I still remember one of the neatest experiences in Bible study I ever had. I was studying 1st Corinthians and came to the well-known love chapter, chapter 13. I had memorized it and gone over it so many times I thought there was nothing more for me to learn from it. I almost skipped it and went on to the next chapter, but then I remembered what I told many others: “Pray, asking God to help you see something you’ve never seen before.”
After praying, I read this familiar chapter and noticed something new. In the first 3 verses, the personal pronoun “I” is mentioned 8 times with the result being, “I gain nothing!” Then, in the next four verses, where the characteristics of “agape” love are described, I noticed the personal pronoun “I” is not found at all. The result described in verse 8 is, “Love never fails!”
The conclusion I came to was this, when “I” or self is dominant, love is missing. When love is present there’s no room for “I” or self. The word, “I”, was to me an insight word. It opened up this chapter so I understood it in a way I’d never seen before. With this new perspective I pursued an extensive study of the chapter that took me a number of weeks to complete.
Ask yourself if your life is described more fully in the first 3 verses or in the next 4 verses of 1 Corinthians 13? Selfless love is produced by the Holy Spirit, and that alone never fails.
I’ve never forgotten this experience in Bible study and now look for insight words as I read and study other portions of the Bible.
