To put it simply, love does not like evil. So what does evil mean?
According to Merriam-Webster and Cambridge online dictionary it means:
- The condition of being immoral, cruel, or bad, or an act of this type.
- Causing harm
- morally bad, cruel, or very unpleasant
- Something that is very bad and harmful
If you replace evil with these definitions, you get:
Love does not rejoice in immoral, cruel, bad, or harmful conditions or acts.
What does rejoice mean:
According to Merriam-Webster and Cambridge online dictionary, it means:
- To feel joy or great delight
- To feel or show great happiness
Now lets look at the sentence: Love does not feel or show great happiness, joy, or delight in immoral, cruel, bad, or harmful conditions or acts.
Wow!
I will venture to say that everyone of us evil in someway.
You may be thinking that you do any of these and that might be true, but do you think about them in any way shape or form? If so, that is rejoicing in evil. Are you trying to cover up sin or accept it as part of life because this is what the world wants it is easier then turning away from it? Then you may be rejoicing in evil. Do you love another person even when they have done the most heinous act or do you rejoice when they are found guilty? Most will rejoice when a person is found guilty and we think they got what they deserved, but the reality is we all deserve death.
This reminds me of David. David did not want Saul to die and mourned for his death and the death of Jonathon. That is love not rejoicing in evil. Lets face it, Saul was bent on the destruction of David, but David did not say yeah man you got what you deserved.
I know I have am guilty of saying you reap what you sow, but the reality is we have all sown death since we are all sinners and everyone of our sins has crucified Christ on the cross. However, God loved us enough to give us a way out and that is through Jesus.
Do you rejoice in evil? Think about this long and hard before you answer. You may be surprised. We all need to act more like Christ and love people regardless of what they have done and not rejoice when a verdict has been handed down, but rather mourn for them like David did for Saul.
I cannot say this enough, but pray to God and ask Him for help.