Looking for Hope in a Hopeless WorldShembull

# Faith, Love & Hope - Bringing it Together It is important to understand that hope does not work alone. Nothing in Christ works in isolation. All things are connected in Christ Jesus as we seek the salvation He offers us. Whether it is hope, love, faith, grace, salvation, or anything else, they are all connected and come to fullness in Christ Jesus. In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, he says: > “So faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” (1 Corinthians 13:13) It is important to know how these three come together. Let us investigate this by asking questions like, how, when, why, what, and so on. When we look at faith, hope, and love in this way, we find that they are the how, why, and what of Christianity. Think of them as a “principle” that says: > The “why” empowers the “how” to achieve the “what.” This principle links how, what, and why, and will do the same for faith, hope, and love. Love is the greatest of all because God is love and God’s love is the only thing that is eternal. Faith and hope will cease when we live with God and Jesus Christ in their eternal kingdom as we will not need to believe or hope because we will have received the promises. So love is “what” we are seeking because to love is to be transformed into the image of God and Jesus Christ. “How” do we receive the love of God? We receive God’s love by faith. All of the promises of God are received by faith, including the promise of transformation into the image of Jesus Christ. It is not possible to be transformed unless we have faith. So, faith is the “how” in the abiding work of faith, love, and hope. Faith is “how” we receive the promises of God and learn to walk in His love. Which leaves us with “why.” Why do we want to be like Christ? Why do we seek the hope of salvation that exists only in Jesus Christ? Why do we continue to seek and walk with Christ, especially when things become harder for those who profess faith in Jesus Christ? It is because of hope. We hope for a better life than the one we live in this world and that hope carries us forward to receive God’s promises. Hope is the “why” of this process. It gets us up in the morning, motivating us to achieve and receive the blessings of God. Hope is “why” we persevere, and we know that our hope in Jesus Christ is not in vain. We receive a better life now through peace, joy, mercy, forgiveness, and God’s love. And we hope for eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. When we put it all together using the “principle” described above, we get the “salvation principle.” > The “why” empowers the “how” to achieve the “what.” Or; > “Hope” empowers “Faith” to achieve God’s “Love” This is how “these three abide.” If any of these are missing, then like a three-legged stool, it will fall over. But when they abide and work together, then your hope WILL strengthen and build your faith, which WILL lead to God’s love.