1 Corinthians 13:7b
~3 min read
Ps Paul Cheng
“…love does not suspect the worst nor does it not expect the worst…”
1 Corinthians 13:7b, Charity believeth all things.
Love has to do with what one thinks; how he thinks and feels about someone. What does it mean to believe all things? One theologian aptly explains it this way, “It means that I would rather be wrong by believing you than to wrong you by not believing you. I would rather be taken advantage of than to hurt you by judging you in an inaccurate way.”
Perhaps, we can say, “Love is not suspicious.” We cannot see the heart of a man; we can only hear what a person says, and we accept what he says on face value. We do not try to read his heart motivation (which is something we do not know). Though sometimes we may be disappointed because people do not say what they mean, and they do not mean what they say.
However, love does not suspect the worst nor does it not expect the worst. When one suspects the worst, he would say things like, “Well, there must be something at work behind the scenes. There must be something evil going on down there!” When one expects the worst, he would say things like, “No matter what he does, I think it is going to be bad. At the end of the day, the outcome is going to be negative!”
Dear friend, are you someone who is always suspecting the worst, expecting the worst? Love does not do either of the above! Love is not suspicious in the sense that it takes evil imaginations, motives or intentions, and imposes it on the person and says, “I know this must be in his or her heart!”
Do you realize that oftentimes we choose to believe what we want to believe about a person? We have already formulated an opinion about the person in our minds. Then when we hear someone says, “That person is really nice, kind, respectful, thoughtful and generous,” we would respond, “Well, you don’t really know about that person. You don’t know what I know, and you have not seen what I have seen.” Maybe at times we are right; we do know what others do not know, and we have seen what others have not seen. But more often than not, that is not the truth at all. The truth is that we see the person the way we want to see him because we have already formulated an opinion of him in our minds. That is not loving!
Perhaps you have been hurt in the past. You have trusted certain people, and they have let you down. You have always thought well of them, and they have disappointed you. Thus, you have made up your mind, and you are not going to let yourself be hurt, or be taken advantage of again. Therefore, you are not going to trust, believe or love anyone.
Do you remember Joseph in the Old Testament? He was mistreated by his brothers who had sold him to slavery. In fact, they contemplated leaving him in the ditch to die. He became a slave, and subsequently, he was being falsely accused of rape, thrown into prison and forgotten. Later on, he became the second most powerful man in Egypt. At the end of his life, he not only provided for his brothers who had experienced a great famine in their land. When his brothers appeared before him, was Joseph bitter, angry and vengeful? He had every opportunity to execute vengeance if he wanted to, but he did not. Instead, he said to his brothers, But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive (Genesis 50:20). Joseph recognised that all this was a part of God’s sovereign plan for his life.
This is a wonderful lesson for us to learn. Even the things that have hurt and disappointed us, or situations when we have been mistreated, they are all parts of God’s sovereign plan for our lives. God allows those things to happen, not to destroy us, but He always meant it unto good for us; to sanctify us, to produce in us the fruit of the Spirit and one of which is love.
When we love by believing all things, it does not mean we will not be taken advantage of, or we will not be disappointed. Essentially, we are trusting in God that He will protect us, He will take care of us, even if He allows us to be taken advantage of, He has a sovereign purpose for us.
Shalom,
Pastor Paul Cheng
1 CORINTHIANS 13The Qualities Of Love (Part 1) — Love Suffereth LongThe Qualities Of Love (Part 1) — Love Suffereth Long1 Corinthians 13:4a
Introduction To The Qualities Of LoveIntroduction To The Qualities Of Love1 Corinthians 13
What Has Love Got To Do With Spiritual Gifts?What Has Love Got To Do With Spiritual Gifts?1 Corinthians 13:1-3
The Qualities Of Love (Part 2) — Love Is KindThe Qualities Of Love (Part 2) — Love Is KindCorinthians 13:4b
The Qualities Of Love (Part 5) — Love Is Not Puffed UpThe Qualities Of Love (Part 5) — Love Is Not Puffed Up1 Corinthians 13:4e
The Qualities Of Love (Part 4) — Love Vaunteth Not ItselfThe Qualities Of Love (Part 4) — Love Vaunteth Not Itself1 Corinthians 13:4d
The Qualities Of Love (Part 3) — Love Envieth NotThe Qualities Of Love (Part 3) — Love Envieth NotCorinthians 13:4c
The Qualities Of Love (Part 9) — Love Thinketh No EvilThe Qualities Of Love (Part 9) — Love Thinketh No Evil1 Corinthians 13:5d
The Qualities Of Love (Part 7) — Love Is Not SelfishThe Qualities Of Love (Part 7) — Love Is Not Selfish1 Corinthians 13:5b
The Qualities Of Love (Part 8) — Love Is Not Easily ProvokedThe Qualities Of Love (Part 8) — Love Is Not Easily Provoked1 Corinthians 13:5c
The Qualities Of Love (Part 6) — Love Does Not MisbehaveThe Qualities Of Love (Part 6) — Love Does Not Misbehave1 Corinthians 13:5a
The Qualities Of Love (Part 10) — Love Rejoiceth Not In IniquityThe Qualities Of Love (Part 10) — Love Rejoiceth Not In Iniquity1 Corinthians 13:6a
The Qualities Of Love (Part 11) — Love Rejoiceth In The TruthThe Qualities Of Love (Part 11) — Love Rejoiceth In The Truth1 Corinthians 13:6b
The Qualities Of Love (Part 14) — Love Hopeth All ThingsThe Qualities Of Love (Part 14) — Love Hopeth All Things1 Corinthians 13:7c
The Qualities Of Love (Part 12) — Love Bears All ThingsThe Qualities Of Love (Part 12) — Love Bears All Things1 Corinthians 13:7a
The Qualities Of Love (Part 13) — Love Believeth All ThingsThe Qualities Of Love (Part 13) — Love Believeth All Things1 Corinthians 13:7b