“Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.” 1 Corinthians 13:6 NIV

In last week’s devotional, we dove into honoring the Holy Spirit with our actions. We have to ensure that we:

1. Be kind to everyone because God shows you kindness.

2. Show mercy to everyone because God’s mercies are new to you daily.

3. Forgive everyone because God forgave you

By applying these practical steps, we honor the Holy Spirit and not grieve Him because He can be hurt by our actions and words.

This week, we will conclude on what love is not prior to taking the voyage of understanding what love does when it’s rooted in God. The scripture reference is 1 Corinthians 13:6 which tells us that love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. As we look deeper into this scripture, let’s select the words delight and rejoice for context.

Delight is defined as to take pleasure in. When we delight in something, we find the gratification, satisfaction and pleasure in what we’re experiencing. We begin to find ourselves in a dilemma when what we delight in pleases our flesh. We have been conditioned by the world to find delight or great pleasure in many things and places that are contrary to the Word of God and does not honor Him. From a carnal perspective, it may seem harmless but spiritually it is dangerous to our being. The enemy uses what appears gratifying to us to lure us into his trap and we become entangled in the culture, customs and traditions of this world. These things please our flesh which is against the Spirit of God. The works of the flesh are activities that spawn separation from God because it leads to sin and sin leads to death.

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Galatians 5:19-21 NKJV

The works of the flesh listed above is what Paul wrote to the church of Galatia when he was encouraging them to walk in the Spirit and not in the flesh. When we walk in or obey our flesh, it produces these evil and abominable actions that breeds sin into our lives. Tragically, there are people who truly “delight” or take pleasure in adultery, fornication, idolatry and more. Now you may not recognize it instantly or even want to acknowledge it, but it happens in our fallen world. There are people who enjoy cheating on their spouses or having pre-martial sex, idolizing money, celebrities and fame, practicing witchcraft through manifestations, crystals and casting spells, and much more. Some of us may not participate in the actual performance of it but we condone it by not holding other people accountable for their actions yet we want to consider ourselves the body of Christ. This is not to judge or point out the sins of another but to correct in love with the help of the Holy Spirit because we are responsible for one another.

Our world has become de-sensitized to these things to the point where it does not affect a person which would cause them to be aware that this is completely wrong. The rate of murders has increased which is fueled by envy, selfish ambitions, jealously, and wrath. These works of the flesh feed off one another and produce greater tragedies in our lives. You may say “No I don’t like any of that!” but we’ve all participated in it in some facet in our lives. You may not have murdered someone with a weapon or your hands but you have with your heart. You may not have committed adultery physically with someone else but it occurred in your heart. Jesus taught us the action does not have be made physically for it to be a sin; it begins with your heart. Our sin can also cause someone else to sin as well.

““You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.”Matthew 5:21-22 NLT

““You have heard the commandment that says, ‘You must not commit adultery.’ But I say, anyone who even looks at a woman with lust has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Matthew 5:27-28 NLT

““You have heard the law that says, ‘A man can divorce his wife by merely giving her a written notice of divorce.’ But I say that a man who divorces his wife, unless she has been unfaithful, causes her to commit adultery. And anyone who marries a divorced woman also commits adultery.” Matthew 5:31-32 NLT

And yes, the second scripture above goes for women as well if they look at another man or even woman with lust or if a man lusts after another man, you have committed adultery in your heart. We have to be careful with our hearts because they are the compass and can discern of our true intent. Our hearts can either house evil and defiling things or Jesus Christ. We have to make a decision on which one rules our hearts daily.

“Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it.” Proverbs 4:23 NIV

Rejoice is defined to feel or show great joy or delight. Delight and rejoice seem quite similar but differ depending on the root of their intentions and source. When we rejoice, there is a praise that is attached to it. We rejoice when we receive a new job, marriage, new baby, salvation, when there’s healing that takes place or deliverance from an affliction. It is the pure joy we receive because it was God who provided and performed it all. It is He who worked everything for our good. It was His plans for us that were for good and not for evil that gave us a future and a hope. It was His Word that proceeded out of His mouth and that never returned back to us void. When we experience the goodness of God, we rejoice in truth. The truth is Jesus Christ. That’s why we rejoice in Him.

Jesus is the the Way, the Truth, and the Life. In Him, we have all we need. We rejoice in Him because through Him we were made, saved, redeemed, delivered and sanctified. Because of Jesus, every promise of God is Yes and Amen. Our love should imitate or emulate the way of Christ, the truth of Christ and the life of Christ. As we learned previously, love is an action. God is love and His action was to send His Son to die in our place for the sins we committed. God could have allowed us to die in our sin but He didn’t. That’s the difference between God and the enemy, the enemy wants us to remain entangled, ensnared and entrapped. But God provides the Way out by His Truth and into His eternal Life by being reborn in Water and of the Spirit, redeemed by the Blood of Christ and renewed by His Grace. And when we walk in the Spirit of God, He produces in us not works of the flesh but in the fruit of Him. These fruit or characteristics reflect the heart of God. By walking in the Spirit, you have nailed the works of your flesh to the cross and no longer allow them to rule you or dictate your actions.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Galatians 5:22-25 NKJV

We have to be righteous or do the right thing every opportunity we have. We cannot allow ourselves to continuously fall prey to the schemes of the enemy or be conformed to this fallen world. We have a choice daily and we must choose wisely. Though God’s compassion for us prevents us from being consumed by His new mercies daily, we should not taken advantage of His grace and kindness. It is time that we choose to step away from the works of the flesh and begin walking step by step with the Holy Spirit. In Him, He will renew us, transform us and lead us into all truth so that we can rejoice in truth and do the right thing every time we’re faced with temptations of this world.

Next week, we will explore the consistency of love in action.

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