Love Is Not Rude Series

INTRODUCTION

OPENING SERIES SLIDE

- What is not love?

- Today, we will take a journey inspired by Paul’s writing in 1 Corinthians 13 as we examine the subject of love being not rude.

SLIDE #1 MY TITLE SLIDE

- Love is not Rude; put another way, love is not like a blob of Play-Doh.

SLIDE #2 TWO KEY QUESTIONS

- In our series, Love Better, we are seeking two objectives.

- How can we love other Christians better, and secondly, how can we live with people in our community better?

- If you noticed, the message's subtitle today is Love is not like a blob of Play-Doh.

- I want to thank Arron Chambers for the illustration I will use throughout the message today to illustrate what Paul says when he tells in our passage that love is not rude.

SILDE #3 FAMOUS PLAY-DOH SLIDE

- What you see on the slide is a work of art!

SLIDE #4 Why it is art.

- This masterpiece is the famous Play-Doh sculpture.

- Bet you did not know that.

- The artist, Jeff Kunz worked on this masterpiece for nearly 20.

- The sculpture is made of aluminum and stands 11 feet tall.

- The piece sold at a Christie’s Auction in 2018 for a small sum of over $20 million!

- How does a blob of what looks to be Play-Doh come to be worth over $20 million dollars?

- I want to focus our attention on blobs this morning—what we do with them and what God does with them.

- What does a “Play-Doh” sculpture have to do with love not being rude?

- Hang with me, and let's find out!

- If we want to love better, we can’t be rude.

1 Corinthians 13:5 NET 2nd ed.

5 It is not rude, it is not self-serving, it is not easily angered or resentful.

SERMON

SLIDE #5 MAIN POINT SLIDE 1

I. Understanding Rudeness as Lack of Godly Shape.

- ‘Love is not rude’ is found in 1 Corinthians 13:5, where the Apostle Paul describes the characteristics of true love.

- When you think of the word RUDE, what comes to mind?

- Being rude often stems from selfishness, impatience, or disregarding others’ feelings.

- When we think of the word RUDE, we see someone who is selfish, and all the above, we see someone who has no consideration for the thoughts and feelings of others.

- A rude person is one who will do whatever it takes to get what they want, the way they want it.

- If you do not understand what a rude person is, well.

- I will leave it at that.

- We understand that love does not behave disrespectfully or offensively, nor inappropriately or inconsiderately toward others.

SLIDE #6 BIBLICAL FOUNDATION

- If we abandon the concept of rudeness, we will never get to the root of the problem.

- The Bible paints a deeper picture of what the word means.

- So, let’s look at the biblical meaning of the word.

SLIDE #7 TRUE MEANING

- The word RUDE means to act unbecomingly, dishonorably, or disgracefully. It refers to improper or indecent behavior, especially in social or relational interactions.

- RUDE is only used in 1 Corinthians 13:5 and 1 Corinthians 7:36.

- In 1 Corinthians 7:36, the word is used in the context of a man misbehaving toward his betrothed or a young woman under his care, suggesting an action that may bring dishonor or social disgrace.

- This usage reinforces the idea that RUDE conveys conduct that is shameful, inappropriate, or lacking propriety.

- In the context of love, Paul emphasizes that genuine love does not behave offensively, crudely, or inconsiderately toward others.

- Love does not act inappropriately that would embarrass, shame, or dishonor someone.

- Instead, love promotes dignity, courtesy, and respect in all relationships.

- Let’s go a little deeper into the water with the word RUDE.

- The root of the word RUDE is a word we looked at before, SHEMA,

- This word in Greek generally means “form,” “figure,” or “appearance.”

- It often refers to the external shape or outward form of something.

- When you dig deeper, you will see that in the original language, the word rude is defined as “to act unbecomingly.”

- If you look even deeper, it means “to be considered unseemly because one lacks proper shape.”

- Chambers, Arron. Love Better: Recapturing the Power of One of the Most Misapplied Scriptures in the Bible (p. 29). (Function). Kindle Edition.

SLIDE #8 BLOB METAPHOR

- Herein lies the metaphor of the blob of Play-Doh.

- The real issue is not that a person is rude, but WHY they are rude!

- Looking at the root of the word for RUDE helps us to see that a person is RUDE because they are not shaped properly.