TagliatelliMonster
Established
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- Dec 29, 2019
- Messages
- 145
1 John 4:8
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
It's a famous verse, and very clear and simple: God is love, John says.
Had John read Paul's words in 1st Corinthians? Paul lays out a complete definition of what Biblical love actually is:
1 Corinthians 13:4
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.
So how does God (that is, the same god who is described as love itself ) measure up to the description of love presented in (what is supposed to be) his own word?
Let's see:
Love is patient...
God continually lost his patience, especially with his own people. Some might say that Israel repeatedly tested God's patience and got what was coming to them, but how can the very God of the universe be provoked so easily? Even the Bible says "a day With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day." This would suggest that 40 years in the desert or a few centuries of evil kings are barely a blip on the timeline for the eternal God. Yet even during this minute time period, God loses his patience constantly and lets puny man get under his skin.
Deuteronomy 9:7a - Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness
Deuteronomy 31:29 - For I know that after my death you will act corruptly and turn from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days, for you will do that which is evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands
2 Kings 22:17 - Because they have forsaken Me and have burned incense to other gods that they might provoke Me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore My wrath burns against this place, and it shall not be quenched.
I don't have the character count to post every instance of God being provoked, but he is provoked constantly.
Love is kind...
Jesus spoke often spoke insultingly to those closest to him.
Mark 4:39 - He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?
Mark 7:17-18a - And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked.
Matthew 16:21-23 - From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me!"
Christ's snarky comments aside, the very act of bringing man into existence was unkind. According to the Bible, God has created a scenario where most of his image bearers will burn forever in eternal fire. He made finding Heaven impossibly hard and going to Hell easy. God planned from the beginning everything that would happen - and his plan was that most people Go to hell.
Matthew 7:14-15 - Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it
It does not envy...
God is bothered by any affection, praise or attention not directed toward him.
Exodus 34:11-14 - Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Exodus 20:5 - I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation…
Matthew 10:27 - Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
It does not boast, it is not proud.
God boasts about his own greatness continually.
Exodus 9:14 - For this time I will send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth.
Isaiah 46:9 - Remember the former things long past,For I am God, and there is no other;I am God, and there is no one like Me.
Isaiah 45:12 - It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands And I ordained all their host.
1 Chronicles 19:11 - Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.
It does not dishonor others,
God continually feels the need to belittle man and reiterate how puny, insufficient and disappointing he is.
Isaiah 64:6 - But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.
Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
Psalm 51:5 - Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Job 38:16-19 - Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.
It is not self-seeking
The Bible says that God does whatever he wants, and does it for his own glory. He demands others do everything for his glory too.
1 Corinthians 10:31 - So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Psalm 115:3 - Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.
Isaiah 49:3 - And he said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
Acts 12:23 - Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
Even when God acts in a way that initially seems self-sacrificial, the Bible is clear that he ultimately only does so for his own Glory.
Ephesians 1:12 - so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
Romans 3:25 - God put [Christ] forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
it is not easily angered
God is angered constantly, by infractions big and small.
2 Samuel 6:6-7 - But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God.
Numbers 12:9 - And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and he departed.
Deuteronomy 9:8 - Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you.
Exodus 32:10 - Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.
2 Samuel 24:1 - Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
Deuteronomy 9:22 - You also made the LORD angry at Taberah, at Massah and at Kibroth Hattaavah.
Psalm 7:11b - God is angry with the wicked every day
it keeps no record of wrongs
God keeps a total and complete record of every wrong ever committed.
2 Corinthians 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Colossians 3:25 - For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.
Matthew 12:36 - I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak
Luke 8:17 - For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
Love does not delight in evil
We've already established God does everything he wants to do and does it for his own glory. Take note of the below events God decreed - for his own glory:
Isaiah 13:15-18 - Anyone who is captured will be run through with a sword. Their little children will be dashed to death right before their eyes. Their homes will be sacked and their wives raped by the attacking hordes. For I will stir up the Medes against Babylon, and no amount of silver or gold will buy them off. The attacking armies will shoot down the young people with arrows. They will have no mercy on helpless babies and will show no compassion for the children.
Isaiah 45:7 - I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.
Leviticus 26:29 - then I will walk contrary to you in fury, and I myself will discipline you sevenfold for your sins. You shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat the flesh of your daughters.
It always protects...
God does not always protect. God withdrew his protection many times from his own people to make a point.
Jeremiah 15:4 - I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you."
Jeremiah 16:13 - Therefore I will hurl you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.
Deuteronomy 4:26-17 - I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed. Then the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the LORD will drive you.
Jeremiah 14:12 - Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence
Jeremiah 15:8 - Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas; I will bring against them, Against the mother of the young men, A plunderer at noonday; I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them suddenly.
These are only a handful of examples that prove God's character is often shown to be in complete opposition to Paul's description of love.
To describe God as love itself is incorrect - not by my standard - but by the standard of the Bible itself.
Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.
It's a famous verse, and very clear and simple: God is love, John says.
Had John read Paul's words in 1st Corinthians? Paul lays out a complete definition of what Biblical love actually is:
1 Corinthians 13:4
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.
So how does God (that is, the same god who is described as love itself ) measure up to the description of love presented in (what is supposed to be) his own word?
Let's see:
Love is patient...
God continually lost his patience, especially with his own people. Some might say that Israel repeatedly tested God's patience and got what was coming to them, but how can the very God of the universe be provoked so easily? Even the Bible says "a day With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day." This would suggest that 40 years in the desert or a few centuries of evil kings are barely a blip on the timeline for the eternal God. Yet even during this minute time period, God loses his patience constantly and lets puny man get under his skin.
