1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Most of these devotions have been about biblical warnings of what NOT to do. But it is also useful to look at what positive things we should be doing instead. One obvious answer is that we should be loving, and this famous passage about love helps us to understand what that means. Note how these verses contrast with the typical lust-filled "love" that we so easily fall into. True love is "kind" (verse 4) or considerate of the other. It does "not envy or boast" (verse 4) about our sexual prowess. In fact, true love is not about us, "it does not insist on its own way" (verse 5), but rather is other-focused, being more concerned with blessing the other than with fulfilling our own desires. True love "does not rejoice at wrongdoing" (verse 6), does not celebrate sexual sin, but protects the purity of the other. If we can have this mindset of true love, it will change the way we interact with others, as we seek to bless them rather than take advantage of them.
God I confess to often having a selfish twisted view of love. Help me to learn to love as You love.
4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. 7 Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Most of these devotions have been about biblical warnings of what NOT to do. But it is also useful to look at what positive things we should be doing instead. One obvious answer is that we should be loving, and this famous passage about love helps us to understand what that means. Note how these verses contrast with the typical lust-filled "love" that we so easily fall into. True love is "kind" (verse 4) or considerate of the other. It does "not envy or boast" (verse 4) about our sexual prowess. In fact, true love is not about us, "it does not insist on its own way" (verse 5), but rather is other-focused, being more concerned with blessing the other than with fulfilling our own desires. True love "does not rejoice at wrongdoing" (verse 6), does not celebrate sexual sin, but protects the purity of the other. If we can have this mindset of true love, it will change the way we interact with others, as we seek to bless them rather than take advantage of them.
God I confess to often having a selfish twisted view of love. Help me to learn to love as You love.