honor. But they go on
unheeding. No one takes thought how he may in Christian love serve his
fellow-men to their profit. Each seeks for himself glory and honor,
advantage and wealth. Could one bring about for himself the
distinction of being the sole individual learned and powerful in the
Gospel, all others to be insignificant and useless, he would willingly
do it; he would be glad could he alone be regarded as Mister Smart. At
the same time he affects deep humility, great self-abasement, and
preaches of love and faith. But he would take it hard had he, in
practice, to touch with his little finger what he preaches. This
explains why the world is so filled with fanatics and schismatics, and
why every man would master and outrank all others. Such as these are
haughtier than those that taught them. Paul here attacks these
vainglorious spirits, and judges them to be wholly insignificant,
though their knowledge may be great and their gifts even greater,
unless they should humble themselves and use their gifts in the
service of others.

3. To these coarse and mean people he addresses himself with a
multitude of words and a lengthy discourse, a subject he elsewhere
disposes of in a few words; for instance, where he says (Phil 2, 3-4),
"In lowliness of mind each counting other better than himself; not
looking each of you to his own things, but each of you also to the
things of others." By way of illustration, he would pass sentence upon
himself should he be thus blameworthy; this more forcibly to warn
others who fall far short of his standing. He says,

"If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels."

4. That is, though I had ability to teach and to preach with power
beyond that of any man or angel, with words of perfect charm, with
truth and excellence informing my message--though I could do this,
"but have not love [charity]," and only seek my own honor and profit
and not my neighbor's, "I am become sounding brass, or a clanging
cymbal." In other words, "I might, perhaps, thereby teach others
something, might fill their ears with sound, but before God I would be
nothing." As a clock or a bell has not power to hear its own sound,
and does not derive benefit from its stroke, so the preacher who lacks
love cannot himself understand anything he says, nor does he thereby
improve his standing before God. He has much knowledge, indeed, but
because he fails to place it in the service of love, it is the quality
of his knowled