Antithesis of Love – 1 Corinthians 13

Do you love anyone?

I’m guessing your answer is “yes!”

But how well do you love them?

If we look at God’s love as the perfect example of how we can love well, we see:

“Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.” 

1 Corinthians 13:4-7

The love described here is God’s unconditional love.

This passage tells us the things that love IS and IS NOT.

But have you ever thought of what the opposite of this love is by finding the opposite of each of these character traits? Here’s my humble attempt:

The opposite of Love is:

  • impatient,
  • unkind or withholding kindness,
  • jealous,
  • boastful, and arrogant.

The opposite of Love:

  • acts unbecomingly and is rude.
  • It seeks the interests of self instead of seeking the interests of others.
  • It is easily provoked and irritable.
  • It is unforgiving and judgmental.
  • It rejoices in unrighteousness.

The opposite of Love:

  • runs from difficulties,
  • is unbelieving, cynical, and suspicious,
  • feels there is no hope, and
  • gives up.

The opposite of love fails to accomplish the will of God because it does not come from God.

There are many things in life that will change and pass away, and if the antithesis of love is all there is, what a sad existence we have to look forward to!

But God is love, and His love is light, and in Him dwells NOT ONE of the above forms of darkness at all. In Him there is not even a shadow, no hidden pockets, no dark closets, only light.

And since His Holy Spirit dwells in each of His children, He makes that beautiful love and light available in them, for them, and for them to share with others.

We who are His children do not have to wait until we get to heaven to experience His resplendent love.

He longs to share it with us here and now and to shine it through us to this dark and hurting world.

Lord, please forgive us for wandering into love’s antithesis, through our selfishness and pride, instead of dwelling in You and in Your perfect love. Please fill us with Your Holy Spirit and cause Your love to thrill us and overflow to those around us. In  Jesus’ name, Amen.

 

Linking up with:

Faith ‘n Friends

30 thoughts on “Antithesis of Love – 1 Corinthians 13”

    1. Thank you, T.R.! Yes, I think we get focused on love being a feeling and insist that we love someone, when in reality, we are treating them in a very unloving way without realizing it because we are not defining love the way God defines it. Maybe the more the word gets out, the more people can become aware of exactly what God really expects of us when He tells us to love one another as He loved us and to love our neighbor as ourselves. And of course, we need to also emphasize that we can only do that by abiding in Him, for apart from Him, we can do nothing.
      Grace and peace to you, dear sister! Welcome back! 🙂 ❤

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Absolutely! Amen!!! Christ is reflective of love and when we are not being Christlike, we are not loving. It’s very true.

        I wrote a post in 2016 called Secret of Love Chapter and God opened my eyes to how powerful love truly is, and as you shared, what it is not.

        Amazing stuff!!!

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    1. You’re right, Beth! While unbelief, suspicion, and losing hope are related to fear, this verse just gets it out there and explains it further. It could also be said that the opposite of love is fearful and that the opposite of love causes fear in others.
      Thanks for sharing this verse in this context as it helps me understand that verse better.

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Wow! I love the way you put that, Dawn: “-showing the light by painting the shadows-“!
      Thank you! Yes, often with scriptures that we’ve heard so often, we start just skimming over them because we think we’ve got it. We can always dig a little deeper to find those nuggets of gold.

      Liked by 1 person

    1. I’m reminded of
      1 John 4:18. In the Amplified version it reads, “There is no fear in love [dread does not exist]. But perfect (complete, full-grown) love drives out fear, because fear involves [the expectation of divine] punishment, so the one who is afraid [of God’s judgment] is not perfected in love [has not grown into a sufficient understanding of God’s love].”

      Liked by 1 person

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