Last post I shared about fervent love mentioned in 1 Peter 4:7-9.
We must first exercise this fervent (hot) love must in our marriages and families. It would be hypocritical to demonstrate fervent love toward friends and associates and yet fail to live a life of fervent love to those who are closest to us. Sadly, this is often the case with many Christian marriages and families.
All too often, children see their parents putting on a façade to strangers or people outside their immediate family. The children must often think, “if only these people knew how bad and unliving it is at home.”
Marriage, home, and family are obviously, and without doubt, the first place we should display fervent love. It is those who are closest to us who really know us and know how true and fervent our love really is.
1 Peter 4:8 says: “Love shall cover the multitude of sins.” Fervent love is the antidote to bitter debate, slander, criticism, tale-bearing, and gossip. The old maxim says: “If you don’t have anything good to say, don’t say anything at all.”
It is only fervent love that covers a multitude of sins. Some may argue the point concerning the subject of “covering a multitude sins.” They think they are doing right by telling the world about the sins, weaknesses, and failures of others. They even enjoy doing it for it makes them appear more righteous than those they are running down or whose reputation they are destroying.
To be honest, I think it should give us great pain to talk against people we should be loving. It can be appropriate to seek godly counsel from church leadership if you are concerned that innocent people are being hurt or could be hurt. In some cases, it is appropriate to stand up and say something if it is not with the intention of spreading gossip, hatred, or malice.
You may need to execute the biblical premise of Matthew 18:15-20. Very often matters can be cleaned up by going to the accused first and hearing their side of the accusation.
We should never say something bad about someone behind their backs that we have not already spoken to them face to face. When Jesus went to the cross, He did not to go condemn, criticize, judge, or slander the world. He went to the cross to save the world. We can never take John 3:16, 17 for granted: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.”
Jesus was the greatest example of fervent love “covering a multitude of sins.” His blood covers more than a multitude of sins for it covers all of the sins of the world from Adam to the end of time.
More to come on this subject next post.
Be encouraged.
Colin Campbell