HOW TO CHECK OUR ATTITUDE

by Rev. Joda Collins

First Corinthians 13 is known as the "Love Chapter" of the Bible.  Verses 1 through 8 provide a detailed list of the attitude and behavior of love and the actions and behavior that are less than loving.  Anytime we want to check our attitude and actions against God's standard it is both easy and wise to do so. 

 

Love is not rude, arrogant, prideful, self-centered or easily offended.  Love does not keep a record of wrongs. Love is not happy when others incur injustice or when others are wronged.  Love gives the other person the benefit of the doubt.  Love is not resentful or envious of others.  Love does not "get-even."

 

Love is kind, seeks the best for others, patiently endures wrongs for a long time, causes us to act in gracious ways and insists on seeing others blessed. Love is happy to see others succeed at goodness and/or receive blessings for being good.  Love allows us to rejoice when truth is promoted and understood.  Love sacrifices for the benefit of others.  Love causes extreme laughter for love rejoices with the others in time of their celebration.  Love causes extreme pain because we learn to feel the pain of others and find ourselves weeping because of their sorrow.

 

Loving is not easy. However, it is right.

 

Human beings are emotional creations.  Certainly, we have logic, but logic leads us to action and action is, largely, a by-product of feelings. Emotions are between logic and action.

 

When we "feel" a certain way about someone, it is important to check our feelings against the by-product of those feelings. What would happen to that person if our feelings about them were satisfied?  If the results (by-product) of our feelings would be things that are not indicative of love, then we should repent of our feelings, back track our feelings to the sinful logic that caused wrong feelings and repent of that logic.   This is not easy.  Anyone who has tired it will tell you it is not easy.

 

However, Christians are supernatural beings. We can do all things through Jesus Christ.  (Phil. 4:13.)  I wish it was always automatic.  However, it takes time and effort.   (Phil. 2:12-16.)

 

Loving others does not mean that we are the doormats or the spittoons of the universe. It does mean we have to control our emotions.  It does mean we have to be willing to check our attitude. It does mean we have to be willing to check our thinking for as a man thinks in his heart, that is what he is.  (Prov. 23:7.)

 

Be somebody great for God.  Do not float along with the current. Create the current!

Rev. Joda Collins

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I make no claim that my views are shared by anyone else.