Deuteronomy 9:7a - Remember, do not forget how you provoked the Lord your God to wrath in the wilderness
Deuteronomy 31:29 - For I know that after my death you will act corruptly and turn from the way which I have commanded you; and evil will befall you in the latter days, for you will do that which is evil in the sight of the Lord, provoking Him to anger with the work of your hands
2 Kings 22:17 - Because they have forsaken Me and have burned incense to other gods that they might provoke Me to anger with all the work of their hands, therefore My wrath burns against this place, and it shall not be quenched.
I don't have the character count to post every instance of God being provoked, but he is provoked constantly.
Love is kind...
Jesus spoke often spoke insultingly to those closest to him.
Mark 4:39 - He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?
Mark 7:17-18a - And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. "Are you so dull?" he asked.
Matthew 16:21-23 - From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me!"
Christ's snarky comments aside, the very act of bringing man into existence was unkind. According to the Bible, God has created a scenario where most of his image bearers will burn forever in eternal fire. He made finding Heaven impossibly hard and going to Hell easy. God planned from the beginning everything that would happen - and his plan was that most people Go to hell.
Matthew 7:14-15 - Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it
It does not envy...
God is bothered by any affection, praise or attention not directed toward him.
Exodus 34:11-14 - Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.
Exodus 20:5 - I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation…
Matthew 10:27 - Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
It does not boast, it is not proud.
God boasts about his own greatness continually.
Exodus 9:14 - For this time I will send all My plagues on you and your servants and your people, so that you may know that there is no one like Me in all the earth.
Isaiah 46:9 - Remember the former things long past,For I am God, and there is no other;I am God, and there is no one like Me.
Isaiah 45:12 - It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands And I ordained all their host.
1 Chronicles 19:11 - Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.
It does not dishonor others,
God continually feels the need to belittle man and reiterate how puny, insufficient and disappointing he is.
Isaiah 64:6 - But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.
Jeremiah 17:9 - The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
Psalm 51:5 - Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Job 38:16-19 - Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have you journeyed to the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep? Have you comprehended the vast expanses of the earth? Tell me, if you know all this.
It is not self-seeking
The Bible says that God does whatever he wants, and does it for his own glory. He demands others do everything for his glory too.
1 Corinthians 10:31 - So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Psalm 115:3 - Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.
Isaiah 49:3 - And he said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.”
Acts 12:23 - Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him down, because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.
Even when God acts in a way that initially seems self-sacrificial, the Bible is clear that he ultimately only does so for his own Glory.
Ephesians 1:12 - so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory.
Romans 3:25 - God put [Christ] forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith. This was to show God's righteousness, because in his divine forbearance he had passed over former sins.
it is not easily angered
God is angered constantly, by infractions big and small.
2 Samuel 6:6-7 - But when they came to the threshing floor of Nacon, Uzzah reached out toward the ark of God and took hold of it, for the oxen nearly upset it. And the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah, and God struck him down there for his irreverence; and he died there by the ark of God.
Numbers 12:9 - And the anger of the LORD was kindled against them, and he departed.
Deuteronomy 9:8 - Even at Horeb you provoked the Lord to wrath, and the Lord was so angry with you that He would have destroyed you.
Exodus 32:10 - Now then let Me alone, that My anger may burn against them and that I may destroy them; and I will make of you a great nation.
2 Samuel 24:1 - Again the anger of the LORD was kindled against Israel, and he incited David against them, saying, “Go, number Israel and Judah.”
Deuteronomy 9:22 - You also made the LORD angry at Taberah, at Massah and at Kibroth Hattaavah.
Psalm 7:11b - God is angry with the wicked every day
it keeps no record of wrongs
God keeps a total and complete record of every wrong ever committed.
2 Corinthians 5:10 - For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
Colossians 3:25 - For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality.
Matthew 12:36 - I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak
Luke 8:17 - For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
Love does not delight in evil
We've already established God does everything he wants to do and does it for his own glory. Take note of the below events God decreed - for his own glory:
Isaiah 13:15-18 - Anyone who is captured will be run through with a sword. Their little children will be dashed to death right before their eyes. Their homes will be sacked and their wives raped by the attacking hordes. For I will stir up the Medes against Babylon, and no amount of silver or gold will buy them off. The attacking armies will shoot down the young people with arrows. They will have no mercy on helpless babies and will show no compassion for the children.
Isaiah 45:7 - I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things.
Leviticus 26:29 - then I will walk contrary to you in fury, and I myself will discipline you sevenfold for your sins. You shall eat the flesh of your sons, and you shall eat the flesh of your daughters.
It always protects...
God does not always protect. God withdrew his protection many times from his own people to make a point.
Jeremiah 15:4 - I will enslave you to your enemies in a land you do not know, for my anger will kindle a fire that will burn against you."
Jeremiah 16:13 - Therefore I will hurl you out of this land into a land that neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods day and night, for I will show you no favor.
Deuteronomy 4:26-17 - I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you this day that you will quickly perish from the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess. You will not live long upon it, but will be utterly destroyed. Then the LORD will scatter you among the peoples, and only a few of you will survive among the nations to which the LORD will drive you.
Jeremiah 14:12 - Though they fast, I will not hear their cry, and though they offer burnt offering and grain offering, I will not accept them. But I will consume them by the sword, by famine, and by pestilence
Jeremiah 15:8 - Their widows will be increased to Me more than the sand of the seas; I will bring against them, Against the mother of the young men, A plunderer at noonday; I will cause anguish and terror to fall on them suddenly.
These are only a handful of examples that prove God's character is often shown to be in complete opposition to Paul's description of love.
To describe God as love itself is incorrect - not by my standard - but by the standard of the Bible itself.
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