Verse: 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Thoughts
What is the opposite of dishonor? To bring honor to someone, right? If love does not dishonor others, then it stands to reason that it does bring honor to others. Love honors. Love isn’t a net neutral. It’s not like he’s saying here, love doesn’t do a bad thing, it just kind of is neutral and no one notices it. No! Love does a positive thing. It moves the needle in the right direction.
So instead of dishonoring others, it honors. It lifts people up. It speaks encouragement to them. It calls out their virtues and their potential. Love brings honor to people.
Dishonor brings shame. When you dishonor someone you shame them by doing something (speaking ill of them, tarnishing their reputation, gossiping about them, etc) that somehow tries to lower other people’s estimation of this person, or lower their own estimation of themselves.
Love would never do this. Love breaks the power of shame over people’s lives. Love sees the value in all people and speaks up for that value. It reminds people of God’s plan on their lives, of the gifts God has given them, and of the love that God has for them.
If a lack of love is like a hand pushing someone down, love is like a hand lifting someone up.
How can we learn to love like this? How can our words and actions reflect that we are people of love in all situations? How can we be people who break shame, remove dishonor, speak life, and lift people up?
Prayer
I pray that you would help me to see the opportunities to be a person of love in the lives around me, and bring honor and encouragement to them in your name.
Author: Christian Dunn
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