Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
Do you find yourself discouraged to the point of frustration by the ‘bad news’ which seems to flood the airwaves, whether it is the mainstream media or cable news or internet or simply what you hear from people passing along the latest hot topic they’ve heard about? The truth is, ‘bad news sells’ and grabs our attention far more than good news, isn’t that true? These days we’re looking at a very powerful statement in God’s Word found in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.
Let’s pick it up where we left off yesterday: “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” This powerful paragraph, written by Paul the apostle to Christians in Corinth, in the mid first century, calls us to give serious consideration to what we often call LOVE and compare it to what God has modeled for us as the pure, powerful, God honoring LOVE He has designed for the human race to experience and to propagate.
Let’s look again at the full statement and please, as we read it, give careful consideration to every little phrase: “Love is Patient, Love is Kind. Love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. Love is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps NO record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.”
So, what did you feel in your heart, what thoughts stirred your mind, what conviction of the Holy Spirit did you feel in your spirit as we read those words, just now? You see, my friends, one of the key roles of the Holy Spirit in the life of a Christian is the dual, deep inner work of conviction and affirmation. The Holy Spirit convicts God’s people when we read or hear something which the Holy Spirit shows us is an area of deficiency or neglect in our lives. Did the Holy Spirit convict you about anything as we read together 1 Corinthians 13:4-7? If so, what is the Holy Spirit leading us to do about the conviction?
You see, the worst thing we can do when the Holy Spirit stirs conviction in us is to disregard that conviction, or make excuses, or even deny what the Spirit of God is trying to show us. That is spiritual arrogance, and it will build a callus on our spirit so the next time the Holy Spirit tries to convict us it will require more pressure by the Holy Spirit to penetrate our hardening heart!
Did you get that? Can you see the danger in that my friends? Can you look back over your life to see a time when you were developing a hard heart toward God? Do you remember the danger and damage done in your life by that course of action and attitude? Did that hard heart of yours manifest itself through your words or attitudes or actions and did you hurt other people, especially the people you claimed to LOVE?
But may I also encourage you my friends, that the Holy Spirit also has a wonderful responsibility of AFFIRMING God’s people through what they hear or read, when they are in full alignment with God and living their lives under the influence of the Holy Spirit. So, as we read 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 did you sense the Holy Spirit AFFIRMING your spirit that God is pleased with how your life is embracing and distributing God honoring LOVE? May I ask this important question: in our world of very confused and dysfunctional love, what is most helping you to develop God honoring love toward your spouse, your family, your friends, but especially the world in which we live?
Just as it’s important we respond properly to the Holy Spirit’s CONVICTION with humility and repentance as we seek growth and correction, so it’s equally important that we celebrate the Holy Spirit’s AFFIRMATION with humility and thankfulness, seeking to draw even closer to Jesus as we seek to walk the path of our lives as Jesus would if HE was in our shoes and our life situations!
So, let’s tackle that next little phrase “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” Of course, I’m sure we would all say ‘Yes, that’s me! I hate evil and I try to keep away from any involvement in evil. I love the truth and I seek to live by the truth always.” But is that true? May I challenge us to consider how it is increasingly difficult to discern TRUTH because the distortions of truth are so sophisticated? May I ask us to look closely at our process of discerning anything less than truth in whatever we hear or read? May I also ask us to consider our effectiveness in discerning any shade of evil? I use the phrase ‘shade of evil’ because isn’t its true evil has so deceptively and shrewdly wormed its way into every segment of our society that sometimes evil even masquerades as good!
Perhaps you’re thinking that LOVE is one aspect of our humanity which should be immune to evil? Why would God have to challenge us with that little phrase “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth”? Of course, it does! But, because we all know evil will do anything to disrupt, distort and even destroy every good thing God has designed or is doing… we need God’s warning about love gone bad! Love is a wonderful God invention, but when evil subtly enters into a love relationship, hearts get selfish, prideful, envious and all those other things Paul has warned us about.
When that happens, people wound other people they claim to love, and love turns ugly and dangerous. The same is true when untruth begins to break the trust and distort a love relationship. As you and I know, nothing destroys love faster or more severely than broken trust and nothing breaks trust faster than dishonesty and deception!
So, let’s pause and ponder once again, what is God calling us to UNDERSTAND about the vulnerability of LOVE in our sin filled world? Sadly, the dark kingdom always targets every good thing God has designed or put into motion or is doing. Pure, God honoring love is so central to the character and heart of God and so vital in a genuine relationship with God and with other people, that it’s only natural Satan’s dark kingdom is working overtime to distort God honoring, pure love into harmful love, deceitful love, wounding love!
Is there such a thing as ‘wounding love’? Oh my, friends, look around, no matter where you live we are surrounded by relationships that should be fully trusting, always loving and tender but are actually very painful, abusive and deeply wounding. Yes, relationships which should be loving can be the most toxic and destructive of all relationships, and because the relationship has a love commitment, they can become vicious bondage!
That is why this 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 is so powerful and important to EVERY relationship! So, let’s hear it one more time today: “Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” Does that phrase describe EVERY love relationship you are in? If not, what needs to change and are you willing to be the change agent, following the leading of the Holy Spirit to bring your relationship under the searchlight of God’s truth and make the necessary changes so God is honored and glorified in EACH of your relationships?
Tomorrow we’ll continue with the next phrase but today here’s another wonderful song of worship thanking God for His perfect love!
Today’s Scripture is 1 Cor. 13:4-7.
Choose below to read or listen.
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Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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