Thirsting Souls Bible Teaching

(1Co 13:6) “Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;”  Lies are of the devil (John 8:44). The Holy Spirit is God and never lies. He loves truth. Therefore loving through us, we would only love the truth and hate all that is opposed to pleasing our Holy God.

(1Co 13:6) “Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;”  Does the Word of God, the Bible, the Scriptures, thrill your soul? The test of whether the love we demonstrate is God’s love is whether that love extends to the meat of the things of God.

(1Co 13:5) [charity: Godly love] “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;”  “Thinketh no evil”: God’s love looks out for the good of others rather than consider harmful thoughts towards them. When people harm us in some way, the tendency is to hope God’s judgment upon them. Rather, we are to ask the Lord to help us pray for our enemies.

(1Co 13:5) [charity: Godly love] “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;”  “Is not easily provoked”: is not quick to respond wrongly. We respond to people in kind because of our love for self. How dare they! Sacrificial love bears the provoking and prays for the individual.

(1Co 13:5) [charity: Godly love] “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;”  “Seeketh not her own”: puts others first, (Php_2:4) “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others.” 

(1Co 13:5) [charity: Godly love] “Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;”  “Unseemly”: unbecoming a born again child of God. One’s testimony is always a factor and should never be overlooked. One never knows who is watching and how they might know you. You are Christ’s ambassador upon this earth (2 Cor. 5:20). That one unseemly moment could cost a soul eternity. 

(1Co 13:4) “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,”   “Puffed up”: to inflate, pride.  You have heard of having an inflated view of oneself. It is false. One might have great abilities, yet in the eyes of God they are no better than one whose abilities are small. (1Co 4:7)  “For who maketh thee to differ from another? and what hast thou that thou didst not receive? now if thou didst receive it, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?”

(1Co 13:4) “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,”   “Vaunted not itself”: to brag; to boast.  Consider that in doing so the thoughts and desires are upon self’s elevation in the eyes of others. Godly love desires the uplifting of others before self.

(1Co 13:4) “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,”   “Envy”: moved with a burning toward another; jealousy. The fact that “burning” is stated reveals there’s a negative emotion involved. On the other hand, God’s love desires the best for others, putting others before self. Therefore they rejoice when others succeed or are lifted up in some way.

(1Co 13:4) “Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,”   Charity, the true love of God manifest by means of the Holy Spirit through us, is “longsuffering”. In other words, it patiently puts up with the annoyances of others. Not, the sin of others, but the things about them that irk us.