#WordForTodayDevotional
Friday June 24, 2022
CHARACTERISTICS OF YAHWEH’S KIND OF LOVE (11): BELIEVES ALL THINGS
… is ever ready to believe the best of every person, …
1 Corinthians 13:7 (AMPC)
The word translated as “believes” in the second phrase is “pisteu.” The New Testament Greek Lexicon meaning for the word includes: to think to be true, to be persuaded of, to credit, place confidence in, to trust, etc. Once again, Apostle Paul is speaking about our relationships within the body of HaMashiach. Apostle Paul is not calling for a foolish gullibility. However, being guarded against the possibility of being taken advantage of is not correct either. Obviously, this does not mean that we are to lose all discernment when we love someone. In fact, Apostle Paul prays for the Philippians to have a love characterized by discernment. In Philippians 1:9-10 (NKJV), we read, ‘And this I pray, that your love may abound still more and more in knowledge and all discernment, 10 that you may approve the things that are excellent, that you may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ,’
So what does “believes all things” mean? It means that we are to have confidence in the one we love, to trust them and to always give them the benefit of the doubt, believing the best of them. It is a relationship that is not filled with suspicion, but trust. We use an expression today, “innocent until proven guilty,” that can apply here. Imagine what that does for a person to be loved like that, to be trusted and believed, to know that they have someone’s confidence. Does this mean that we leave ourselves vulnerable to being disappointed or betrayed? Yes. However, the benefits of a love like this far outweigh the risks. Knowing that I am loved like this inspires me to live up to it.