Loading...
371 illustrations — Vivid stories and real-world analogies for sermon use
Luther described love as "seeking not its own" but flowing outward toward the neighbor. "Love does not insist on its own way." In marriage, friendship, community, love asks: what does the OTHER need? Not: what do I want? A Lutheran...
SermonWise.ai generates complete sermon outlines for any passage across 17 theological traditions. Try it with 1 Corinthians.
"Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away." In dispensational perspective, some gifts are for this age; love is for all ages. In the millennial...
"Love does not insist on its own way." Bryan Stevenson, founder of the Equal Justice Initiative, represents death row inmates—many who can't pay. He could make more money elsewhere; he stays.
A man came forward at a healing service—not for physical healing but for the wound of never hearing his father say "I love you." The ministry team prayed, asking the Father to speak. The man began weeping, overwhelmed by a sense of being loved.
1 Corinthians 13 is sandwiched between chapters about spiritual gifts. Paul's point: gifts without love are nothing. A church known for prophecy and healing lost its pastor to moral failure. What remained? Not the miracles but the love—members who cared...
When Britain needed to crack Nazi Germany's Enigma code during World War II, the government didn't recruit from a single profession. At Bletchley Park, a...
Henry Drummond called 1 Corinthians 13 "the greatest thing in the world." Everything else fails: prophecy ceases, tongues stop, knowledge passes away. Only love remains. Billy Graham preached on this chapter at countless crusades, emphasizing that God's love for individuals is eternal and unfailing.
Lewis observed that it's easier to love humanity in general than the specific person annoying you. "Love is not irritable"—but your spouse, coworker, or neighbor can be genuinely irritating. Lewis said real love isn't warm feelings; it's willing the other's...
A missionary couple worked in a Muslim country for 20 years before seeing their first convert. Twenty years. "Love is patient." They built relationships, served needs, learned culture—without visible fruit.
A Pentecostal pastor told his congregation: "I'd rather have someone with fruit and no gifts than gifts and no fruit." The Spirit gives gifts (1 Corinthians 12) AND produces fruit (Galatians 5). Both matter, but fruit is the foundation.
Robertson McQuilkin was president of Columbia Bible College when his wife Muriel developed Alzheimer's. As her condition worsened, he faced a choice: career or caregiving. He resigned to care for her full-time. "Love is patient, love is kind...