Just Making Noise

JUST MAKING NOISE

"If I speak in the tongues (languages) of men and of angels, but not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging symbol."
I Corinthians 13:1(NIV)

When I think of a resounding gong or a clanging symbol I think of a bunch of meaningless, annoying, and useless noise. I can't think of any use of a gong, unless back in earlier times they used it as a warning signal, and a cymbol is only of good use in it's place in music.

This chapter in Corinthians is called the "Love Chapter", it's a whole chapter on what Love is. My focus today is not on Love as much as it is on how pointless our words are if they are not backed up or based in love. I work around a lot of people who claim to be christian and go to church, but how they act, treat people, and their attitude and actions sounds more like a annoying gong or loud symbol than it does the sweet sound of the love of God.

I have to admit it really bums me out. When I first went to work at this dept. when I was a temp at toyota and found out several of them went to church I was excited, until I found out how they treated people, including me. It made me realize our attitude and how we treat others is so important, not only to our witness, but to God's glory. If we stab people in the back, lie, gossip, slander, cause dissension, and habitually gripe then we are just making noise and not expressing love.

A lot of people can attend church, wear a name, sing in a Christian group, serve in a ministry position, or claim a lot of things in the name of God, but they are just making noise if they are not living and acting upon their faith, conviction, and personal love relationship with God.

I do not claim perfection, Lord knows I complain and have my faults, but the moment I stop loving people, treating people out of my love for God, then I got problems. I don't care how much I read my bible, how much I attend church, or how involved I get in ministry, if I don't love people the way God loves me and others, then It's a complete waste of time.

God has never asked us to be perfect. He knows we will make mistakes, that is why Jesus had to die. However, grace is never an excuse to not love others and you can't love others and God when you willfully and live a lifestyle of noise making and no love showing.

Show the love this week and examine parts of your lives and see if you are just making noise or if your life speaks of God's love.