If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. – 1 Corinthians 13:1 (ESV)
It is the dream of every pastor to speak with such eloquence and unction so that the people they speak to are moved. Week after week, I labor to produce sermons that convict and inspire those that hear. Everything becomes a potential illustration; everyone becomes a potential person in the audience. Books and articles are devoured that help refine my exegesis, my theology and especially, my homiletical skill. Here Paul says that a silver tongue doesn't get the job done.
Unfortunately, this verse does not eliminate the need for sermon practice and study.
However, this verse does show the need for something more foundational, something less stately than well-formulated rhetoric – the need for love. There must be love. If I do not truly love the people I speak to, I become a source of irritation and pain. If I quit loving others, there are less damaging things that I could do besides clanging and gonging every Sunday.
The Gospel cures the wounds of the soul. If I am truly transformed by the cross of Christ, I too will have a love for those that hear me as I proclaim it.
