Love Conquers All

Hatred stirs up strife,
But love covers all sins.

Proverbs 10:12

Reality TV has had a great amount of success.  It is often surrounding a great deal of intrigue, back-stabbing, and open conflict.  There is something in us that is drawn to conflict – that longs to repeat a nasty tale about someone else.  Furthermore, that same part of us will be drawn quite regularly to take any offense against us (actual or perceived) and begin a larger conflict.  Here, however, we see an important characteristic of godly love.  It is not loving to cause strife and conflict.  The word used for “strife” here shares a root with the word for brawling.  It is hatred that motivates us to cause and exacerbate discord and conflict.  Love, however, seeks to conceal the shortcomings of others.  This is not about hiding sin, or going easy on sin, but it does have very much to do with not letting the shortcomings of others destroy relationships.  As we love one another with God’s kind of love we will seek to cover the shame of the sins of our brothers and sisters – not publicize it and use it as an opportunity to cause more disagreement.