I think the Ninth day of Lovemas has beaten me. Our verse is 1 Corinthian’s 13: 6 which says, “Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with truth”. The verse has two parts, what love does and what love does not. At first it seems like it should be blatantly obvious. Of course, I don’t rejoice at evil, and only delight in truth. But then I ask myself some questions with a mind to be honest with myself and God. What types of things fill me with rejoicing? What makes me smile or laugh? In a society that gets by on humor and jollies, there is a lot that has the potential to make us glad. But of the multitude of things that one might say makes them express joy, not all are created equal. And, frankly, the thought of having to possibly give up some of the things that I enjoy to watch and laugh at is a nothing short of terrifying.
Often, the world runs in such a way that constantly puts others down in order to pull itself up. It’s logic is one of protecting itself at all costs. I’ll make a joke about you before you make one about me. Are the things that we spend time enjoying following that path? Sarcasm and poking fun can come across as quite benign. I don’t think I have ever been in a group of people without it. But upon further honest inspection of that way of interacting with our fellow humans, we will see that the root from which it stems from is caustic and belittling. If we are sincere with ourselves, we will see that to put someone down, or to deal with them harshly just does not line up with love.
In the fourth chapter of Phillipians, in verse eight, Paul instructs us even further, saying "Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things." This is a great litmus test with which to gage the things we are choosing to delight in. Anything that lines up with this verse can be considered as truth and worthy of our headspace.
In theory, as people who love and know God, our days and minds should be filled to the brim with all sorts of these things. Hopefully, unlike the rest of society, we are actively weeding through whatever thoughts or stimulants our day presents to us to find whatever is worthy of the time God has given us. We can choose not to meditate on or delight in certain things. With the power of the Holy Spirit paired with our willingness to take the narrower road, this is possible.
The urgency to become avid rejoicers of the truth is this: we are the living version of Christ that people see. We can claim that Jesus is the reason for the season left and right, but ultimately it will be what we are rooting for that draws people's attention. Those around us will pick up on a heart that is far from God faster than we will. So let us be choosy about what we delight in, becoming fierce lovers of the righteousness. As we are changed by a savior who gave up his throne to come be with us on Earth, so shall the seed be planted in the hearts of those who witness our celebration of the truth.
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