Message: Love Actually / 1 Corinthians 13:1-13

    If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

    Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

    Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

Language is the foundation of communication, yet it is never perfect. We rely on words to express our thoughts and emotions, but they do not always capture exactly what we mean. One of the most important insights from the linguist Ferdinand de Saussure (1857-1913) is the distinction between two aspects of a sign: “the signifier” and “the signified”. The signifier is the word, sound, or symbol that we use to represent something, and the signified is the meaning or concept behind it. For example, when we hear the word "pear," the word itself is the signifier, while the image of the fruit in our minds is the signified.

However, the signifier and the signified do not always match perfectly. What I picture when I say "pear" may be different from what you imagine. Growing up in Korea, I knew pears as round like apples, large, and very sweet - quite different from the pears commonly found in Canada. Similarly, when we use words like "love," people understand them in different ways. For one person, love may mean romance; for another, care; and for another, sacrifice. The meanings of words shift depending on our assumptions and perspectives.

The meanings of the words also change over time. Decades ago, the word "phone" referred to a landline. However, most people today immediately think of a cell phone. The French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan (1901-1981) described this as "The signifier (word) slides over the signified (meaning)." Words and their meanings are never static but always changing.

Because of this, we cannot always expect others to understand our exact thoughts and intentions. Even when we carefully choose our words, misunderstandings can still happen. That is why it helps to be patient and kind when others do not understand us. Instead of pointing out, "Why don't you understand what I’m saying?" we can see things from their perspective, considering their backgrounds, experiences, and positions. Each person is unique, and when we communicate with an open heart, we can build deeper understanding and connection.

The same is true when we read Scripture. No one can fully understand or express the complete truth of the Bible. Those who claim to have absolute knowledge of God's word and insist that their understanding of the Bible is the only correct one may mislead others. That is why it is important to study and meditate on the Bible with humility, recognizing our limitations and seeking to understand how God speaks to us today through words written long ago. In this context, education (didache) plays a vital role in the Church. Christian education is not only for children; it is a lifelong journey for all of us as we grow together in faith.

Above all, when we read Scripture, we should remember that love is at the heart of understanding and living out its message. We do not study the Bible only to gain knowledge; we study it to deepen our love for God and one another. Augustine (354-430), one of the most influential theologians in Christian history, taught that what God wants most from us is to increase our capacity for love. He believed that even if our interpretations of Scripture differ or are imperfect, they are still meaningful as long as they lead us toward love. On the other hand, any interpretation that does not reflect love is ultimately mistaken.

Augustine's belief aligns closely with Paul's theology. In today's reading from 1 Corinthians, Paul emphasizes that love is the most important virtue for Christians. First, even if someone explains doctrines or theology very well, without love, it’s nothing more than noise. Second, even if someone has the courage to speak out against political corruption and injustice, the intellectual ability to explain everything happening in the world, or strong faith to overcome any challenge, without love, it counts for nothing. Finally, even if someone is willing to give everything they have to the poor, without love, they gain nothing. For Paul, love is the most important thing. Without love, the Christian life and ministry are meaningless, and the gospel of Christ may be distorted.

Paul then describes what love truly is. To the Corinthians, who were influenced by Greco-Roman culture, Paul's understanding of love may have been difficult to grasp. In ancient Greece, there were multiple words for love: eros (romantic desire), philia (deep friendship), storge (parental care), pragma (enduring commitment), philautia (self-acceptance), and agape (selfless love). The love Paul speaks of in today’s text is agape, which is the same word that Augustine used for love.

Paul stresses that Christian love actually is patient and kind, and rejoices in the truth. These characteristics of love are not Paul's invention but reflections of God's love as revealed in the Hebrew Bible. The Hebrew language also has many words for love, including dod (beloved (man)), raya (beloved (woman)), yadid (close relationship), hasaq (physical desire), ahab (general love), hesed (faithful kindness), and raham (compassion). Among these, ahab, hesed, and raham are often used to describe divine love, emphasizing that God’s love is compassionate, everlasting, faithful, patient, and forgiving.

One of its powerful examples is in the book of Hosea. The prophet Hosea’s wife, Gomer, repeatedly betrays him, but he continues to take her back. Likewise, humanity repeatedly turns away from God, yet God remains faithful, always ready to forgive. God’s love is everlasting; it is patient and kind, always welcoming us when we return. A Psalmist expresses God's love in this way: "The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his compassion is over all that he has made." (Psalm 145:8-9)

In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus says, "Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect" (5:48). This verse is often misunderstood. Jesus is not calling us to be morally or intellectually flawless. Just before this, he says, "Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous" (5:44-45). The perfection Jesus speaks of is to love perfectly, reflecting God's love for us.

Christian love is not about desire. Desire is rooted in anxiety, but love flows from grace. Desire always feels a sense of lack, but love is always enough. Desire demands to be served, but love seeks to serve. Desire longs to be first, but love chooses to be last. Desire strives to rise above others, but love stands beside them. Desire leads to violence and oppression, but love brings harmony and liberation. In this regard, desire is envious, boastful, arrogant, and rude. Desire insists on its own way. Desire is irritable or resentful. Desire rejoices in wrongdoing. Desire gives birth to sin, and sin gives birth to death (James 1:15).

However, love never ends. Everything else in this world, such as knowledge, possessions, and power, will eventually fade, but love endures. When we build our congregation and our lives upon love, we remain grounded in God’s peace and joy. Love unites us, strengthens us, and fills us with hope.

Christian love is not just a theological idea; it is meant to be lived out. It should shape how we interact with one another in our church, in our communities, and in our daily lives. When we love each other with patience and kindness, when we forgive as we have been forgiven, and when we embrace one another despite our differences, we begin to experience the fullness of God's love. As a faith community, we are called to be a living witness to this love, reflecting God’s boundless mercy to the world.

So, let us open our hearts to live out the love that is patient, kind, and rejoices in the truth. As we embody this love through our prayers and actions, we will come to know and experience the steadfast love of God more deeply. Love is what makes us whole. May this love guide us, shape us, and draw us closer to God and to one another, so that through us, the world may witness God’s unfailing love.

Thanks be to God. Amen.

Rev. Min Hwang

Fourth Sunday after Epiphany