'11When 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. '
I Corinthians 13:11
Very often, we read these words of Paul and presume that he is referring to growing up physically or that he is referring to becoming mature from a natural standpoint. However, Paul cannot be talking about physical maturity because in the preceding verses he talks about spiritual gifts in connection to this 11th verse of I Corinthians 13.
Here is what he says in I Corinthians 13:8-10, '8Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.'
Then in the 11th verse, Paul goes on to say, '11When 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. '
When Paul writes about transitioning from a child to a man, he writes within the context of spiritual gifts as shown in I Corinthians 13:8-10. Paul is talking about spiritual things here and not physical things. He is talking about spiritual maturity in these verses and not physical maturity. He speaks of the individual that was once a spiritual child but has now grown up to become a spiritual man. There are wonderful truths that will richly bless us if we carefully examine what Paul is bringing out to us in this verse.
Beginning with I Corinthians 13:8 Paul says, '8Love never fails…' The love Paul is writing about here is the God-kind of love. The Greek word for this love is “Agape,” which means unconditional love. This love is already in your heart if your heart is born-again, because Romans 5:5 says, '5… the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.'
The development or maturity of this God-kind of love is the wider context of Paul’s discussion when he says in I Corinthians 13:11, '11When 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. '
In order to qualify this statement, we will examine again what Paul said in I Corinthians 13:8-10, '8Love never fails. But whether there are prophecies, they will fail; whether there are tongues, they will cease; whether there is knowledge, it will vanish away. 9For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.'
In these verses Paul talks about prophecies failing, tongues ceasing and knowledge vanishing away. If we are not careful, we can misinterpret what Paul is saying and conclude that the gifts of prophecy and speaking with tongues shall be done away with. But this is not what Paul is inferring at all.
Let us consider the 9th and 10th verses particularly of I Corinthians 13, which say, '9For we know in part and we prophesy in part. 10But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.'
Notice that Paul talks about that which is in part or partial being done away with and giving way to that which is perfect or complete. Paul therefore infers that prophecy by itself is not perfect or complete without the fulfillment of that prophecy, and the knowledge of the word by itself is not perfect or complete without the fulfillment of the promise in the word.
When the prophecy is fulfilled or the blessings promised in the word are made manifest, then that which is in part - that is the prophecy or the knowledge of the word - will be done away with because that which is perfect will have come - that is the fulfillment of the prophecy and the fulfillment of the word. This is what Paul means when he says, '10But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.' (I Corinthians 13:10)
That which is in part is what Paul compares to a child. From a natural standpoint a child is not fully mature until he comes of age as an adult. While he is still a child, his development could be said to be “in part.” When he fully matures we can say that the “perfect” development of the same individual has come.
Pursue Love
In the opening verses of this chapter Paul says in I Corinthians 13:1-2, '1Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, BUT HAVE NOT LOVE, I have become sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. 2And 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, BUT HAVE NOT LOVE, I am nothing. '
Paul brings out the fact that the gift of tongues, the gift of prophecy and the knowledge of God’s word yield nothing for us if we are not going to pursue the greater experience of the love of God. You see God has a Divine Personality, and He is interested in fellowship with you. Many Christians get excited about the gifts of the Holy Spirit but we must also remember that the Holy Spirit longs to be our friend.
Thank God for the gifts of the Spirit and thank God for the knowledge of His word, but we need to realize that these only give us a glimpse of who God is. The true nature of God is love and we ought to seek Him by pursuing the greater experience of His love.
Notice that Paul continues to say in I Corinthians 13:12-13(NKJV), '12For now we see in a mirror, dimly, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I also am known. 13And now abide faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love.'
What Paul is saying is that through the gift of prophecy and the knowledge of God’s word, we only see in a mirror dimly; but when we go beyond mere head-knowledge of the mysteries of God, then we come into an experience of God’s divine love. We cease to know God by merely understanding the concepts in His word with our minds, and we come face to face with the Divine Person of God through love.
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