God judged it better to bring good out of evil than to suffer no evil to exist. ~Saint Augustine
Rejoice: To be in a state of happiness, or well-being.
Love, the apostle Paul wrote, never rejoices in, is never thrilled by evil.
He’s not talking about me–I turn the channel when bloody chainsaws appear.
But if evil is good, only twisted and spoiled; if evil is truth, slightly altered; if evil presents a convincing counterfeit for the real–it’s not so easy to look away.
What is God’s desire for the creation he loves? What are his dreams, his plans for all he made? Any thought, word, or deed that hinders or opposes God’s redemptive plan, is evil.
We rejoice in evil when,
- Justify: We shrug off our sins and make our excuses.
- Amplify: We relish the gossip of another’s failure or fall.
- Pacify: We diminish or ignore the harm evil does to others.
- Glorify: We throw a party in our hearts when the bad guys get their due.
- Preoccupy: We curse the blight of wickedness instead of planting seeds of love.
God Does Not Rejoice In Evil.
I do not enjoy hurting people or causing them sorrow…Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? Of course not! I only want them to turn from their wicked ways and live…I don’t want anyone to perish…I want everyone to be saved and to understand the truth…I am the LORD, the merciful and gracious God. I am slow to anger and rich in unfailing love and faithfulness. I show this unfailing love to many thousands by forgiving every kind of sin and rebellion….I delight in showing mercy….Love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! In that way, you will be acting as true children of mine. For I give my sunlight to both the evil and the good, and I send rain on the just and on the unjust, too.
(Lamentations 3:33; Ezekiel 18:23; 2 Peter 3:9; 1 Timothy 2:4; Exodus 34:6-7; Micah 7:18; Matthew 5:44-45)
Rejoice that God is not like us! Is your heart in agreement with his?
This is post eight of our Lent To Love: A Return to the Source series on 1 Corinthians 13. Join us on the journey to Easter!
4 replies on “Love Does Not Rejoice In Evil”
Yes! So glad He’s not like us! Yet, He invites us to be like Him. Impossible, we say. All things are possible, replies He. “I tell you the truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I’ve been doing and do even greater things.” You’ve got me pondering this today, Janet. May the pondering move me to faith!
Lily, I have never heard that verse applied in this way. You’ve opened a door of pondering for me!
I absolutely love this, “Amplify: We relish the gossip of another’s failure or fall.”. I often wonder how people justify honoring gossip as Godly. Never knowing the victim of gossip but buying into another’s vindictiveness as if it is a badge of honor we wear. Bage of honor for the enemy maybe, but a very serious dishonor to our King.
I saw a quote recently that said, “before you ask why someone hates you ask yourself why you even care.” The only opinion that matters is God’s, who we fail daily, but He loves us no less. We cannot sit idly by an foster hate in any form, gossip, bullying, snarky comments, remaining quiet when we see injustice. The only way some will know the Lord is through us, and if we do nothing, foster hate and ignore the broken…then we will fail of making disciples of all people and remain what many are calling “hypoChristian.” Harsh reality, but thankfully the Lord has unending grace and gives us reminders through others (like your blog here) that we are forgiven and we must keep trying to love like He loves us.
Beautifully said! You’ve inspired me this morning, Lindsay.