Love is not rude.
(1 Corinthians 13:5 NCV)
I once heard a song about a man who goes to his girlfriend’s house to ask for her hand in marriage. For reasons unknown to us, the man is told “No” by the girl’s father, but insists that he will marry her anyway (who’s really being rude here?). Yet in this very strange song, I find a problem that persists in the world today. Men and women, who do not have their parents’ blessing, proceed to say their “I do’s.” After all, there’s nothing that parents can do to prevent their grownup children from doing so. Parents (and other people) who disapprove of the marriage are regarded as being “rude”, even though oftentimes, they are the only ones who can see the red flags in the relationship and love us enough to point them out when everyone else would rather shrug them off.
So as romantic as the song may sound for some people, there’s nothing romantic to me about disrespecting and overstepping others to get what we want. Biblically speaking, that’s not what real love is about. In First Corinthians 13:4-7, also known as the “Love Chapter,” and which is ironically read at many weddings, the apostle Paul has the following to say about love:
Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous, it does not brag, and it is not proud. Love is not rude, is not selfish, and does not get upset with others. Love does not count up wrongs that have been done. Love takes no pleasure in evil but rejoices over the truth. Love patiently accepts all things. It always trusts, always hopes, and always endures. Now these are words worth listening to.
Rising with the Son 