Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 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; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails… (1 Corinthians 13:4-8, NKJV).
Bad Joy
This one may be tougher than you might think.
Those of us who remember the events of 9/11 probably also remember scenes broadcast on the networks and cable television of various groups in the Middle East and elsewhere celebrating the fact that the Great Satan (the U.S.) had been successfully attacked. There literally was JOY in the streets, despite the tragedy and loss of life, and for some, precisely because of the death and destruction. This is a pretty straightforward and obvious example of "rejoicing in inequity". Whatever your fundamental view of that day, clearly, a murderous surprise attack against noncombatants solely for the purpose of instilling terror cannot be seen as something good or honorable.
In fact, 9/11 is the epitome of what the word iniquity means, namely a "deed violating law and justice." No victim of those events, except the perpetrators, were directly involved in anything that warranted their lives being taken. There was no moral or legal or spiritual justification, and yet, some around the world were ecstatic.
Those who claim to love and know God cannot rejoice in the evil of 9/11, but that's not the hard part. The difficulty lies in things far more subtle and easier to hide, like when something happens to someone who has offended you, or criticized you or not treated you with the regard and worship to which you feel entitled. Agape love views inequity always with grief and sorrow, never ever even a hint of even super-secret delight. And, if that were not hard enough, the other side of not rejoicing in inequity is more subtle still, because it involves not even entertaining the desire for something unrighteous.
It can be boiled down to this simple axiom: agape love insists that God is first, the object of my love is second, and my wants, desires, sensibilities, and rights are a distant third.
Like all the other 16 aspects of perfect love in this passage, this selfless, self-sacrificing is humanly impossible for more than a nanosecond or two. The truth is that we would not have envisioned such a standard if God did not reveal it in His Word, and Jesus did not perfectly example it in His life and death. And although it is impossible in our natural state, it is still a command. We are to agape one another it says in John 13, as Jesus loved us. It is the hallmark of being His disciple. And we are to do this as He did. When reviled He did not revile in return. When hated without a cause, He loved. When savagely tortured and crucified, He forgave.
Fortunately, what is beyond our ability to accomplish naturally, He promises to empower us to achieve. Not by might nor by power but by His Spirit within us. If we surrender our self-will and submit to His perfect sovereign will, we can love in this way. I think that moving mountains is a piece of cake in comparison to the true divine softening of a human heart.
To love like He loves, is to become more like He is. It is why we continue to live in this world.
Bad Joy
This one may be tougher than you might think.
Those of us who remember the events of 9/11 probably also remember scenes broadcast on the networks and cable television of various groups in the Middle East and elsewhere celebrating the fact that the Great Satan (the U.S.) had been successfully attacked. There literally was JOY in the streets, despite the tragedy and loss of life, and for some, precisely because of the death and destruction. This is a pretty straightforward and obvious example of "rejoicing in inequity". Whatever your fundamental view of that day, clearly, a murderous surprise attack against noncombatants solely for the purpose of instilling terror cannot be seen as something good or honorable.
In fact, 9/11 is the epitome of what the word iniquity means, namely a "deed violating law and justice." No victim of those events, except the perpetrators, were directly involved in anything that warranted their lives being taken. There was no moral or legal or spiritual justification, and yet, some around the world were ecstatic.
Those who claim to love and know God cannot rejoice in the evil of 9/11, but that's not the hard part. The difficulty lies in things far more subtle and easier to hide, like when something happens to someone who has offended you, or criticized you or not treated you with the regard and worship to which you feel entitled. Agape love views inequity always with grief and sorrow, never ever even a hint of even super-secret delight. And, if that were not hard enough, the other side of not rejoicing in inequity is more subtle still, because it involves not even entertaining the desire for something unrighteous.
It can be boiled down to this simple axiom: agape love insists that God is first, the object of my love is second, and my wants, desires, sensibilities, and rights are a distant third.
Like all the other 16 aspects of perfect love in this passage, this selfless, self-sacrificing is humanly impossible for more than a nanosecond or two. The truth is that we would not have envisioned such a standard if God did not reveal it in His Word, and Jesus did not perfectly example it in His life and death. And although it is impossible in our natural state, it is still a command. We are to agape one another it says in John 13, as Jesus loved us. It is the hallmark of being His disciple. And we are to do this as He did. When reviled He did not revile in return. When hated without a cause, He loved. When savagely tortured and crucified, He forgave.
Fortunately, what is beyond our ability to accomplish naturally, He promises to empower us to achieve. Not by might nor by power but by His Spirit within us. If we surrender our self-will and submit to His perfect sovereign will, we can love in this way. I think that moving mountains is a piece of cake in comparison to the true divine softening of a human heart.
To love like He loves, is to become more like He is. It is why we continue to live in this world.
