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Tuesday, July 21,
2009
Love Envies Not
Williams New Testament translation
of 1Corinthians 13:4-5
4.
Love is so patient and so kind; love never boils with jealousy, it
never boasts, is never puffed with pride; 5. It does not act with rudeness,
or insist upon its rights it never gets provoked, it never harbors evil
thoughts;
When describing the love of God, a realm
we need to be operating in ourselves, we are seeing things from a different
vantage point. We now see things according to what our Lord says will work
and not what our emotions or lusts try to dictate to us anymore. Does this
mean that you will never get frustrated? Maybe angry or even envious at
times? The question is not, if it will happen, the question is how will you
respond? If one reacts according to the flesh then they will lash out and
try to seek their own retribution; however, if one responds in the Spirit,
then it will be handled in agreement with the love of God. Is it always
easy? Nope; sometimes you will need to just bite your tongue and walk away,
you know, like that turning the other cheek stuff?
Galatians 5:24-26 And they that are
Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. (25) If we
live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. (26) Let us not be desirous
of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another. (KJV)
Oh but my feelings were hurt, yeah well
boo hoo, welcome to the realm of the Spirit where your life is no longer
based on what you feel or how you think you have been mistreated. With an
abundance of Spiritual blessings that we have been blessed with in Christ,
there also comes an abundance of opposition as well. If you are basing your
walk in feelings, or you are serving the Lord thinking you can make a name
for yourself, then you will fall short and into the category titled vain
glory.
Philippians 1:14-17 And many of the
brethren in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to
speak the word without fear. (15) Some indeed preach Christ even of envy
and strife; and some also of good will: (16) The one preach Christ of
contention, not sincerely, supposing to add affliction to my bonds: (17) But
the other of love, knowing that I am set for the defence of the gospel. (KJV)
Paul wouldn’t have gotten too far in His
walk with the Lord if he was looking to build himself up and a following.
Paul had to deal with those even in the Church that were preaching for the
wrong motives, motivated more by a love for self and not the love of God.
Do you know that your motive for serving the Lord is based on love, not
just for yourself but for others? If not, then it is basically a waste of
time people.
1 Corinthians 3:1-4 And I, brethren,
could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as
unto babes in Christ. (2) I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for
hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able. (3) For
ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and
divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? (4) For while one saith, I
am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal? (KJV)
Hey how about these people that actually
put their own name on the ministry, what’s that all about? When you go to
an organization are you more a part of the organization, or a member of the
body of Christ? If it was truly the body of Christ, then you wouldn’t see
and hear all the petty bickering or strife over things that are more of the
carnal realm than anything Spiritual. Doesn’t sound like there is much of
an understanding of how the love of God operates does it?
James 3:13-15 Who is a wise man and
endued with knowledge among you? let him shew out of a good conversation
his works with meekness of wisdom. (14) But if ye have bitter envying and
strife in your hearts, glory not, and lie not against the truth. (15) This
wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. (KJV)
How did we ever end up with so many
denominations that we see all around us today? Doesn’t sound like the
wisdom that is from above, but rather people trying to build up their own
names and their own organizations, which as we see in verse 15, the true
source of all this nonsense.
Philippians 2:1-4 If there be therefore
any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the
Spirit, if any bowels and mercies, (2) Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be
likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. (3) Let
nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let
each esteem other better than themselves. (4) Look not every man on his own
things, but every man also on the things of others. (KJV)
Understanding the love of God; having the
right motive for serving our Lord; one day you wake up and realize that
there is someone else on this planet besides yourself. One day you realize
that if it hadn’t been for the love, mercy, and longsuffering of God and
His people throughout the Bible, and what they endured to deliver us this
message of love, we would be nothing. So before you think salvation was
based on your works, think again, because the love of God envies not.
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