Love Rejoices with the Truth
In 1 Corinthians 13, the Apostle Paul gives us one of the most beautiful and comprehensive pictures of what LOVE really is, and why LOVE is greater than everything. If you’ve been following along in our daily reading the last few weeks, I hope the incredible truths of this passage have been percolating in your soul and breathing life into you in some new and deeper ways!
Love is patient and kind.
Love does not boast, it is not proud or self-seeking.
Love is not easily angered.
And this week, we want to dig a little deeper into what the Apostle Paul meant when he said:
“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects…”
Man, Love isn’t easy!
Every one of these statements takes a life-time (and more!) to learn and to live out.
Which is why we’re meant to discover in all our failing and fumbling, that before anything else, God Loves us like this. He meets us in our impatience with long-suffering patience, in our temper tantrums with wise, level-headedness, and in our pride with deep, self-giving humility.
In the same way, He Loves us so much that He speaks the truth, and tells the truth in a way that handles our hearts with care and protection. So, let’s learn from the way He loves us, as we explore two important questions that were brought up in this week’s sermon:
How do you tell the truth, in love?
And How do you receive the truth, in love?
Day 1: Genesis 3:1-21
Take 2 minutes of silence. Slow down your breathing, and bring your attention on God’s presence with you, here, now. As you breathe in you can pray, “Jesus, you are true”. And as you breathe out you can pray, “Jesus, you are love.”
Read Genesis 3:1-21
Love rejoices in the truth (1 Cor. 13:6). Truth is UNCOVERING. The Truth has a way of revealing, exposing, shining light on reality – whether or not that reality is beautiful or ugly.
And Love also always protects (1 Cor. 13:7). To protect is to COVER OVER or COVER UP.
What does it look like for Love to both UNCOVER and COVER OVER at the same time?
Incredibly, this is how God has been loving us – His people – from the very beginning.
When Adam and Eve took matters into their own hands and did the one thing that God commanded them not to do, they immediately recognized that they were UNCOVERED. The truth of their foolish act became immediately apparent to them, and they were filled with shame (Gen. 2:25, 3:7). Their first and natural response was to COVER UP. So they sewed fig leaves to cover up their naked bodies. It’s only fitting that Eden should have fashionistas! But when that didn’t work to cover over the reality of what they had done, they tried other tactics. First they hid (3:8). Then they blamed (3:12-14). And that didn’t work either.
The truth was exposed. And it wasn’t pretty.
God then explained to them just what an ugly reality Adam and Eve had brought upon themselves and the world because of what they had done.
But amazingly, He didn’t leave them UNCOVERED. His first act was to COVER them up. “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them” (3:21).
It’s easy to brush over this statement, or miss it altogether as part of the account. But it’s SO significant. God didn’t hide the truth. But He neither left them in their feeble attempts to cover over their shame. He made the first sacrifice, putting to death another creature in order to forgive and heal His most precious creatures. It’s not hard to see all the ways this first act of forgiveness points to God’s ultimate act of forgiveness in Jesus.
There are all sorts of ways we attempt to COVER OVER the reality of our own sinful choices. Like Adam and Eve, we hide and we blame. But God meets us right in the REALITY of our sin and brokenness, and offers a far better COVERING.
…………….
Take a moment of quiet and reflect over your last day or week.
Ask God to help you UNCOVER some way that you have walked your own way, apart from His way. An outburst of hurtful words… Allowing a grudge to fester… Choosing a dishonest path…
Have you been trying to COVER OVER this act or disposition in yourself by hiding (ignoring, pretending, minimizing, lying, avoiding, etc.) or blaming (making excuses, focusing on others’ wrongs, justifying, etc.).
Ask God to speak the TRUTH to you about this. Confess your sins to Him, without hiding or blaming.
Now ask God to COVER you – with His forgiveness and transforming love.
Read Romans 4:7-8: 7 “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.” Allow this truth to sink into your heart.
Take a moment to thank God that He knows you completely, and loves you fully. Ask Him to fill you with His Spirit, so that you can live a life of love today.
Day 2: Philippians 4:8
Take 2 minutes of silence. Slow down your breathing, and bring your attention on God’s presence with you, here, now. As you breathe in you can pray, “Jesus, you are true”. And as you breathe out you can pray, “Jesus, you are love.”
Read Philippians 4:8
In this week’s sermon, it was asked: “How do we tell the truth?” In other words: How can we become people who tell the truth to others in a way that builds up, gives life, and shows love?
I think the Apostle Paul was onto something when he wrote these words to the Philippians.
Whatever is true, whatever is noble, what is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things.
The truth can be used for all sorts of reasons. It can be used for “noble” things – to encourage, to bless, to care, to help. But it can also be used for “less than noble” things – to condemn, to manipulate, to power-up, to shame…
I think what Paul is getting at here, is that we’re not meant to simply know the truth. We’re meant to know how to use it.
And the more we fix our minds and hearts on things that are true, and noble, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable – the more equipped we will be to speak the truth in these same ways.
So, maybe that’s a question worth asking ourselves…
……….
Take a moment in God’s presence to ask: What things are you fixing your mind on? What are you spending your thoughts on? What are you feeding your mind with?
Is it true? Noble? Right? Pure? Lovely? Admirable?
Or is it something else?
Is there something that you need to choose to STOP feeding your mind with or fixing your thoughts on?
Is there something that you need to START feeding your mind with or fixing your thoughts on more?
Day 3: Ephesians 4:11-16
Take 2 minutes of silence. Slow down your breathing, and bring your attention on God’s presence with you, here, now. As you breathe in you can pray, “Jesus, you are true”. And as you breathe out you can pray, “Jesus, you are love.”
