In digging into 1 Corinthians 13, I found a gold mind of information that helped me understand how these attributes of love teach me how to truly love God and others, but I am also learning how all of it helps me personally in many ways. Please go back and read part 1 and 2 if you have missed them. I feel you will benefit from my research just as I have. www.sallystierhoff.com BLOGS, then scroll down and click on the title you want to read. If you are in my website reading this you only need to go to BLOGS.
I left off in part 2 with love is kind. But first, I want to apologize, I mistyped and listed the chapter as, 1 Corinthians 14 instead of 13 and then I kept using it, not catching my mistake. It’s been corrected now. One of my readers brought it to my attention. Thank You! Thank God, in Heaven I will finally quit making mistakes! LOL
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
I found it interesting that 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 starts out with two positive aspects of love then begins to tell us what love is not. I think it is because we live in a fallen world and our natural bent is to do the opposite of what God intended. So, it makes sense that Paul would write what love is not, so people would understand that those behaviors do not display love. When I was raising children, it actually was more effective and efficient to discourage the aspects of bad behavior than to just tell them to go out and be kind and patient! I’m sure you understand!
It does not envy; it does not boast.
Envy is the desire to have what someone else has. It could be their material possessions or even their spouse. Exodus 20:17 You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. Envy opens a door to a deep desire to sin. When we are able to live by the fruits of the Spirit, (the Holy Spirit working in our life) then it will be easier to rise above this behavior and be happy for others.
To summarize just a few things from What Your Envy Says About You | Psychology Today: Envy can evolve at an early age when people begin to compare themselves to others. Envy can motivate people to achieve more. I just have to ask, does that kind of motivation lead a person closer to God or just closer to materialism and idolatry? This is not a Christian article, but an informational one.
In this age of cell phones, internet and television, I believe children at a young age began comparing themselves to others. They often focus on appearance and possessions; many times, they find themselves wanting something other than what they have. As parents and grandparents, are we giving children a different perspective, God’s perspective? Is it possible that we could be unknowingly encouraging this destructive behavior by not telling them the truth and reaffirming the aspects of love from 1 Corinthians 13? Maybe we also need to teach them the joy of being content. All ages need both perspectives to make good decisions.
Philippians 4:12-13 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Boast. To boast is to talk with excessive pride. Boasting can be good and bad. If we boast about our Lord and give Him praise it’s an excellent thing, but if we have a very high opinion of ourselves and boast, not so much. Psalm 44:8 In God we make our boast all day long, and we will praise your name forever.
Pride. Pride can be a deep feeling of joy and satisfaction over an accomplishment or it can be a quality of excessively high opinion of oneself. I think there’s a fine line here between the two. One way of thinking can easily turn into the other without the love of God and the Holy Spirit working in us. Those without the Lord may not fully realize the transformation and sometime even followers of God fall in this trap unknowingly.
I found this article on the “Signs of Pride”, see the link listed below. Wow is all I can say. There is a lot there to think about. I learned quite a bit from this article. I will do a very brief and quick summary first listing the many forms of pride a person can acquire: Pride of Spirituality, Pride of Knowledge, Pride of Power, Pride of Appearance. In a nutshell, this is my take (in my words) on pride and this article. When a person steps out of the order of; Jesus, Others and Yourself (JOY) and begins to think what they can do, have, know, look like, or believe is better than another person or God, then a person has a pride problem. I encourage you to read this article, it breaks down each of these types of pride and it just might surprise you. God’s grace is our lifesaver!
https://saddlebackleather.com/signs-of-pride
Romans 12:3 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.
Proverbs 16:18 Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall.
The conflicting viewpoint about pride: If a person worked really hard to become a doctor, teacher, minister, author or whatever to help others and they talked about their profession, can it always be bad? I believe it’s what’s in their heart and obviously it’s how they present themselves. A haughty spirited person is arrogant and full of pride having an air of superiority, I’m sure this type of pride would be noticeable and unpleasant. But can a person be happy with their accomplishments? Maybe it’s who they give the glory to, themselves or God? Yes, they did the work but God gives people the ability and perseverance to accomplish those things. Deuteronomy 8:18 But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.
I want to be candid here. With my first book I was told by my publisher to talk it up, have book signings and so forth, but I got push back from some like I was being arrogant and prideful. Did I actually act that way? I didn’t mean to; I am truly sorry if I came off that way. I was only doing what my publisher told me to do. Not all the internet marketing that was put in place was seen by the people in my area, so in my situation, how do I draw people closer to the Lord with my books if I cannot talk about them? It’s a dilemma. I finally told God, “Ok God, you will have to be my promoter/marketing person because I can’t stand coming off as a prideful person!” So, I opted to say little and have a website, publish blogs and talk about them when I was invited to do so. I try not to look at other people sharing the gospel and writing books as prideful. I try to give them the benefit of the doubt, how else does the word of God spoken to them get told to the masses. Sometimes like Moses, Noah, John the Baptist, and Paul, we are just doing what the Lord propels us to do. I guess it isn’t always our responsibility how the things we do for the Lord are perceived. We can only control ourselves and answer to God.
It all comes down to what’s in our heart. We cannot hide envy and pride from the Lord and we cannot hide it from other people. It is not loving and kind and it will not represent the Lord.
As far as showing love to God in this part of 1 Corinthians 13, where the negative behaviors against love must be addressed, I believe by following God’s council and obeying His laws, we show respect and love to our Lord. Didn’t we love it when our own children did that? It’s a respectful kind of love that we demonstrate by doing good not evil.
We show love to ourselves, by refraining from negative behavior because it saves us a lot of misery and regret. We will be able to enjoy the freedom to live and love without the baggage of our bad choices. Other than love, nothing feels better than freedom!
The positive spin on this part of 1 Corinthians 13 is: the opposite of envy is, real joy for others and how they have been blessed.
The opposite of boasting is, encouraging others and loving them.
The opposite of pride is humility, seeking God first, other’s second, and yourself last, but loving yourself as God loves you so that you can love others.
Prayer
Lord, forgive our weak moments. Help us capture them before they take flight for all to see. I pray you will help others forgive us when our human weakness overtakes us. May we also forgive people because you forgave us. Help us teach and show the joy of love and contentment every place you put us. May we be the light in a dark world drawing people to you Lord. In Jesus’, name, amen.
God Bless,
Sally
Sally I could read this blog every day!!! It speaks straight to my heart. I so appreciate the God given gifts you have. They educate me and lead me straight back to God!