eventual result is that you're going to be patient and you're going to keep your faith in the hard times and isn't that a great thing to be able to do because we're all gonna get it we're all gonna get the hard times we're growing as a church or our soul winning we're over 300 salvations we're in the first few months we're and whether it's to do with the church or in your own lives and all of us have probably had stuff already it wouldn't it be nice to be able to deal with that much better than we probably all of us do we could all improve can't we and when we get there when we get the charity right and that's what will happen but like I said I think that charity starts at home and if you you can look at yourself and go look yeah no I am displaying all these things look at this chapter go over this chapter because it's not just all the mushy chapter oh the charity chapter the one at the weddings the one that well you know it's not really quite you know hardcore enough this chapter no this chapter is is what will will improve your your Christian life if you take it seriously won't it this chapter is what what can change lives and and this chapter I think I think it might be in in chapter 14 and I haven't got this in my notes but I think in chapter 14 he talks about quitting like men and then talks about charity afterwards and it goes hand in hand so I think we can if anyone wants to find out that would be great but I think we I saw it's not actually it's chapter 16 and I think we can call we we can we we can look if anyone gets it let me know um verse 13 what she stand fast in the faith quit you like men be strong let all your things be done with charity so it's not oh well it's a bit soft and a bit soppy being full of charity no it's not it's actually quit you like men be strong and put on charity resist the flesh resist the want to try and be too tough or you know being nasty to people or be you know and put on the charity and that's a real sign of manliness if we can do that and like I said that starts at home doesn't it that starts with our spouses that starts women with it with your husband's wives are to love their husbands as well you know and and it's not just a submittance love your husbands but husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church I mum mums and it talks about women loving your children love them you know and and with that should come that charity and that wanting to give to others and then with that we're gonna we're gonna the result is going to be that we deal with with persecution and tribulation so much better and it's going to be that the icing on the cake with our Christian life with that let's pray well though I thank you for your word thank you that fit for that amazing chapter and again that can't be written by men that is an absolutely amazing chapter and so deep so profound and teach this so much and we just pray that you help us or every single one of us needs help with with this area of our lives and we'll need continue help with that to be able to put on that charity to be able to show that charity to others to want to be charitable to others and help us all with that help us not to just kind of discard that now and then go go back to our back to our old ways of thinking and just to think how you want us to think and to to put other people first and ultimately to put you first we thank you for thank you for this church thank you for the people here thank you for for for everything you've blessed us with we pray that you help us to have a good week now that we all have this week with charity at the center of it and and to all meet back here next week in Jesus name we pray amen