Eph. 4: 11-16
I think most of us want to be people who “speak the truth in love” most of the time.
But how do we know if that’s what we’re actually doing?
Well, the Apostle Paul – the same guy who wrote 1 Corinthians 13 – tells us how. He shares two tell-tale signs that will be present in you – in all of us – if we’re a community that is “speaking the truth in love” (Eph. 4:15).
Maturity. If we’re a community that is speaking the truth in love, we’re going to be a community that is growing. We won’t be stuck in all of our old habits and hang-ups. We’ll be learning and living all new ways. We won’t be telling the same old stories about how God worked in our lives when we were teenagers. Because we’ll have new stories – constantly, there will be new ones – of how God is working in us today. And we won’t be praying the same old prayers. We’ll be connecting with God and calling out to God in whole new ways, as we allow our hearts to be increasingly shaped by His.
Unity. If we’re a community that is speaking the truth in love, we’re going to be a community that remains together. Not just showing up together in the same room (or zoom meeting). But really, together. Outsiders will be invited in. Hurts will be mended. Trust will be given, received, and stewarded well. Our hearts will be joined – for one another, and with one another, as we walk into all that God has called us to be and do. We’ll love one another, care for one another, and serve each other. Even when it’s hard.
So these are two great questions to ask God.
……….
Lord, are my words helping me and others grow in maturity? Am I growing in wisdom and love? Am I building others up or tearing others down? What has this looked like, even over the last week?
Lord, are my words helping me and others to grow in unity? Am I helping my community to be strengthened, to come together, and to love, serve, and care for one another? What has this looked like, even over the last week?
Day 4: 1 Corinthians 13:6
Take 2 minutes of silence. Slow down your breathing, and bring your attention on God’s presence with you, here, now. As you breathe in you can pray, “Jesus, you are true”. And as you breathe out you can pray, “Jesus, you are love.”
The last few days, we’ve been exploring a few ways that we can become people that know how to speak the truth. And not just that, but people who speak the truth – in love. In ways that will build up, give life, and lead others into maturity.
But an equally worthwhile question to consider is this: How do I become someone who can receive the truth? Especially if the truth is hard? Or even when the truth might not be told to me in a particularly loving way?
Well, here’s what the Apostle Paul said about that…
Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth (1 Cor. 13:6).
There’s an important word here, that’s at the heart of this statement. And it can make all the difference in helping us to become people that can receive the truth well. Did you catch it?
Delight. Rejoice.
Truth isn’t meant to be something that we simply grin and bear. It’s worth our delight. It’s something that can give joy.
And perhaps – at least sometimes – one of the reasons we have a hard time delighting in the truth is because there are all sorts of ways (some subtle and some not-so-subtle) that we have devised to delight in (enjoy, take pleasure in, find comfort from, look to for security) that may actually be closer to “evil” than “good”.
The media we take in (movies, shows, social media, news, etc.) can be helpful, informative, and entertaining. But it can also work in all sorts of ways to feed an unhealthy appetite for drama, sexual pleasure, gossip, power, or status.
The relationships we cultivate can be full of life-giving love and support. But they can also be places where we find comfort in complaining and gossiping about others.
The things we spend our money on (or don’t) can be good for our bodies, our families, our homes. But each transaction could also be used to feed our egos, soothe our loneliness, or distract us from our stresses.
If we want to be people who naturally “rejoice in the truth”, then part of the journey is to recognize areas where we may be delighting in unhealthy or destructive behaviours (a.k.a. “evil”). (I realize that in itself may not be an easy truth to hear!).
………
Take some time now, in God’s loving presence, to ask Him:
Jesus, will you help me to see where I am going most often to find delight, comfort, or joy?
- Is this a good thing, or is it closer to evil?
- Is this a good thing that I am making a God-thing? Do I need this in order to meet my needs for joy, security, or significance?
- Is this something that leads me to truth? Or half-truths? Or simply idols and lies?
If you sense that God is speaking to you about something you need to turn away from or turn more toward, respond to Him. Ask him for forgiveness where you need it. Ask him for His empowering Spirit to lead you in a new way.
Day 5: Psalm 139
Take 2 minutes of silence. Slow down your breathing, and bring your attention on God’s presence with you, here, now. As you breathe in you can pray, “Jesus, you are true”. And as you breathe out you can pray, “Jesus, you are love.”
Psalm 139 is a beautiful prayer that can help us to receive the truth about ourselves. The whole truth.
The Psalmist reminds us of some of the incredible realities (truths) about who we are…
I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
God hand-crafted me, by design, in my mother’s womb. I’m no mistake.
God thinks about me all the time. He cares about my thoughts and feelings. And He’s with me wherever I am.
And at the same time, the psalmist recognizes that he is not yet all he’s meant to be.
“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Sometimes, I can have a hard time believing the truth that I am fearfully and wonderfully made, personally and specifically hand-crafted by God (vv. 13-16).
Sometimes I can have a hard time believing the truth that He is always with me, wherever I am and wherever I go; that He always knows what I’m thinking and cares how I’m feeling (vv.1-12)
And sometimes, I can have a hard time admitting that there are still some things in me that are broken and offensive, and that I need to be led in a new and better way (vv. 21-24).
……..
Read slowly through this psalm 2 or 3 times. As you do, reflect on these questions…
- What truths from this psalm do I have a hard time believing or admitting?
- What truth (word, phrase, or image) from this psalm is God bringing to your awareness most clearly today?
- What do you think God is wanting to tell you through this?
- Is there any way that you need to respond to what God is saying to you?