Skip to main content

Faith, Hope, and Love

"And now these three remain: faith, hope, and love. But the greatest of these is love."
1 Corinthians 13:13

I started pondering this verse tonight on my walk back from Bible study up at the Lighthouse. As I was dwelling on God's Word, I began to think about these three qualities individually.

Faith:
In recent months, God has revealed to me that what our faith is based upon is far more important than the quantity of our faith. If our faith is placed anywhere other than in Jesus Christ, we believe in vein because we lack truth. However, faith the size of a mustard seed can grow a multitude of fruit when that faith is in Christ.

In my studies, I have continually seen God's grace add to my faith, and I humbly give Him the credit and the glory for my faith.

Hope:
Hebrews tells us that faith is the assurance of things hoped for. So what are those things hoped for? Where is my hope? Where are my sights set? My hope is in the promise of Jesus Christ that all who believe in Him will not perish but have eternal life. My eyes are fixed on Jesus, the author and perfecter of my faith. The transformation I have experienced is more than enough assurance that Jesus is who He says He is. Just because the world laughs at the mere mention of Christ, does not mean that He is any less real and that His message is any less true. Be assured that Jesus indeed rose from the dead and will return. Let us hope in His promise and have faith that He loves us!

Love:
Jesus said that the greatest commandment is to love the Lord your God. The second greatest is to love your neighbor as yourself. In light of our faith and our hope, love should prevail. It pours out from a sincere faith and overcomes the hatred found in the world. Love is patient and kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

Lord, may we learn to love in the way that you love us. May we rejoice with the truth. May we trust and persevere knowing that all things work for the good of those who love you who are called according to your purpose. May we know your love that never fails. Amen

Comments

  1. EHDecember 17, 2008 at 9:41 PM

    I read this in Francis Chan's new book- insert your name in the verse for love example- Matt is patient so on and so forth lets just say I might of failed the exam. Hey good thoughts here.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

  “Where grace exists, it reigns.”   C. H. Spurgeon I’m scared of grace.   And this realization comes in the midst of a journey I’ve been on that has the fingerprints of God all over it.   If we were to gather 50 Christians in the same room and invite people to share adjectives that come to mind when trying to describe “grace,” I doubt “scary” would be anyone’s answer.   (It probably wouldn’t be mine either, in case anyone is thinking I’m exalting this term in some sort of holier-than-thou way.)   We’d hear things like amazing, undeserved, free, kind, love.   Of course, it’s inevitable that the crucifixion of Jesus is vocalized in some way.   Essentially, we’d have a huge list of very positive and affirming adjectives that rightly depict the wonderful activity and riches of God’s grace.   What if we asked a slightly different question?   How would we answer, “how does a person obtain grace?”   I’m guessing we’d start throwing out an...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Convicting And Compelling Gospel

Which adjective in the title more closely aligns with your predisposed way of thinking about and speaking the gospel to yourself and others?   Are you more likely to present a gospel that is heavy on the convicting realities of sin, righteousness and judgment?   Or do you find yourself more readily appealing to the benefits of following Jesus?   If you think about it, neither adjective fully encapsulates the message of Jesus.   It’s right to compel people using the promises of God and the joy filled benefits of a life submitted to Jesus.   But it’s also right to warn of the consequences of rejecting Him.   Since we’re all naturally inclined to emphasize one, we need to allow the other to constrain us, to balance us from taking our natural disposition to the extreme, which may confuse the gospel and the Jesus we wish to present.   Let me attempt to illustrate one example of an unconstrained leaning toward each in turn.   A compelling gospel that is...
Post a Comment
Read more

Walking Like Christ

If I could only choose one book of the Bible and vote it "Most Convicting" I just might choose 1 John. I have been studying 1 John for a couple of weeks now, and I'm almost half way through chapter 2! :) John's pattern so far has been alternating between statements of light and statements of darkness. So far, my study has caused me to pause several times and consider how my life "stacks up" when compared to John's clear and frank approach to the Christian life. This morning, 1 John 2:6 really stood out to me. It reads: whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked. How did Christ walk? As I reflected on the life of Jesus as told in the Gospels, a lot of events came to my mind. Often, I think Christians have a tendency to view Jesus as compassionate and gentle while forgetting the passion and aggression that He displayed at times. He made a whip and drove the vendors out of the temple. He spoke with adulterers, a...
Post a Comment
Read more