Mensa Otabil - Love Is Well-Behaved
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We’re back in First Corinthians, chapter 13, verses 5 and 6. It does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil, does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth. So Paul continues his list to help us test our love for others.
As you read the list and do self-examination, we all see how far we are from true love. It doesn’t mean that we should abandon the task altogether and say, «Oh, it’s too tough; I’m just going to live my life my own way.» It’s tough, but we have to work towards it, check our motives, and continue to work on ourselves. The fact that I’m preaching this doesn’t mean I’ve perfected it. We’re all working our way to become the persons God wants us to be. It talks about a few things we should use to check our actions, whether they are out of love or not. It says that love does not behave rudely.
That’s interesting because many times, people think, «Well, I behave this way; this is who I am.» We behave as we want to, and sometimes we trample on others and disturb them, bringing them down, saying, «This is how we are.» But if it’s truly love, we won' t be rude. You’re not going to be rude towards somebody; you’re not going to be unkind. You’re not going to try to belittle others. That is not love. Love does not behave rudely; love is well-behaved. Love is not easily provoked. It means you don’t just fly off the handle at every little thing. Everything shouldn’t make you upset and angry.
If we’re going to walk in love, we have to be patient towards each other; that is basically God’s nature. If God got angry at the least thing we do, we wouldn’t be here. Therefore, we’re not easily provoked. The reason is very simple: we are human beings, and we know we’re not perfect. We make mistakes, and when we do, we want people to be gentle with us. When we make mistakes, we wish that people would be kind to us, give us a second chance, and help us along the way. It doesn’t mean you let people commit crimes without consequences; that’s another aspect-God’s judgment. But we’re talking about God’s love. We must do everything to treat people in such a way that reflects how we want to be treated. We are not easily provoked.
One of the things I like is that love does not rejoice in iniquity. That means we don’t clap our hands when bad things are going on, especially if you belong to a group and something wrong is being done by the group. You can’t rejoice just because you are part of that group; you have to be able to say iniquity is iniquity, and wrong is wrong. Not only that, when you hear something bad has happened to someone, even if they are your enemy, you don’t rejoice at it. We shouldn’t take pleasure in other people’s calamities, pain, or suffering, even if they have caused suffering. We shouldn’t take pleasure in their pain — that is love. You might say, «Pastor, that’s difficult.»
Well, I didn’t write the Bible; I’m just trying to obey God. So that is love-we don’t rejoice in iniquity, and we rejoice in the truth. We rejoice when the right thing is being done. We rejoice when truth is spoken. We rejoice when God’s will is being done. We will rejoice when people demonstrate character that aligns with God’s word. So how do we judge whether we are in love or not? Paul gives us this little checklist that we can use to check our actions and motives to determine whether they stem from love or not.
Let’s pray. Say with me: «Heavenly Father, you have been merciful to me. Help me to show mercy to others as you have shown me mercy. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.»